Users Guide

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.