Connectivity Guide

Benefits of using iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller
The benefits include:
• Increased availability — Early notification of potential or actual failures that help prevent a server
failure or reduce recovery time after failure.
• Improved productivity and lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) — Extending the reach of
administrators to larger number of distant servers can make the IT staff more productive while driving
down operational costs such as travel.
• Secure environment — By providing secure access to remote servers, administrators can perform
critical management functions while maintaining server and network security.
• Enhanced embedded management through Lifecycle Controller — Lifecycle Controller provides
deployment and simplified serviceability through the Lifecycle Controller GUI for local deployment
and Remote Services (WS-Man) interfaces for remote deployment integrated with Dell OpenManage
Essentials and partner consoles.
For more information on iDRAC, see the Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller User’s Guide at
dell.com/support/home.
What's new in this release?
The new features for this release include:
• Support for Dell PowerEdge R730, R730XD, R630, and T630 servers.
• Support for unattended installation of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 operating system.
• Support for deploying an operating system using UEFI Secure Boot mode.
• Enhanced Repurpose or Retire System feature that allows selection of specific server and storage
components.
• Support for exporting Technical Support Report (TSR).
• Update iDRAC and Lifecycle Controller firmware using a single firmware image.
Key features
The key features of Lifecycle Controller are:
• Provisioning — Entire preoperating system configuration from a unified interface.
• Deploying — Simplified operating system installation with the embedded drivers on Lifecycle
Controller. Unattended installation mode is available for Microsoft Windows and Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 7 operating systems.
• Download drivers for operating system installation from one of the following sources:
– ftp.dell.com
– Dell Lifecycle Controller OS Driver Packs DVD for Windows and Linux
• Patching or updating — Operating system agnostic, and reduced maintenance downtime with direct
access to updates from ftp.dell.com. It simplifies firmware updates by maintaining a working version
for rollback.
• Servicing — Continuous availability of diagnostics without depending on a hard-disk drive. Ability to
flash firmware automatically, while replacing components such as a Dell PowerEdge storage
controller, NIC, and power supply unit. Support for VLAN in network configuration.
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