Users Guide

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Overview
The Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) is designed to make server administrators more productive and improve the
overall availability of Dell servers. iDRAC alerts administrators to server issues, helps them perform remote server management, and
reduces the need for physical access to the server.
iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller technology is part of a larger data center solution that helps keep business critical applications and
workloads available always. The technology allows administrators to deploy, monitor, manage, configure, update, troubleshoot and
remediate Dell servers from any location, and without the use of agents. It accomplishes this regardless of operating system or
hypervisor presence or state.
Several products work with the iDRAC and Lifecycle Controller to simplify and streamline IT operations, such as:
• Dell Management plug-in for VMware vCenter
• Dell Repository Manager
• Dell Management Packs for Microsoft System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) and Microsoft System Center
Configuration Manager (SCCM)
• BMC Bladelogic
• Dell OpenManage Essentials
• Dell OpenManage Power Center
The iDRAC is available in the following variants:
• Basic Management with IPMI (available by default for 200-500 series servers)
• iDRAC Express (available by default on all 600 and higher series of rack or tower servers, and all blade servers)
• iDRAC Enterprise (available on all server models)
For more information, see the iDRAC Overview and Feature Guide available at dell.com/support/manuals.
Benefits of using iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller
The benefits include:
• Increased Availability — Early notification of potential or actual failures that help prevent a server failure or reduce recovery time
after failure.
• Improved Productivity and Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) — Extending the reach of administrators to larger numbers of
distant servers can make IT staff more productive while driving down operational costs such as travel.
• Secure Environment — By providing secure access to remote servers, administrators can perform critical management
functions while maintaining server and network security.
• Enhanced Embedded Management through Lifecycle Controller – Lifecycle Controller provides deployment and simplified
serviceability through Lifecycle Controller GUI for local deployment and Remote Services (WS-Management) interfaces for
remote deployment integrated with Dell OpenManage Essentials and partner consoles.
For more information on Lifecycle Controller GUI, see Lifecycle Controller User’s Guide and for remote services, see Lifecycle
Controller Remote Services User’s Guide available at dell.com/idracmanuals.
Key features
The key features in iDRAC include:
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