may 2003

reducing system management white paper costs with ASF

abstract: contents (ASF) is a standardized remote access and intelligent alerting specification that makes it easier to manage desktop introduction...... 2 remote access and clients remotely. ASF can minimize the IT resources required for routine control ...... 2 desktop maintenance and administration tasks, allowing issue reporting developing ASF ...... 2 and resolution through a remote management console. ASF functionality is benefits...... 3 available whatever the power state of the client – even if the operating overview...... 3 security issues in ASF system is hung or fails to boot. 1.0 ...... 5 After offering an overview of the benefits and features of ASF, this White alerting Paper describes OS-absent alerting implementations on current HP implementations...... 6 for more information ...... 7 Business Desktop systems with particular emphasis on the implementation of ASF 1.0. reducing desktop management costs with ASF 2 notice

© Copyright 2003 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice and is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind. The warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express limited warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein. May 2003 P/N 5981-8001EN

5981-8001EN reducing desktop management costs with ASF 2 introduction

Solution providers are aware that remote access and intelligent alerting can help IT departments carry out routine desktop maintenance and administration tasks. A number of technologies meet these needs but most are ineffective unless the is present. However, many issues that require prompt attention occur when the operating system is absent – when the operating system is hung or does not boot; when the desktop’s processor has been stolen; when the desktop is not functioning due to out-of-limit environmental conditions. remote access and control

In today’s marketplace, a wide range of technologies focuses on providing remote access and control capabilities. These technologies have the potential to offer numerous benefits: · Remote systems can be more visible and easier to access. · Availability and performance are maximized for local users. · On-site maintenance can be minimized. · The power required to maintain the remote connection can be minimized. Originally, remote access and control technologies required the operating system in the managed system1 to be running. More recently, several vendors have developed proprietary technologies that function when the operating system is absent; however, like most proprietary technologies, these solutions have not been universally adopted. A robust, open solution was required. developing ASF

Several years ago, a Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF) workgroup began developing an industry standard for remote system management operating in an operating system-absent (OS- absent) environment. DMTF is an industry organization that leads the development, adoption and unification of management standards and initiatives for desktop, enterprise and Internet environments. Working with key technology vendors and affiliated standards groups, DMTF encourages a more integrated, cost-effective and less crisis-driven approach to management through interoperable management solutions.

1 For the purposes of this white paper, a “managed system” is a desktop with ASF capability enabled. After the location of the remote management console has been specified, ASF is independent of the operating system. reducing desktop management costs with ASF 3

DMTF published their Alert Standard Format (ASF) specification in June, 2001. Targeted primarily at OS-absent environments, this specification is intended to define industry-standard methods for alerting and remote system management and control. To meet these goals, ASF defines interfaces for sensors, alert-sending devices, remote management console software, and the system BIOS so that vendors can develop ASF-compliant products. These interfaces make it easier to report and resolve issues through a remote management console.

Note: DMTF also defines Desktop Management Interface (DMI) and Common Information Model (CIM) interfaces for environments where the operating system is present (OS-present). DMI and CIM complement the capabilities of ASF but are not required for ASF to function. benefits

Deploying an ASF-compliant infrastructure can lower the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). · IT staff can manage desktops remotely – OS-present or OS-absent. Fewer resources are required to make on-site visits to troubleshoot systems or protect assets. · Management becomes proactive; IT staff typically need not wait for the user to report an issue. This can lead to significant savings; for example, the immediate response to a fan failure can mean the difference between a simple repair and total replacement. Proactive management can maximize desktop availability and performance, which, in turn, can help maximize user productivity. · Managing a heterogeneous network environment no longer requires multiple remote management consoles; the customer can deploy a single management solution such as HP OpenView. · IT staff can respond quickly to most desktop tampering, minimizing theft and discouraging the addition or removal of unauthorized components. · Because systems can still be managed when powered off, the cost of maintaining connections to the remote system console is reduced. overview

ASF was primarily developed to provide alerting capabilities with remote management and control in systems with the OS absent.

Note: ASF capabilities are also available to managed systems with OS present.

An OS can be absent for any of the following reasons: · The OS has not been installed or booted. · The OS is hung or otherwise non-operational. · The managed system is in a low power or sleep state.

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Figure 1 offers an overview of a typical ASF implementation.

Figure 1: Overview of an ASF implementation with a single managed system and a remote management console alerting

A managed system can transmit alerts, sending status or failure information to the remote management console – whether the system is OS-absent or OS-present. · environmental alerts The managed system can deliver an instant warning to the remote management console when an out-of-limit environmental condition is detected – for example, if sensors indicate that temperature or voltage is too high, or a cooling fan has failed. · system alerts System components (the processor, the chip set or the BIOS) can issue alerts – for example, if the Power On Self Test (POST) fails or if the system detects a security issue such as a chassis intrusion, a missing processor or the use of an invalid password. A regular system heartbeat can provide assurance that the system is functional and connected to the network.

5981-8001EN reducing desktop management costs with ASF 5

After identifying an issue (or a potential issue) that may require attention, the managed system transmits an alert packet to the remote management console. The alert packet is a unidirectional Platform Event Trap (PET)2 in standard Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) format. If the remote management console is ASF- and SNMP-enabled, IT staff can view and react to the alert. system heartbeat

An ASF-enabled system can send a regular message to the remote management console to indicate that the system is still present. The message, known as a heartbeat, is controlled by a timer, which is typically programmable. The recommended default is one minute. remote management and control

ASF allows a desktop to be managed and controlled from a remote management console using Remote Management and Control Protocol (RMCP). Capabilities include: · power up, power down, power cycle · reset · reboot · diagnostics launch · system settings update RMCP traffic is bi-directional, typically consisting of requests from the management console followed by responses from the managed system, for example, a system state request followed by a system state response. security issues in ASF 1.0

If security were compromised in a managed system, certain RMCP features could easily be misused by a hacker. Since security in ASF 1.0 is not robust, HP has chosen to disable RMCP support until the release of ASF 2.0, which is expected to include additional network security and authentication features.

2 A platform event is an event that originates in the managed system’s platform firmware (BIOS) or platform hardware independent of the state of the operating system or management software.

5981-8001EN reducing desktop management costs with ASF 6 alerting implementations

Table 1 lists the OS-absent alerting technologies supported by HP Compaq Business Desktop systems. Table 1. Alerting technologies for HP Compaq Business Desktop systems

OS-absent Managed system Features available technology ASF 1.0 d530, d330 · Watchdog timer (OS did not start) Broadcom NetXtreme · BIOS did not start Gigabit · Heartbeats LAN-on-Motherboard (LOM) · Case intrusion · Temperature Intel Alert-on-LAN (AOL) d510, d500, · Watchdog timer (OS did not start) d310, d300 · Heartbeats · Case intrusion · Processor missing · Temperature 3Com SOS d325 · OS did not start · BIOS did not start – limited capabilities · Case intrusion · Temperature

HP implementation of ASF

Currently HP offers ASF 1.0 on business desktops featuring Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit LOM. The implementation requires a Broadcom ASF agent (supplied with the system SoftPaq) on the managed system.

Note: HP has disabled RMCP support on the current Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit LOM implementation. ASF 1.0 is not supported on Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit NICs or Intel PRO/1000 NICs.

5981-8001EN reducing desktop management costs with ASF 7 for more information

Table 2 lists sources for more information on ASF and related standards. Table 2. More information on ASF and related standards

Standard Link Alert Standard Format (ASF) Specification 1.0 http://www.dmtf.org/var/release/ASF/DSP0114.pdf 3 June, 2001 Platform Event Trap (PET) Specification 1.0, ftp://download.intel.com/design/servers/ipmi/pet100.pdf 7 December 1998 System Management Bus (SMBus) http://www.smbus.org/specs/index.html Specification 2.0, 3 August, 2000 User Datagram Protocol, http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc0768.txt IETF RFC 768 Simple Network Management Protocol, http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1157.txt IETF RFC 1157 Advanced Configuration and Power Interface http://www.acpi.info/spec.htm (ACPI) Specification 2.0, 27 July 2000, System Management BIOS (SMBIOS) http://www.dmtf.org/standards/bios.php Reference Specification 2.3.1, 6 March 1999

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