Agent-less discovery of software components

A method of performing discovery of a software component, comprising:

• determining whether the discovery is by an agent-less process or a process using an agent;
• in the event the determination is made that the discovery is by an agent-less process, selecting agent-less indicators for a software component;
• probing at least one target computer according to the selected agent-less indicators;
• receiving the results of the probe according to the selected agent-less indicators;
• comparing the results of the probe according to the selected agent-less indicators at least one component blueprint to determine if there is one or more software components that match the results of the probe;
• in the event the determination is made that one or more software components match the results of the probe, selecting at least one agent-less verification rule, the selected one or more verification rules corresponding to the one or more software components that match the results of the probe;
• applying the at least one or more selected verification rules;
• receiving the results of the application of the agent-less verification rules;
• and
• comparing the results of the application of the agent-less verification rules to at least one expected result of the agent verification rules to verify the existence of a software component corresponding to the selected agent-less verification rules.