AMD PRO A-SERIES APUS: OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT OVERVIEW

Transcription

1 AMD PRO A-SERIES APUS: OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT OVERVIEW

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 3 OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT 4 What is Out-of-Band Client Management? 4 How Open Standards Can Benefit Your Business 5 DMFT DASH: OPEN STANDARDS FOR OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT Key Features of Out-of-Band Management with DASH 6 APPLYING DASH TO REAL OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT NEEDS Manage Power Consumption 7 Accelerate Patch Saturation 8 Remotely Re-Image PCs 8 Reduce Desk-Side Service Visits 8 Remote Diagnosis, Remote Repair 8 Remote Diagnosis, Local Repair 8 Improve Platform Auditing 9 PUTTING DASH TO WORK 10 Making DASH Real 10 DASH in the Market 10 SUMMARY OF CRITICAL USE CASES

3 AMD PRO A-Series APUs deliver industry-backed manageability solutions built on open standards that not only work within your existing environment but also enable freedom of choice and addresses user needs without creating vendor lock-in at a great value. In this communication, we will focus on the essential client management features that AMD enables in every PRO A-Series APU. You will learn how AMD platforms with DASH support help solve critical use cases for out-of-band client management and help enable business productivity while maintaining control of IT costs. What is Client Management Technology? Client manageability technology is any solution that allows an IT manager to identify and perform management functions on the PC s, Tablets, thin clients and smart phones that are in his/her network or otherwise accessible. Such management functions include: virus patching, asset inventory management, BIOS updates, diagnostics, powering on and off the clients, etc. The components of a manageability solution may include: A management console, which an IT administrator uses to monitor and manage client devices. One or more agent processes running on the managed client system A central repository to store information about the managed clients To support out-of-band management, a client system typically requires a Network Controller that supports out-of-band management tasks, such as the Broadcom There are two kinds of manageability solutions: In-Band, and Out-of-Band. In-Band typically means that all of the client devices are powered on, the OS is running, and the device can be accessed via the network. Out-of- Band means the client devices still have to be accessible via the network, but may be managed even though they are powered off or in a sleep state. AMD supports the DASH (Desktop and mobile Architecture for Systems Hardware) standard of the DMTF (Desktop and Mobile Task Force), an open industry standards consortium. Because it is backed by a consortium of industry leaders, DASH based implementations offer a highly competitive out-of-band manageability feature set and enables IT manager s greater flexibility in managing a multi-vendor client environment. DASH and out-of-band management functionality is enabled in all AMD PRO A-Series APUs and is available on many AMD-based PCs for business. 3

4 Out-of- Band Client Management Your organization depends on you to keep its desktop and mobile computers up and running. When systems break down, getting them back up becomes an urgent priority regardless of where they are located. AMD PRO A-Series APUs enable affordable and easy-to-use management tools and features to remotely manage client systems that are powered on (in-band) with a responsive operating system (in-service) as well as when the clients are powered off (out-of-band) or have a nonresponsive operating system (out-of-service). What is Out-of-Band Client Management? Out-of-band client management technology allows you to monitor and manage client systems remotely, regardless of the computer s state, relying on a hardware-based out-of-band communication channel that is independent of the operating system. Out-of-band client management tasks can usually be performed regardless of the state of the operating system, the PC s power state, the presence of a management agent, and the state of many hardware components (such as hard disk drives and memory). Figure 1 below shows how a typical out-of-band client management system works. The client platform includes a management controller that is usually integrated with the network interface card (NIC). Network traffic for out-of-band system management tasks is routed to the management controller, which operates independent of the client s operating system, in-band management agents, or the system power state. This allows the management console to manage a client system remotely when the system is powered off or when the operating system is unavailable. You can manage the client without requiring physical access to the system to power it on, wake it up, or reboot it. Effective in-band client management solutions, which operate through software running in the operating system, are perhaps your most important tools for managing desktop and mobile client systems. However, using platforms and tools that also support out-of-band client management enables you to perform more management tasks remotely and provide better service and availability when your system is powered off or in a state where the operating system is unavailable. IN-BAND INTERFACE IN-BAND AGENTS SOFTWARE OS BIOS MANAGEMENT CONSOLES NETWORK PLATFORM OUT-OF-BAND INTERFACE MANAGEMENT CONTROLLER WITH ADVANCE REMOTE ACCESS SENSORS/CONTROL POWER/RESET FANS/TEMPERATURE LED/LCD/BUTTONS CPU/INTERNALS Figure 1 Out-of-band and in-band client management 4

5 How Open Standards Can Benefit Your Business By supporting industry standards across vendors, IT customers have the flexibility to choose the best mix of vendor platforms to meet their business needs without adding complexity to their IT environment and management processes. Support for standards across the ecosystem is also important to vendors, who can deliver complete solutions that span multiple products. To maintain choice and flexibility, consider adopting DASHenabled devices for your business environment. Created by the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF), a not-for-profit industry standards group focused on systems management and interoperability, the Desktop and mobile Architecture for System Hardware (DASH) standard has paved the way for tools and technologies that support interoperability and consistency among client system management solutions especially in remote, out-of-band, and out-of-service situations. Solutions based on DASH can help avoid the pitfalls of proprietary systems; they provide vendorneutral, platform-independent, and economical approaches to out-of-band client management. DASH is widely supported across the industry. DMTF Board members include: Broadcom Corporation, CA Technologies, Cisco, Citrix Systems Inc, Dell, Emerson Network Power, Fujitsu, HP, Hitachi Ltd, Intel Corp, Microsoft Corp, NetApp, Oracle, Software AG, Sunguard Availability Services, Telecom Italia and VMware Inc. To learn more, go to Figure 2 summarizes the differences between standards-based and proprietary solutions. PROPRIETARY Reduces choice and the ability to respond to changing business needs STANDARD-BASED Increases Flexibility and Choice Use the mix of IT solutions that best meets your needs Increased Complexity, Reduced Interoperability Managing multiple solutions can add to IT overhead Simplify Management Uniform management tools and consistent processes decrease complexities May Increase Management Costs May have to pay for an array of solutions and unneeded features Reduce IT Management Costs Simplify management of multi-vendor, distributed enterprise environments Figure 2 Comparing standards-based and proprietary solutions 5

6 AMD PRO A-SERIES APUS: OUT-OF-BAND CLIENT MANAGEMENT OVERVIEW DMFT DASH: Open Standards for Out-ofBand Client Management DASH is an open, interoperable Web servicesbased management standard for desktop and mobile client systems, for secure out-of-band and remote management in multi-vendor, distributed enterprise environments. DASH defines a common framework for managing out-of-band clients in these environments, giving you the flexibility to accomplish essential management tasks such as remote power and boot control, patching, asset inventory and remote diagnostics and troubleshooting. Key Features of Out-of-Band Management with DASH Key features of DASH include: Discovery: Discover DASH systems and their capabilities independent of system state. Power Cycle: Reset, power on/off, hibernate, or take a system into or out of a sleep state independent of its current state. Wake-onDASH is a robust, secure, routable replacement for Wake-on-LAN (WOL). Serial Console Redirection: Remotely monitor text output (console) of system during boot process. Boot Path: Remotely configure boot path/ device for next power cycle. Remote Media: Access remote media, (for example, boot an image, run diagnostics, install drivers, or re-image system). Health: Remote system health status, (for example, get hardware component status or operating system health). View Inventory: View hardware, firmware, or software. Enhanced Security: Rely on transportlevel security (HTTPS), SOAP-based protocol (WS-Management) and support for administrator roles. For more detailed information about the nuts and bolts of DASH, see the Essential Client Management with DMTF DASH white paper at: 6

7 Applying DASH to Real Out- 0f-Band Client Management Needs The promise is enticing, but what can DASH actually deliver? Which of your day-to-day tasks can be streamlined with DASH? We now look at some reallife use cases, focusing on representative common tasks that can be performed using DASH. Manage Power Consumption Just being able to remotely turn a computer on or off can greatly simplify daily client management tasks. DASH-based systems can be powered on remotely using the secure, robust Wake-on-DASH capability. DASH utilizes the WS-Management protocol, which provides a secure, session-based mechanism for powering on remote client systems across the network. Because DASH provides a robust mechanism to remotely power on client systems, you can allow PCs to go into sleep states to help reduce power consumption. These PCs can still be managed remotely, because the administrator can securely power them on when necessary. The power control features of DASH are especially compelling for IT organizations that manage remote sites with a large number of clients that are only used at certain times. Consider managing the computers for the branch offices of a bank. Instead of relying on employees to turn on and shut off their computers, you can set up automatic tasks in your management console to power off all the computers at closing time for each branch office and then remotely power them on again the next morning, helping to reduce electricity costs. MANAGE POWER CONSUMPTION Help reduce electricity costs and manage power usage Manage carbon credits ACCELERATE PATCH SATURATION Reach patch saturation quickly Update any DASH-enabled system regardless of vendor Location, system state, and power state do not matter REMOTELY RE-IMAGE PCS Helps reduce the need for deskside visits Troubleshoot and repair remotely REDUCE DESK-SIDE SERVICE VISITS Help decrease user downtime and optimize productivity Helps manage IT costs IMPROVE PLATFORM AUDITING Gather information regardless of client system or power state Helps reduce or eliminate manual platform audits Store inventory information in a central repository Helps efficiently and effectively manage software licenses Helps improve regulatory compliance 7

8 Accelerate Patch Saturation Applying updates and security patches can take up a significant amount of an IT administrator s time. With current in-band client management solutions, you can easily accomplish this task for systems that are powered on. DASH-enabled clients and consoles make it easy to update and patch remote systems that are powered off as well. For example, suppose you need to apply a critical security patch but half of the clients are powered off because it is late in the day. In a DASH-enabled environment, completing this task is very simple. Using your favorite management console, you select the affected clients and initiate an automated patching task. For the clients that are powered on, the task is completed the same way it always has been. For DASH-enabled clients that are powered off, the automated task starts the clients using the Wake-on-DASH capability, checks the status, and then applies the patches. In this example, DASH-conformant systems, regardless of vendor, can be updated whether they are on or off, with a functioning or non-functioning operating system. Remotely Re-Image PCs Suppose you need to reinstall the operating system and applications as part of troubleshooting a remote computer maybe one at a branch office of your organization. Or suppose you receive a shipment of new computers and need to preconfigure them for users or install a corporate image. There is no need for a desk-side visit; you can re-image the PCs remotely. You can remote boot the PC by redirecting it to boot from a different image, such as a network share, bootable CD-ROM or DVD, remediation drive, or other boot device. You can even remote boot a PC that has a corrupted or missing operating system. This can greatly reduce desk-side visits, and help save an organization time and money. Reduce Desk-Side Service Visits Reducing desk-side visits can help lower IT costs. DASH-based tools and technologies can further help by allowing you to perform diagnostics and troubleshooting on remote systems that are outof-band or out-of- service. With a DASH-enabled console, you can test remote systems for problems such as hardware component failures, BIOS configuration problems, operating system driver conflicts, and so on, and possibly even complete the repair on the system remotely. Remote Diagnosis, Remote Repair Consider this scenario: A DASH-enabled desktop in the sales department keeps crashing and will not boot up properly, possibly due to a missing for corrupt dynamic-link library (DLL). Typically, the frustrated user calls the help desk, and a technician attempts to diagnose the problem. Because the system will not boot, the technician can t assess the problem remotely, and is forced to make an on-site visit, or even several visits, to make a diagnoses and repair the computer. This can greatly impact user productivity and pull valuable IT resources off of other tasks. A DASH-enabled system makes a different scenario possible. Using a DASH-enabled console, you can remotely access the sales desktop, remotely boot it, and redirect the serial console output to the management console for remote troubleshooting. If the desktop fails to boot, you can redirect the platform to a known good boot image. You can then diagnose and correct the problem remotely (if hardware replacement is not necessary). You can perform all of these operations without the presence of the user, and even if the user s platform is powered off saving time and potentially eliminating a costly desk-side visit. Remote Diagnosis, Local Repair Suppose, however, that the platform cannot boot due to hardware issues such as hard drive corruption or memory failure. With a DASH-enabled system, you can diagnose the problem remotely because DASH supports out-of-band inventory access. You can identify the correct field replaceable unit (FRU) needed to perform the repair, and have the part with you when you are first dispatched to the user s desk. You can then perform the repair at the first, and hopefully only, desk-side visit. 8

9 Improve Platform Auditing DASH can also help with inventory management. Conventional tools for hardware asset discovery typically operate on an in-band basis only; they require the operating system of the target computer to be operational, and they fail if the target s platform is powered off or if the operating system is otherwise non-functional. They may also be inaccurate, as users can intentionally or inadvertently remove the software agents on which the auditing tools depend. For this reason, IT organizations have traditionally done one of two things: they have depended on users to report their IT assets, or they have sent IT staff to check on the assets manually. DASH enables a different scenario. The DASH discovery process lets you identify and audit all DASH-based hardware platforms remotely. The DASH discovery process lets you determine which clients on the network are DASH-enabled and the out-of-band management capabilities supported by the DASH-enabled clients. IT administrators can then access inventory asset data for each DASH client. Typically this inventory includes hardware component information and firmware and BIOS versions. For example, after discovering the DASH- enabled clients on a network, you can query a system that is powered off and display the hardware asset information collected by the DASH implementation. You can also specify that inventory data collected via DASH be stored along with any asset information available in your favorite management tool. The same process could be applied to software inventory. Having access to this information, particularly the physical asset details, can help reduce desk-side visits required to troubleshoot and replace a faulty part and can help make conducting inventories much easier. Remote access to asset information can help you optimize your maintenance contracts, warranties, and configurations, as well as plan for repurposing of underutilized platforms. With more, and more accurate, information, you can help make better decisions that can help have an effect on the organization s bottom line. 9

10 Putting DASH to Work Making DASH Real DASH alone is not a solution for out-of-band client management. While AMD is committed to promoting open standards, we are even more committed to making sure that the DASH standard is relevant to real IT needs. To that end, we have collaborated closely with our technology partners and vendors to develop the following open-source DASH-related tools and technologies: DASH interoperability test suite Chosen to be the DMTF official test suite Used by DASH implementers for interoperability and conformance testing DASH software reference implementation Reference for DASH implementers Simplifies testing of DASH implementations DASH console SDK Simplifies development for console and tool vendors Includes scripting APIs for DASH support AMD SCCM 2007 & 2012 Plug-ins for support of DASH Clients via Microsoft SCCM. DASH in the Market For DASH-based out-of-band client management, the computer and the management console should be DASH- enabled. This enablement is typically supported through the NIC and management controller. Many management console vendors also include DASH support in their product offerings. For example: Broadcom, a global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, made available the first network controller chip to support the new DASH management initiative, available through leading PC OEMs. Realtek Semiconductor Corp, a leading provider of semiconductors for communications network, computer peripheral, and multimedia applications, has also integrated DASH support into its Ethernet controller products. DASH support is available in numerous client platforms, including the HP Elitebook 700 series, HP EliteOne 705, HP EliteDesk 705 Mini, HP EliteDesk 705, HP 6305 and Lenovo M78 ThinkCentre. Support is also available in management consoles, including the Symantec/Altiris Client Management Suite v7.5, and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)*. These tools help hardware, firmware, and console vendors develop and test their DASH solutions for interoperability and bring them to market more quickly. *DASH capability enabled by AMD s SCCM plug-in, available on AMD tools web site. 10

11 Summary of Critical Use Cases DASH is widely accepted as an open standard for secure out-of- band and remote management of desktop and mobile systems in multi-vendor, distributed enterprise environments. DASH defines a common framework for managing out-ofband clients in these environments, providing you with the flexibility to accomplish essential management tasks. DASH-enabled hardware can be leveraged by many types of management and security applications including security and other management agents, firewalls, and hardware and software inventory tracking to help IT departments improve asset management, reduce downtime, and minimize desk-side visits. USE CASE BENEFITS MANAGING POWER CONSUMPTION ACCELERATING PATCH SATURATION REMOTELY RE-IMAGING PCS REDUCING DESK-SIDE SERVICE VISITS AUDITING Helps reduce electricity costs and manage power usage Helps manage carbon credits Help achieve greater productivity Lets you focus on meeting business needs Reach patch saturation more quickly Update any DASH-enabled system regardless of vendor Location, system state, and power state do not matter Helps reduce the need for desk-side visits Troubleshoot and repair remotely Helps reduce or even eliminate desk-side visits Help decrease user downtime and optimize productivity Gather information regardless of client system or power state Helps reduce or eliminate manual platform audits Store inventory information in a central repository Helps to efficiently and effectively manage software licenses Helps improve compliance with business practices References To learn more about the power and flexibility of AMD PRO A-Series for open standards-based client management, visit: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. All rights reserved. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other names are for reference only and may be the trademarks of their respective companies. PID A 11