API Guide
Overview
The Redfish Scalable Platforms Management API is a standard defined by the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF).
Redfish is a next-generation systems management interface standard, which enables scalable, secure, and open server
management. It is a new interface that uses RESTful interface semantics to access data that is defined in model format to perform
out-of-band systems management. It is suitable for a wide range of servers ranging from stand-alone servers to rack mount and
bladed environments and for large scale cloud environments.
Dell PowerEdge servers offer extensive and powerful management tools that are included in the Integrated Dell Remote Access
Controller (iDRAC) with Lifecycle Controller. Dell has recently extended its support for the DMTF Redfish standard within the
iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller firmware version 2.30.30.30.
iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller technology is part of a larger data center solution that helps keep business critical applications and
workloads available always. The technology allows administrators to deploy, monitor, manage, configure, update, troubleshoot, and
remediate Dell servers from any location, and without the use of agents. It accomplishes this regardless of an operating system or a
Hypervisor presence or state.
This document provides a brief overview on Redfish and information on various aspects of Redfish protocol, supported schema, and
Redfish Eventing implemented in iDRAC. It also provides guidelines for using the Dell Redfish APIs.
Benefits
Redfish is a new global standard for open server management. It has the capabilities to support single servers, converged
infrastructure, and hyper—scale architecture. It provides the following benefits over existing server management methods:
• Increased simplicity and usability
• High data security
• Programmable interface that can be easily scripted
• Follows widely-used standards
Key Technologies
Redfish uses web and cloud-based technologies that enable communications with servers using common programming and scripting
languages such as Python, JAVA, and C. The key technologies are as follows:
• REpresentational State Transfer (REST) interface — REST is a web based API, which provides a way to interact with a system
over a normal web connection. It supports both HTTPS and HTTP.
• Java Script Notation (JSON) — JSON represents data in such a way that it is much easier to read than XML. It also provides
the formatting that is required for scripting languages to interface with the data.
• OData — It is important to standardize the data format when implementing a common interface across multiple vendors. OData
provides the required framework to ensure that the data structure remains interchangeable between server vendors.
Other documents you may need
In addition to this guide, the following documents available on the DMTF website provide additional information about Redfish.
• For information about Redfish Schema, see http://Redfish.dmtf.org/schemas/DSP8010_1.0.0.zip .
• For information about Redfish API, see the DMTF Redfish white paper available at https://www.dmtf.org/sites/default/files/
standards/documents/DSP2044_1.0.0.pdf.
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