HP Client Automation software Starter and Standard Editions Data sheet Managing client devices effectively and efficiently is a mission-critical function for today s businesses. However, that challenge is being made more complex by increasingly frequent and varied security threats, more stringent availability and compliance requirements, and a growing mobile and remote workforce. This volume of change, combined with what are often manual processes, can stretch already-thin IT resources to the breaking point. HP Client Automation software automates the management of client devices throughout the complete lifecycle, regardless of their physical location, increasing the IT organization s ability to deal with these issues while at the same reducing cost, time, and risk. Recognizing that no single solution can fit all environments, HP Software offers an edition of HP Client Automation software that fits your environment s size, complexity, and manageability requirements. Starter Edition, available as a free download, is designed to provide customers with key management capabilities for their HP client hardware devices, including: HP PC hardware management HP thin-client management Hardware and software inventory Remote control Seamless upgrade to Standard Edition upon purchasing a license Standard Edition provides key management capabilities for both HP and non-hp client devices, with a focus on quick time-to-value and ease of use. It includes: Software deployment Application usage metering Patch management and compliance Settings migration OS deployment Migration path to Enterprise Edition Enterprise Edition provides a market-leading solution for managing the most complex environments. It includes: Desired-state automation Heterogeneous environment support High scalability Identity-based policy management
Meet your client manageability challenges It is important for your IT organization to find an efficient and cost-effective method to keep your PCs operational and protected at all times. Depending on the environment, your requirements may range from focusing on ease-of-use and quick time-to-value, to enabling strategic IT initiatives in support of business transformation for longer-term benefits. HP Client Automation Starter and Standard Editions have been designed from the ground up to provide an affordable, easy-to-use, and quick-to-deploy offering that can solve your pain points immediately. Common features and benefits Ease of deployment Install and deploy the solution quickly through an easy-to-install integrated infrastructure designed for self-deployment. Quick time-to-value Leverage out-of-the-box functionality for common management use cases. Ease of administration Make use of the single, integrated Web-based console for centralized management of your PC environment HP Client Automation Starter Edition The Starter Edition is a free version of the product for managing HP desktops, notebooks, and workstations. It provides hardware and software inventory, remote control, HP alert monitoring, HP BIOS and driver updates, integration with HP Protect Tools, and add-on support for Intel AMT. The Starter Edition also includes hardware and software management capabilities for HP Thin Clients. What s more, it can be seamlessly upgraded to the Standard Edition by purchasing a license and entering the license key in the management console. HP Client Automation Standard Edition The Standard Edition, available for purchase, includes all functionality provided in the Starter Edition and adds operating system deployment and migration, patch management capabilities, software distribution as well as software usage metering. Effective and Efficient Quick and easy installation and integration Provides a single installation program with components pre-configured for increased out-of-the-box capabilities Automatically discovers networked client devices and provides features for quickly importing devices from LDAP-compliant directory services or flat files Utilizes management agents pre-installed on certain HP hardware Enables remote deployment of management agents to end-user devices 2
Client Automation Starter Client Automation Standard Hardware and software inventory Integrated HP hardware management Integrated HP hardware alerts Remotely control devices Software distribution for HP thin clients only OS security patch management Softpaq management OS image deployment for HP thin clients only User settings migration Software usage metering Distributed infrastructure Seamless upgrade to Client Automation Standard N/A Migration path to Client Automation Enterprise Simplified task management Provides an integrated, Web-based management console to perform all tasks, including managing client hardware, software, and remote operations Offers wizard-driven, step-by-step processes for scheduling deployments of operating systems, patches, software, and operating systems as well as other operations Includes an easy-to-use interface for creating reports, defining dynamic, inventory-based device groups, and configuring the management infrastructure Integrated Web-based reporting Provides built-in reports for inventory and software usage, patch vulnerability assessment, and software/patch distribution operations Provides a point-and-click interface for customizing report data, creating filters, and more Supports context-sensitive reporting for specific device groups Enables easy sharing of live reports between administrators and managers, and multiple export options Support for mobile and remotely connected users Provides checkpoint restart capability for reliable distribution of software and patches to mobile users Improves bandwidth to support deployments to end-user devices using slow and/or intermittent connections Supports users connecting over TCP/IP and VPN connections Comprehensive, accurate and standards-based inventory management Performs discovery and inventory of hardware and software assets Stores collected information in an industry-standard, CIM-compliant database schema Provides a wide range of built-in reports for inventory, software usage, security and operations, and enables administrators to take proactive actions Fully automated operating system deployment and migration Enables machines to be fully deployed from bare metal or migrated to a new operating system without ever needing a deskside visit Retains individual user settings so that the user s system looks and works just as it did prior to the migration Automatically preserves display settings, files, and preferences of all kinds, even across version upgrades Provides options for data security during migrations 3
Figure 1. HP Client Automation Standard provides your IT administrators with a single integrated console for hardware and software management. It includes patch management capabilities that can automatically acquire HP Softpaqs and Microsoft security patches for deployment. Automated, continuous patch management Performs seamless acquisition and publication of Microsoft Windows patches Enables ongoing detection of vulnerabilities Provides dynamic reporting, showing which machines are non-compliant and at greatest risk Verifies the compliance to assigned patch levels, reducing the risk of accidental removal, deletion, or corruption of patches Automated, flexible software distribution Enables group-driven distribution of applications, content, and updates Performs immediate or scheduled delivery of updates Provides both push and pull deployment options, enabling administrators to automatically deploy required software while offering end users the flexibility to install authorized software on their own schedules Automatically completes assigned jobs to offline machines when network access is detected Supports deployment of MSI applications, HP Softpaqs, self-executing installation programs, and delivery of multiple files and folders Software usage metering Tracks and reports actual software usage, to enable more efficient license deployment, greater licensing compliance, and less painful true-ups with vendors Distinguishes between applications that are actively used versus ones that are idle in the background Flexible collection options to improve data transfer, storage, and reporting Provides obfuscation capabilities for hiding personally identifiable information of end users Remote device management Takes control of problem devices with integrated remote control capabilities for more effective troubleshooting Enables off-hours deployments to powered-down systems through Wake-On-LAN and powerdown/reboot management features Integrated alert monitoring on HP desktops and notebooks Automatically flags disruptive occurrences on HP PCs for administrative action Includes reports to help pinpoint particular issues such as chassis intrusion or hardware component failures 4
Figure 2. HP Client Automation Standard provides IT administrators with detailed device reports, including hardware and software information. Additional information, such as BIOS information, hardware alerts and device graphics are available for HP hardware. Automated driver and BIOS updates on HP desktops and notebooks Compares HP systems to the latest updates available from HP on an ongoing basis to determine whether BIOS or driver updates are necessary Automatically acquires and updates relevant Softpaqs for BIOS, device drivers, and applications Integration with HP ProtectTools Provides remote initialization of embedded TPM chips in HP hardware Provides integration with HP ProtectTools software for security management Integration with HP Software Out-of-Band Management Console Provides support for managing PCs and notebooks equipped with Intel iamt firmware Provides capabilities for remotely managing PCs and notebooks irrespective of the OS or the power state of the machine Deploy a solution that can grow with your changing needs To get a feel for the value that HP Client Automation can deliver for your business, you can start immediately by downloading the free version HP Client Automation Starter Edition. With this package, you can manage your HP client hardware without incurring additional software costs. You can then upgrade the product to take advantage of all the management features within HP Client Automation Standard Edition by purchasing and installing a new license key. This upgrade does not require any additional deployment of the existing management infrastructure or agents. Your existing infrastructure, agents, collected data, and acquired software patches are all preserved in the migration. HP Client Automation Standard Edition provides a migration path to HP Client Automation Enterprise Edition and to the broader, advanced and automated HP Business Service Automation solution for managing enterprise computing devices such as PCs, servers, workstations, storage and network devices on any platform across very large, complex, heterogeneous, and continuously changing IT environments. In addition, 5
Figure 3. HP Client Automation Standard provides a migration path to the broader, advanced, and comprehensive HP Client Automation Enterprise software for managing a wider range of enterprise computing devices. HP Client Automation Enterprise Edition Desired-state automation Scalable to hundreds of thousands of devices Heterogeneous platform support HP Client Automation Standard Edition Software deployment Software usage metering Patch management HP Client Automation Starter Edition HP hardware management Softpaq management TPM integration Bios configuration Hardware alerts Hardware and software inventory HP thin client management Investment protection Common agents Customizable Unparalleled return on investment Settings migration OS deployment Remote control Out-of-Band management of Intel Active Management Technology Common infrastructure your license investment in HP Client Automation is fully protected. When migrating from HP Client Automated Standard Edition to Enterprise Edition, you only need to pay the difference in licensing costs. For enterprises deploying HP Business Service Automation solutions, HP can help enhance your infrastructure through integrations with HP IT Service Management (ITSM) software solutions to run a service-centric IT environment closely aligned with business requirements. No matter what the size of your organization, HP provides a complete hardware and software solution to meet your needs. With HP, you can implement an integrated PC hardware and manageability solution to reduce the costs of managing PCs in your environment immediately, and then grow it over time to fit with your changing needs. HP Services Get the most from your software investment HP provides high-quality software services that address all aspects of your software application lifecycle needs. With HP, you have access to standards-based, modular, multi-platform software coupled with global services and support. The wide range of HP service offerings from online self-solve support to proactive mission-critical services enables you to choose the services that best match your business needs. For an overview of HP software services, visit: www.managementsoftware.hp.com/service To access technical interactive support, visit Software Support Online at: www.hp.com/managementsoftware/services To learn more about HP Software Customer Connection, a one-stop information and learning portal for software products and services, visit: www.hp.com/go/swcustomerconnection Service Management Services With Service Management, HP Services professionals help you optimize your people, processes and technology to transform and continually improve the way your organization delivers IT services. To learn more, visit www.hp.com/services/itsm Support Services for Infrastructure Software The HP Software Technical Support and Software Update Service enable all of your ProLiant Essentials and Insight Control software to be supported in a single offer. To learn more, visit www.hp.com/services/proliantessentialsservices Mission Critical and Proactive Services HP Mission Critical and Proactive Services help you proactively avoid downtime, and the resulting impact to your business. The services are delivered by availability experts and business-critical consultants who are trained and certified in their areas of expertise. For more information, visit www.hp.com/services/missioncritical 6
A complete solution Comprehensive training HP provides a comprehensive curriculum of HP Software and IT Service Management courses. These offerings provide the training you need to realize the full potential of your HP solutions, increase your network optimization and responsiveness, and achieve better return on your IT investments. Contact information To find an HP Software sales office or reseller near you, visit www.managementsoftware.hp.com/buy For more information about HP Client Automation, contact your HP representative or visit www.hp.com/go/software With more than 30 years experience meeting complex education challenges worldwide, HP knows how to train. This experience, coupled with unique insights into HP software, positions HP to deliver a better training experience. For more information about these educational courses, visit www.hp.com/learn The smartest way to invest in IT HP Financial Services provides innovative financing and financial asset management programs to help you cost-effectively acquire, manage, and ultimately retire your HP solutions. For more information on these services, contact your HP sales representative or visit www.hp.com/go/hpfinancialservices 7
Technology for better business outcomes Copyright 2008 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein. To learn more, visit www.hp.com/go/software 4AA2-0088ENW, May 2008