Quick start manual

Introduction
Dell SupportAssist plugin for Dell OpenManage Essentials provides proactive support capabilities for supported Dell
server, storage, and networking solutions. OpenManage Essentials interacts with supported devices that are to be
monitored and receives SNMP traps. The SNMP traps are periodically retrieved as alerts by the SupportAssist client.
The alerts are filtered using various policies to decide if the alerts qualify for creating a new support case or updating an
existing support case.
All qualifying alerts are securely sent to the SupportAssist server hosted by Dell, for creating a new support case or
updating an existing support case. After the support case is created or updated, the SupportAssist client, runs the
appropriate collection tools on the devices that generated the alerts, and uploads the log collection to Dell. The
information in the log collection is used by Dell technical support to troubleshoot the issue and provide an appropriate
solution.
This document provides information you require to set up OpenManage Essentials and SupportAssist, and thereby
ensure that SupportAssist works as expected in your environment.
Getting Started With Dell SupportAssist
To quickly get started with SupportAssist:
1. Ensure that OpenManage Essentials version 1.1, 1.1.1, 1.2, or 1.2.1 is installed on the management server and is
configured to discover the supported devices in your environment. For information on installing, configuring, and
setting up your environment for OpenManage Essentials, see the Dell OpenManage Essentials User’s Guide at
dell.com/OpenManageManuals.
2. Install SupportAssist on the management server running OpenManage Essentials. For information on installing
SupportAssist, see the Dell SupportAssist For Dell OpenManage Essentials User's Guide at dell.com/
ServiceabilityTools.
3. If the management server connects to the Internet through a proxy server, you must configure Proxy Settings in
SupportAssist. To configure the proxy server settings, click Settings → Proxy Settings , and follow the instructions
on the screen.
4. Configure the Administrator credentials of each supported device type in your environment in SupportAssist. See
Configuring The Default Device Type Credentials.
5. Verify if the SupportAssist client is able to communicate with the SupportAssist server hosted by Dell by performing
the email connectivity test. See Email Connectivity Test.
6. If there is a SSL connection failure, you must install the required root certificates. To identify and resolve a SSL
connection failure, see Identifying SSL Connection Failure and Installing Root Certificates.
7. If your devices are covered under the Dell ProSupport Plus service contract, you must:
– Upgrade to SupportAssist version 1.2.1 or later.
* To identify the version of SupportAssist installed on the system, click About in the SupportAssist
dashboard.
* To download the latest version of SupportAssist, go to dell.com/SupportAssistGroup.
– Configure SupportAssist to collect the system logs periodically. See Configuring Periodic Collection Of
System Logs (ProSupport Plus Only).
NOTE: For monitoring Dell Force10 Ethernet switches only — If you are using OpenManage Essentials version
1.1, after the installation of SupportAssist, you must rediscover the Dell Force10 Ethernet switches in
OpenManage Essentials. For information about discovering devices in OpenManage Essentials, see the Dell
OpenManage Essentials User's Guide at dell.com/OpenManageManuals.
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