Lots of OpenManage Questions

Question

I’ve been a Dell administrator for a few years now and I’ve never really ‘got my head around’ OpenManage. I’m sure I must be missing something, but I don’t know what. Anyway I’m just setting up a new PE1600SC with Windows 2000 Small Business Server and the old OpenManage has raised it’s ugly head once more, so I’m gonna try to either embrace it or put it to bed once and for all.  I have several issues/questions…  1)      When I first started building my PE1600 I used the OpenManage Sever Assistant CD, then after installing Win2K SP4 was prompted for the OpenManage Systems Management CD. (We purchased the PE without an OS). Now when I try and run the OpenManage application on the server, it keeps prompting me to use a dial-up connection. I have tried tweaking the connection settings in Internet Explorer but it doesn’t seem to improve things. When I cancel the dial-up connection dialogue box, it says 'The page cannot be displayed' (It tries to connect to https://localhost:1311/) 2)      When I look under Programs -> Dell OpenManage Applications, I see Dell OpenManage and Array Manager. Should I also see Server Administrator? 3)      Am I right in thinking if I want to manage the server, that I can do it locally using Server Administrator or remotely using IT Assistant? 4)      Does IT assistant need a dedicated machine, or can I install it onto the PC on my desk? Presumably the computer on which it runs should be running continuously and not turned off each night? 5)      At present, I use HP TopTools as a network management platform. This is for two reasons, firstly, I can manage my HP ProCurve switched with it and secondly, because it was free when I purchased the switches. Using HP TopTools and IT Assistant seems a bit bitty – I would rather do all of the administration using one tool (am I expecting too much).BTW, I will probably be switching from HP TopTools to HP Systems Insight Manager in the near future, as TopTools is at ‘end of life’. (My network is about 50:50 Windows/Unix). 6)      It appears that WMI is running on my server. I thought that WMI provided a GUI into loads of management data. It doesn’t appear to. What’s the relationship between WMI and OpenManage ? 7)      Exchange 2000 has been installed as part of the SBS installation. When I look at My Computer I can see a8Gb M: disk partition which is called Exchange – this must have been created automatically as part of the installation. Array manager doesn’t show the M: drive at all. I’m guessing it’s on my first disk, but I can’t tell. 8)      If I’m not using RAID or mirroring, should I still use Array Manager, or should I switch back to Windows Disk Manager?  Sorry about the amount of stuff here, but I have found the whole OpenManage concept somewhat confusing.  Your help would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks,  Gary

mmcguffi · Answer

Hello,

I've never user Server Assistant, so can't advise on that. However...

IT Assistant can be viewed as a central management monitor and notification application. It includes tools to remotely access servers, monitor, WinBEEP to send notifications. I would recommend IT Assistant run a dedicated server since is a resource hog, though it can run on a desktop.

Server Administrator can be viewed as client agent installed on the servers you want to manage. SA is very dependent on the BIOS & Firmware being up to date. SA is excellent means of performing BIOS & Firmware upgrades. Using SA eliminates of having floppy disks and being at the console.

Both ITA & Server Administrator are management applications. However, ITA gives greater flexibility and better notification functionaliy from a central console.

Systems Management General

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