Equipment Inventory Management

Track physical hardware from stockroom to customer — ONTs, CPE routers, access points, switches, and deployment lifecycles.

Tracking physical hardware from stockroom to customer

In addition to managing core MikroTik gateway routers, modern internet service providers must track dozens or hundreds of physical client devices deployed in the field. Customer premise equipment (CPEs), optical network terminals (ONTs), outdoor access points, fiber switches, and Ethernet cables represent substantial capital investment.

In your Nukta dashboard, navigate to Devices → Equipment to access your centralized hardware inventory. This workspace allows your team to monitor stock levels, link hardware directly to customer profiles, track serial numbers, and account for equipment costs.

Core gateways vs client equipment

It is important to understand the operational difference between the two device categories in Nukta:

• Managed MikroTik Gateways (Devices → Mikrotiks): The core routing hardware running RouterOS v7 that connects to Nukta over WireGuard, enforces bandwidth rate limits, hosts hotspot captive portals, and terminates PPPoE client tunnels.
• Equipment Inventory (Devices → Equipment): All physical peripheral and client-side devices deployed across your network (such as home Wi-Fi routers, ONTs, outdoor radios, and media converters). These items are tracked for asset management, customer warranty, and billing reconciliation.

Supported equipment types

Nukta categorizes equipment into eight standard hardware types:

Equipment Type	Description & Typical Deployment
Router	Home Wi-Fi routers (e.g., TP-Link, Tenda, Mercusys) installed in customer premises to broadcast local Wi-Fi.
Access Point	Outdoor antennas, UniFi ceiling discs, or sector radios deployed at hotspot sites and towers.
ONT	Optical Network Terminals terminating fiber optic drop cables at residential or business premises.
CPE	Customer Premise Equipment including wireless dish receivers (e.g., MikroTik LHG, Ubiquiti LiteBeam).
Modem	4G/5G LTE modems or DSL transceivers used for upstream backhaul.
Switch	Managed and unmanaged distribution switches (PoE switches, fiber aggregation units).
Cable	Fiber optic patch cords, pre-terminated drop cables, or rolls of Cat6 outdoor cable.
Other	Power over Ethernet (PoE) injectors, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), media converters, and brackets.

The equipment lifecycle: statuses

Every piece of equipment in your inventory is tagged with an operational lifecycle status:

• In Stock: The device is tested, catalogued, and sitting in your office or technician vehicle ready for dispatch.
• Assigned: The hardware has been installed at a customer's home or business premises and linked to their customer profile.
• Returned: Equipment recovered from a departing or relocated customer. Returned units can be inspected and returned to "In Stock" status.
• Damaged: Faulty hardware damaged by power surges, lightning, or physical breakage, pending repair or write-off.
• Sold: Equipment sold outright to the customer as part of an installation package.

Key financial and inventory metrics

At the top of the Devices → Equipment workspace, four real-time KPI cards summarize your physical inventory:

• Total Devices: Cumulative count of all hardware assets registered across your ISP.
• In Stock: Number of available units ready for immediate customer dispatch.
• Assigned: Number of units currently deployed in the field.
• Inventory Cost Basis: The total acquisition value of all hardware in your inventory, calculated in your selected currency.
• Collected Amount: Total payments received from customers for equipment sales, deposits, or installation fees.

Adding and deploying equipment

Step 1: Add equipment to your stockroom

When a shipment of new hardware arrives at your warehouse:

1. In your dashboard, open Devices → Equipment.
2. Click Add Equipment.
3. Fill in the hardware details:
   • Device Name: A clear descriptive name (e.g., TP-Link WR840N 300Mbps Home Router).
   • Equipment Type: Select from Router, Access Point, ONT, CPE, Modem, Switch, or Cable.
   • Hardware Model: Manufacturer model number (e.g., TL-WR840N or HG8546M).
   • Serial Number: Physical serial number printed on the hardware box or device barcode.
   • Cost Price: What your business paid for the device in your selected currency.
   • Sale / Deposit Price: What you charge the customer upon installation.
   • Status: Set to In Stock.
4. Click Save Equipment. The device is now logged in your warehouse inventory.

Step 2: Assign equipment to a customer

When a field technician installs the device at a customer's premises:

1. Open Devices → Equipment and locate the item in the In Stock tab.
2. In the action menu, select Edit Equipment.
3. Change Status from In Stock to Assigned.
4. Select the target customer from the Assigned Customer picker.
5. Click Update Equipment.

The hardware is now permanently bound to the customer's record. Support agents viewing the customer in Users → Customers → View Customer can immediately see which router model and serial number are installed at their location.

Equipment returns and decommissioning

When a customer moves away or upgrades to newer hardware:

1. Open Devices → Equipment and search for the customer's name, phone number, or device serial number.
2. Click Edit Equipment.
3. If the unit was recovered in working condition, set status to Returned and unassign the customer. Once cleaned and tested, move it back to In Stock.
4. If the unit was damaged by electrical surges or physical wear, set status to Damaged and add a note in the description field.
5. If the item is permanently decommissioned or scrapped, you can remove it using Delete Equipment.