The Discovery Questionnaire: Questions to Ask
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In this lesson, you will learn:
- The eight question groups
- Example questions in each group
- What a weak answer looks like
🔁 Quick look back: Last time: How to Run a Discovery Requirements Workshop. You learned how to plan and run focused Discovery requirements workshops.
1 The Problem: Missing Questions Become Surprises Later
On a past project, nobody asked about restricted zones. In week 7, scans of a finance subnet failed, and security asked why anyone tried. Missing questions cause:
- Late firewall requests.
- Wrong MID Server placement.
- Scans of devices that must never be touched.
👉 The fix: Use a standard questionnaire with eight groups, and don’t skip any group.
2 Example questions
| Group | Example question |
|---|---|
| Sites and zones | Which subnets exist at each site, and who owns each? |
| Servers | How many servers run each OS and version? |
| Network devices | Is SNMPv3 allowed? Are any devices managed by a third party? |
| Virtual and cloud | Which vCenters and cloud accounts exist? |
| Applications | Which in-house apps matter most? |
| Restricted areas | Which zones block inbound connections? |
| Exclusions | Which devices could be harmed by a scan? |
| CMDB use | Who will use the data, and what decisions will it support? |
3 Spotting weak answers
- ‘About 60 servers’ means nobody has counted. Ask for a list.
- ‘SNMP should be fine’ means nobody has checked. Ask for a test.
- ‘Nothing is off limits’ is rarely true. Ask about building systems, medical or payment devices.
💡 Good to know: A weak answer isn’t a failure. It’s a ‘to confirm’ item with an owner.
4 Project Clear View: How We Implemented It
📍 Situation: Ravi and Priya filled in the questionnaire before kickoff, but some answers were vague.
🧭 Decision: Walk through all eight groups in the workshops, and chase every weak answer.
🛠️ Steps we took:
- Reviewed the answers before the infrastructure workshop.
- Marked six weak answers, such as ‘about 62 servers’.
- Asked for evidence: Priya’s server export, Ravi’s subnet list.
- Added a question the form missed: ‘Which zones block inbound traffic?’
✅ What we verified:
- All eight groups have answers or owned ‘to confirm’ items.
- The Finance zone was found through the restricted areas question.
📁 Evidence: The answered Clear View questionnaire, filed with the workshop notes.
5 Quick recap
- The questionnaire has eight groups. Don’t skip any.
- Ask for lists and exports, not estimates.
- A weak answer becomes a ‘to confirm’ item.
- The restricted areas question found SNWR’s Finance zone.
6 Check yourself
Think of your answer first. Then tap to check.
1 Name four of the eight question groups. Show answer
Any four of: sites and zones, servers, network devices, virtual and cloud, applications, restricted areas, exclusions, CMDB use.
2 What does ‘about 60 servers’ tell you? Show answer
Nobody has counted. Ask for a real list.
3 Which question found SNWR’s Finance zone? Show answer
Which zones block inbound connections? (restricted areas)
Nice work! You know which questions to ask a client. 🎉
Next up: Sites, Network Zones and Subnets
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