Users Guide

Introduction
Dell Lifecycle Controller provides advanced embedded systems management to perform systems management tasks such as deploy,
configure, update, maintain, and diagnose using a graphical user interface (GUI). It is delivered as part of integrated Dell Remote Access
Controller (iDRAC) out-of-band solution and embedded Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) applications in the latest Dell servers.
iDRAC works with the UEFI firmware to access and manage every aspect of the hardware, including component and subsystem
management that is beyond the traditional Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) capabilities.
NOTE: The UEFI environment provides the local console interface and the infrastructure for locally managed system
components.
Lifecycle Controller has the following components:
• GUI:
• Is an embedded configuration utility that resides on an embedded flash memory card.
• Is similar to the BIOS utility that is started during the boot sequence, and can function in a pre-operating system environment.
• Enables server and storage management tasks from an embedded environment throughout the life cycle of the server.
• Remote Services (WS-Man and iDRAC RESTful API with Redfish) simplify end-to-end server life cycle management by using the one-
to-many method. It can be accessed over the network by using the secure web services interfaces and can be used by applications
and scripts. Also, it provides a single view of all the system settings that can be imported and exported from the server to perform
one-to-many cloning operations. For more information about remote services features, see
Lifecycle Controller Remote Services Quick
Start Guide available at www.dell.com/idracmanuals.
Topics:
• Advantages of using Lifecycle Controller
• Benefits of using iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller
• New in this release
• Key features
• Licensable features in Lifecycle Controller
• Viewing iDRAC license information
• Other documents you may need
• Accessing documents from Dell support site
• Contacting Dell
Advantages of using Lifecycle Controller
The iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller technology in the server’s embedded management allows you to perform useful tasks such as
configuring BIOS and hardware settings, deploying operating systems, changing RAID settings, and saving hardware profiles. Together,
iDRAC and Lifecycle Controller provide a robust set of management functions that can be used throughout the entire server lifecycle.
Lifecycle controller simplifies server lifecycle management — from provisioning, deployment, patching and updating to servicing and user
customization — both locally and remotely. Lifecycle Controller includes managed and persistent storage that embeds systems
management features and Operating System device drivers directly on the server. This eliminates the media-based system management
tools and utilities traditionally needed for systems management.
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 number of distant
servers can make the 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.
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