Owner's Manual

Configuring Dell OpenManage IT Assistant to Monitor Your Systems 97
Using the Microsoft IPMI Provider
Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2 and Microsoft Windows Server 2008
is equipped with an IPMI driver and an IPMI Common Information Model
(CIM) Provider. The CIM Provider exposes system information that is
exposed by the BMC/iDRAC through the IPMI interface. IT Assistant uses
this feature to extract information. You can use IT Assistant to discover and
classify the BMC/iDRAC through IPMI.
However, ensure that you have the following to be able to use the Microsoft
IPMI Provider to send information about your systems:
• Windows Server 2003 R2 or Windows Server 2008 operating system on the
managed systems
• All managed systems have BMC/iDRAC with IPMI version 1.5 or later.
• CIM is configured on the managed systems
For more information, see step 6 of "Configuring Discovery Configuration
Settings" on page 118.
• IPMI drivers are loaded
• Hardware Management MSI
For more information, see the Dell OpenManage IT Assistant Online Help.
Best Practices for Using the IPMI Discovery Feature
IPMI discovery provides you with information about a system even if the system
is powered down. IPMI uses the Remote Management Control Packets (RMCP)
protocol to communicate with the BMC/iDRAC of the managed systems.
NOTE: RMCP is a UDP-based protocol, which communicates over port 623.
The IPMI messages are encapsulated in the RMCP packets. RMCP protocol
enables remote server control in all states where the system is powered on.
• Configure the BMC/iDRAC on managed systems that will be discovered
using the IPMI Discovery support feature.
• Connect the BMC/iDRAC network interface card (NIC) to the network.
If your systems have a Dell Remote Access Controller (DRAC) 5, then the
RAC should be connected to the network.