This article introduces the main concepts behind Hudu — the mental model of how information is organized — so you can see how Hudu becomes a central information hub for your team, whatever kind of business you run. Once these building blocks click, everything else in Hudu is easier to navigate.
For a tour of where these concepts live in the interface, see Your Hudu Environment, and start with Welcome if you're brand new to Hudu.
Core concepts
Hudu organizes information in a consistent hierarchy: spaces at the top, asset layouts and assets inside them, and cards and fields that structure the details of each asset. The sections below walk through each layer.
Spaces
Most information in Hudu is separated into spaces — the highest level of organization in your environment. By default these are called companies, but the label is purely cosmetic and can be changed to clients, locations, divisions, or whatever fits your business.
A space holds the passwords, websites, assets, and everything else you maintain for one client, company, or location. Every space uses the same standardized structure, so navigating information is consistent for your team no matter which space they're in. While spaces are typically internal-only, each can have a customizable, read-only external sharing portal enabled to share information with end users.
You can change what spaces are called in the Hudu admin area, under the General tab (the setting that controls how your documentation is structured). This is a label change only and has no effect on functionality. Our articles use "client" throughout, but you're not required to structure your documentation that way.
Asset layouts & assets
Asset layouts are the building blocks of information in Hudu — structured, cross-client containers that organize documentation within each space. Build one from a pre-built Hudu template or create a fully custom layout. Once created and activated, a layout appears on the left-hand sidebar in all of your spaces (unused ones can be hidden per space).
Asset layouts help document client configurations and infrastructure, organize data pulled from integrations or the REST API, and link to related content like passwords, processes, and credentials. Any individual item stored within an asset layout is called an asset — a specific contact, a server, a network device, and so on.
Visit Asset Layouts and Assets for additional information.
Cards & fields
Within an asset, information is organized into cards and fields. A card is a grouping of information that comes into Hudu from a single source — manual input, an import, the API, or an integration. Fields then organize the information within a card. Custom fields are added to an asset layout in the Hudu admin area under Asset Layouts, and anything entered in those fields appears in the asset's custom card.
A single asset can — and often will — have multiple cards, each from a different source. By default, data synced from an integration lands in its own dedicated card rather than in your custom fields, keeping sources cleanly separated under the same named asset.
Want integration data to appear directly in a custom field (so it shows in list views and is fully searchable)? Use Connected Fields to map specific integration data points onto custom fields. The field's asset layout must be a sync location for that integration.
Visit Understanding Integrations and Connected Fields for additional information.
Putting it all together
Here's how the layers fit:
- Your business manages a lot of information, brought into Hudu by manual input, import, the RESTful API, or third-party integrations.
- However it arrives, that information is organized into cards — one per source — and cards relating to the same thing sit under the same named asset.
- Assets live inside asset layouts, the categorizing units that standardize documentation across every space.
- Spaces are the top level, dividing everything by whatever commonality you choose (client, location, hospital, and so on).
- The standardized tools in each space manage passwords, processes, networks, racks, knowledge, websites, and expirations.
- Finally, any of it can be shared through the customizable, read-only, free external sharing portal.
The tools inside every space
Alongside these concepts, each space comes with a standardized set of tools — password management, processes, a knowledge base, photos, network management (IPAM), rack management, website & SSL monitoring, expiration tracking, and external sharing. Because these are covered in depth elsewhere, this article doesn't re-document each one.
Visit Your Hudu Environment for an overview of each tool and where it lives in the interface.
FAQ
Think of them as nested layers. An asset layout is the container/category (e.g. "People" or "Servers"). An asset is a single item inside that layout (one person, one server). A card is a block of information on that asset from one source (manual entry, an integration, the API). A field is an individual piece of information within a card (e.g. serial number, email address).
Yes. You can change the label in the Hudu admin area under the General tab. It's a cosmetic change only and doesn't affect any functionality — pick whatever matches how your business is organized (clients, locations, divisions, and so on).
You're not required to use integrations. Information can be brought into Hudu by manual input, import, the RESTful API, or third-party integrations — in any combination. However it arrives, it's organized into cards under the relevant asset.
Not by default. Integration data lands in its own card, separate from your custom card, so your manual entries stay intact. The exception is a Connected Field: if you map a custom field to an integration data point, that field is populated by the integration and will be overwritten on each sync.
Troubleshooting
This is expected default behavior — synced integration data populates its own card, not your custom fields. To surface it inside a custom field, set up Connected Fields. A few requirements to note:
- The field's asset layout must be a sync location for that integration (by sort rule or primary/default sync location), or the connection dropdowns won't appear.
- Some field types can't be connected — including list select, asset link, heading, and confidential text.
- Custom fields created within the integration itself aren't available for connection yet.
Visit Connected Fields for additional information.
Two common causes:
- Not activated. A layout must be created and activated (Hudu admin >> Asset Layouts) before it appears in your spaces.
- "Hide Empty Items" is on. The toggle at the bottom of the left-hand sidebar hides layouts with no data for the current space, saved per space — so an empty layout can look missing until you toggle it back off.
Visit Asset Layouts for additional information.
Connected fields are not bidirectional. The value is pulled from the integration, so any edit you make in Hudu is overwritten on the next sync. To change the value permanently, edit it at the source in the integration — or disconnect the field if you want to manage it manually in Hudu.