Quick Tour: Know what is Dell OpenManage Server Administrator?

Quick Tour: Know what is Dell OpenManage Server Administrator?

Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) provides a complete, one-to-one systems management solution. OMSA can be categorized into two:

• Integrated - Web browser-based Graphical User Interface (GUI)
• Command Line Interface (CLI) - Through the operating system

OMSA is designed for system administrators to manage systems locally and remotely on a network. OMSA allows system administrators to focus on managing the entire network by providing a complete, one-to-one systems management solutions package. Server Administrator application gives you the following features.

• Generic
• Server Management
• Storage Management (Direct Attached Storage – DAS)

Generic

• User-friendly User Interface (UI).
  • HTML & web browser based UI
  • Supports Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, and Google Crome web browsers. The console can be launched from a remote system in a supported browser.
  • Integrated online Help for ease of access to information.
• Quick installation.
  • Supports x86 and x64
  • Supports Red Hat Enterprise Linux,, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server,, Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere (ESX and ESXi) and various Microsoft Windows flavors. Distributed Web Server (console to connect to instrumentation agent component) can be installed on the client operating systems as well (Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8).
• Authentications/Roles and Permissions:
  • Supports role-based authentication
  • Users, Power users and Administrators have different access and privileges. NT LAN Manager (NTLM- Windows) and Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), NIS, Kerberos and WinBind (Linux) Authentication methods. Uses Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM) library. 
  • Active Directory Support 
  • Single Sign On support on Windows.

Server Management:

• Monitors the Dell Server components and exposes Server and its attached storage devices details to the system administrators:
  • Supports Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), Common Information Model (CIM) or Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) protocols to expose server health/details to the remote system management consoles like Dell OpenManage Essentials.
  • Supports CLI interface for both Server and Storage configuration. Commands can be executed locally or remotely using a management console like Dell OpenManage Essentials.
  • Provides detailed fault and performance information using the protocols mentioned above.
  • SNMP traps for the management consoles.
• Manage various hardware and software components, like:
  • Server and its attached storage devices information in an integrated graphical view and shows if the various components are operating properly or have issues.
  • Systems requires remote recovery operations
  • Allows local/remote administration of systems, including shut down, start up, and security.
  • Remote Access controller details and various tasks to perform on the system.
  • Manage and monitor various hardware components like:
    • Exposes enclosure, server (System & its Chassis), and system details.
    • Batteries, BIOS, Fans, Firmware, Chassis Intrusion, Memory, Network
    • Ports, HW Power and Performance Management, Power Supplies
    • Processors, Remote Access, Removable Flash Media, Slots, Temperatures, Voltages
• Various Server Administrator Logs
  • Hardware Log - To look for potential issues with the  hardware components of the system
  • Alert Log - To monitor various system events. Server Administrator generates events in response to changes in the status of sensors and other monitored parameters.
  • Command Log - To monitor all of the commands issued by Server Administrator users. The Command log tracks
  • Logins, logouts, systems management software initialization, shutdowns initiated by systems management software, and records the last time the log was cleared.
• Setting Alert Actions on different hardware behavior.

Storage Management (Direct Attached Storage – DAS):

Storage Management agent also gets installed using the same Server Administrator installer. It works with the Server instrumentation agent and helps administrators (local/remote) to monitor Direct Attached Storage devices to the specific server.

• Helps users to know and manage the storage devices attached to the PowerEdge Servers.
• Supports JBOD (Just Bunch Of Disks) and RBOD (RAID Bunch Of Disks) devices.
  • Various storage devices (Modular Disk Storage Arrays, PowerVault devices and more.) which are connected to the Dell PowerEdge server can be managed and monitored.
• Supports RAID and non-RAID controllers.
• Supports hard disk and volume management (Virtual Disk management)
• Exposes Storage Health and Enclosure status with Informational, Warning and Critical severity categories.
• Allows users to see various storage properties and their status. Also provide tasks framework to perform certain operations on these storage components.
  • Enclosures: Supports various hard disk enclosures and their components like fans, power supply, and temperature probes. Support hot plugging of enclosures as well.
  • Backplanes
  • Batteries
  • Connectors
  • Controllers
  • Physical Disk
  • EMM
  • Fan
  • Power Supply
  • Temperature Probes
  • Virtual Disks
• Task Management to perform operations on the storage components. Tasks like
  • Hot Spare Protection Policy
  • Battery Tasks
  • Connector Tasks
  • Enclosure and Backplane Tasks
  • Physical Disk Or Physical Device Tasks
  • Temperature Probe TasksVirtual Disk Tasks
• Alert Log view to see the storage activity related Alerts/Events. You can enable the alarms for certain storage components which can be enabled/disabled to track component hardware status.
• Supports Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) Solid-State Drive (SSD) and its associated devices like the backplane and extender card.
• Allow users to see information related to Fluid Cache Disk and Fluid Cache Pool of DAS. It also facilitates addition of PCIe SSDs to the Fluid Cache Pool.
  • Also share information about the Fluid Cache License details. You can view and upgrade the existing license.
• Allows moving physical and virtual disks from one system to another and protects the  virtual disk with a Hot Spare feature.
• Supports only SNMP protocol to expose storage component details of the server to management consoles like Dell OpenManage Essentials.