Users Guide

Introduction 13
Dell Remote Access Controller Management Station
The Dell Remote Access Controller (RAC) console is management station software designed to provide
remote management capabilities for PowerEdge systems. You can remotely connect to RAC hardware
using the RAC management station software. The following RAC features are implemented in the
hardware and are available either by using a browser or by way of the racadm CLI:
• Hardware sensor monitors, such as temperature, voltage, and fans
• Access to hardware and alert logs
• Ability to generate alerts, even when the system is down
• Remote system power up and power down
• Remote floppy boot operations
See the Dell Remote Access Controller 4 User’s Guide for more information about how to use the racadm
CLI to connect to a managed system to execute racadm commands from a remote console, or to connect
to a management station using the IP address of the managed station.
Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) Management Utility
The BMC Management Utility provides a command line based remote management station to manage
all supported BMC functions. Use the BMC Management Utility to manage your BMC from a remote
management station, and as your managed system's emergency management console. The utility gives
you the option of using either a command line interface (Intelligent Platform Management Interface
[IPMI shell] or a Serial-Over-LAN proxy [SOL Proxy]) to access and manage the BMC.
The BMC monitors the system for critical events by communicating with various sensors on the system
board, and sending alerts and logs events when certain parameters exceed their preset thresholds. The
BMC supports the industry-standard IPMI specification, enabling you to configure, monitor, and recover
systems remotely.
The BMC provides the following features:
• Management access through the system's serial port and integrated NIC
• Fault logging and SNMP alerting
• Access to the system event log (SEL) and sensor status
• System function controls, including power on and off
• Support that is independent of the system's power or operating state
• Text console redirection for system setup, text-based utilities, and operating system consoles
• Access to Red Hat Enterprise Linux serial console interfaces using SOL