The iDRAC Service Module (iSM) is a small OS-resident process that expands iDRAC management into supported host operating systems. Specifically, iSM adds the following services:

• OS information
• Lifecycle Controller Log replication into operating system
• Automatic system recovery
• Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) providers inclusive of storage data
• SupportAssist collection (formerly known as Automatic Technical Support Report Collection)
• NVMe PCIe SSD device removal support

We have built iSM for those customers want more OS integration with iDRAC. They want to know what OS type, version, and host name is being used on the server. In place of having to create tools to import OS event logs to gather hardware health to custom tools, iSM has been built as a very lightweight service that can be used to expand iDRAC's management capabilities. For Dell's 13th generation of PowerEdge servers, iSM has been enhanced with these new features:

• Reporting of host OS IP addresses
• WMI integration with new storage reporting
• Integration of iSM with Tech Support Report
• Remote iDRAC hard reset
• iDRAC access via Host OS (Experimental Feature)
• In-band support for iDRAC SNMP alerts
• Enable WSMAN remotely

These new features provide easier troubleshooting of servers by adding key OS information, and add context to SNMP traps for more intelligent alert processing. With comprehensive WMI support for Windows Server customers and seamless remote support and servicing via TSR, less effort is needed to resolve technical/health issues.

Supported Platforms:

The following is the list of supported platforms for iDRAC Service Module.

Operating system information

Server Administrator currently shares operating system information and host name with iDRAC. The iDRAC Service Module provides similar information such as host OS name, server host IP address information, OS version, Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) with iDRAC. The network interfaces on the host OS are also displayed. By default, this monitoring feature is enabled. This feature is available even if Server Administrator is installed on the host OS.

Lifecycle Controller log replication into operating system

Replicates the Lifecycle Controller (LC) logs to the OS logs. All events that have the OS Log option as the target (in the Alerts page or in the equivalent RACADM or WSMAN interfaces) are replicated in the OS log using the iDRAC Service Module. This process is similar to the System Event Log (SEL) replication performed by Server Administrator.

The default set of logs to be included in the OS logs are the same as the logs configured for SNMP traps/alerts. Only the events logged in the LC log after the iDRAC Service Module was installed are replicated to the OS Log. If Server Administrator is installed, the monitoring feature is disabled to avoid duplicate SEL entries in the OS log.

In iDRAC Service Module 2.1, you can customize the location to replicate the LC logs. By default, the LC logs are replicated in the Systemgroup of the Windows logs folder in the Windows Event Viewer. You can replicate the LC logs to an existing group or create a new folder in the Application and Services Logs folder in the Windows Event Viewer.

Automatic system recovery feature

Automatic System Recovery feature is a hardware-based timer, which is used to reset the server in the event of a hardware failure. You can perform automatic system recovery operations such as reboot, power cycle, or power off after a specified time interval. This feature is enabled only when the operating system watchdog timer is disabled. If Server Administrator is installed, the monitoring feature is disabled to avoid duplicate watchdog timers.

Windows Management Instrumentation Providers

Windows Management Instrumentation Providers available with iDRAC Service Module exposes hardware data through Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). WMI is a set of extensions to the Windows Driver Model that provides an operating system interface through which instrumented components provide information and notification. WMI is Microsoft's implementation of the Web-Based Enterprise Management (WBEM) and Common Information Model (CIM) standards from the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF) to manage Server hardware, operating systems and applications. WMI Providers helps to integrate with Systems Management Consoles such as Microsoft System Center and enables scripting to manage Microsoft Windows Servers.

Support Assist collection

The SupportAssist collection feature in iDRAC collects information about the hardware, OS and relevant application data and compresses this information. Currently, you have to manually run the OS Collector tool to generate the TSR. Using iDRAC Service Module 2.0 or later versions, the OS Collector tool automatically collects relevant OS and hardware information. Automatic Support Log collection including OS and Application Information Collection with TSR.

By using iDRAC Service Module you reduce the number of manual steps to collect the Technical Support Report as the collection process is automated.

NVMe PCIe SSD device removal support

You can remove a Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIE) Solid State Device (SSD) without shutting down or rebooting the system. When you are removing a device, all the activities associated with the device must be stopped to prevent data loss. To prevent loss of data use the Prepare to Remove option, which stops all the device-associated background activities, after which you can remove the NVMe PCIe SSD physically.

Remote iDRAC hard reset

Using iDRAC, you can monitor the supported servers for critical system hardware, firmware, or software issues. Very infrequently, an iDRAC may become unresponsive. Previously, a customer would have to turn off the server by unplugging the power from the server. Now, by using the Remote iDRAC hard reset feature, if an iDRAC becomes unresponsive, you can perform a remote iDRAC reset operation without the need to shut down the server. To use this feature, you must first have administrative privileges on the host OS. By default, the remote iDRAC hard reset feature is enabled.

iDRAC access via Host OS 

Using Dell’s PowerEdge Servers, you can manage the hardware or the firmware of a device through iDRAC by configuring an iDRAC dedicated network. Through the dedicated network port, you can access the iDRAC interfaces such as GUI, WSMAN, RACADM, and Redfish client.

The prerequisite to manage the hardware or the firmware is to have a dedicated connection between a device and the supported iDRAC interface. Using the iDRAC access via Host OS feature, you can connect to an iDRAC interface from an OS IP or host irrespective of the connection between a device and an iDRAC dedicated network. This feature allows you to monitor the hardware or firmware even if the iDRAC is not connected to the servers.

In-band support for iDRAC SNMP alerts

Using iDRAC, an out-of-band server management and monitoring tool, the SNMP traps/alerts can be recorded in the log. However, from a host OS systems management using in-band agent perspective, the preference is more on the SNMP alert received from the host OS than the traps received from iDRAC. When an SNMP alert is received from iDRAC, it would be challenging to determine the source of the alert as it is from an iDRAC IP and not the system IP.

Starting iDRAC Service Module 2.3, you can receive SNMP alerts from the host OS which is similar to the alerts that are generated by iDRAC.

Enable WSMAN remotely

Currently, with the WMI information feature, you can connect to the host Microsoft Windows WMI namespace to monitor the system hardware. The WMI interface on the host is enabled by default and you can access it remotely. However, if you wish to access the WMI interfaces using WINRM’s WMI adapter, you have to enable it manually as it is not enabled by default. Using this feature, you can access the WINRM WMI namespaces remotely by enabling it during installation.

Links:

Linux download v2.5

Windows download v2.5

For other supported OSs, please visit support.dell.com.