SupportAssist for Business PCs with Windows OS Administrator Guide April 2021 Rev.
Notes, cautions, and warnings NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your product. CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid the problem. WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death. © 2020 - 2021 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Dell, EMC, and other trademarks are trademarks of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries.
Contents Chapter 1: Introduction................................................................................................................. 5 Version................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Audience.......................................................................................................................................................................
Asset Details.......................................................................................................................................................................25 Actionable PC recommendations for a single PC......................................................................................................25 Chapter 7: Recommendations for your PCs..................................................................................27 Chapter 8: Managing SupportAssist alerts in TechDirect.
1 Introduction SupportAssist is a proactive and predictive technology that provides automated technical support for your Dell systems. When deployed, SupportAssist monitors each system and proactively detects both hardware and software issues. Depending on your service plan, when an issue is detected, SupportAssist automatically opens a support case with technical support and sends you an email notification. SupportAssist collects and sends the required system information securely to Dell technical support.
TechDirect overview TechDirect is an online portal that enables you to configure SupportAssist, download a customized SupportAssist package, and manage SupportAssist alerts that are generated by your PCs. SupportAssist capabilities available in TechDirect and Dell service plans The following table summarizes the SupportAssist capabilities available in TechDirect for different service plans. Table 1.
Table 2. SupportAssist capabilities and roles in TechDirect Capability Description Configure your PCs fleet Configure and download SupportAssist to centrally manage and monitor your Dell PCs. Configure alert rules Configure rules to determine how SupportAssist alerts are handled in TechDirect. View recommendations for PCs View PC recommendations for a single PC or for your Dell PCs fleet.
● ● ● ● ● ● Memory module Optical drive Keyboard Mouse Battery Video card Minimum system requirements The following are the minimum requirements for the systems on which you deploy SupportAssist: Table 3. Minimum requirements (continued) Particulars Requirements Operating system NOTE: SupportAssist is supported only on 64-bit operating systems. Laptops and desktops: ● Microsoft Windows 8 ● Microsoft Windows 8.
Table 3. Minimum requirements Particulars Requirements NOTE: To allow communication, verify the firewall settings on the systems. Web browser Latest versions of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, or Mozilla Firefox.
2 Configuring and deploying SupportAssist TechDirect enables you to configure and download a customized SupportAssist executable file that is associated with your TechDirect account. Before you download and deploy SupportAssist for business PCs, it is recommended that you configure SupportAssist in TechDirect. These configurations are automatically applied on the systems within 24 hours after they connect to the Internet.
9. Perform one of the following: ● To save the configuration and deploy SupportAssist later, click SAVE. ● To save the configuration and deploy SupportAssist immediately, click SAVE & PROCEED TO DEPLOY. NOTE: The configuration is applied on the systems within 24 hours after they connect to the Internet. NOTE: If you update or modify the configuration settings, you do not have to redeploy SupportAssist. The configuration settings are automatically updated to the systems every 24 hours.
● Run all remote scans and updates without end user interaction—allows administrators to remotely optimize your managed PCs without the need for user interaction. ○ Suppress end user notification in case reboot is needed after installation—allows SupportAssist to hide reboot notifications to users. If this option is enabled, the PCs are not rebooted automatically. The drivers, firmware, and BIOS updates are applied only when the user reboots the system manually.
c. If the proxy server requires authentication, select This proxy requires authentication, and enter the username and password. NOTE: For the proxy server authentication, it is recommended that you provide the username and password of a service account that does not expire. 5. To organize your assets under specific groups in TechDirect, select Organize your assets in a group, and enter the asset group name.
● For 64-bit EXE deployment package format: \SupportAssistx64.exe TRANSFORMS=\SupportAssistConfig.mst DEPLOYMENTKEY="" ● For 64-bit MSI deployment package format: msiexec /i \SupportAssistx64.msi TRANSFORMS=\SupportAssistConfig.mst DEPLOYMENTKEY="" /qn Here, is the path of the folder where you extracted the SupportAssist executable file.
3 Modifying deployed SupportAssist configuration After deploying SupportAssist, you can modify the SupportAssist configuration applied on all systems or systems in a specific asset group. The settings are automatically picked up by the systems when they connect to the Internet and check for configuration updates every 24 hours. See Configure SupportAssist. However, to modify the Internet connection details for the systems, you must manually update and deploy the deployment package again.
● SupportAssistx64.msi—Windows installer file that is used for installing SupportAssist. This file is created if you have downloaded SupportAssist from TechDirect in MSI format. ● SupportAssistUninstall_Cleanup.ps1—clears the registry entries, services, and folders related to SupportAssist, from your PC. This script also checks and uninstalls Dell SupportAssist for Home PCs or SupportAssist for ProManage if it is installed on the PC. 8. Note the deployment instructions and close the wizard.
4 PC insights Along with monitoring systems for hardware and software issues, SupportAssist also collects system utilization and performance data when the system is unlocked and is in use. You can use the information that is collected to make business decisions, for example, hardware upgrades. To access PC insights, go to Services > Device Management > Get Insights. NOTE: To view PC insights, ensure that the system is running SupportAssist for business PCs version 2.1.0 or later.
NOTE: By default, the information that is displayed on the page is based on the data that are collected during the last seven days. You can set advanced filters by switching each filter on or off and setting the values of each filter. To filter systems in a specific asset group, select the group from the SITE/GROUP list. To filter systems by warranty, select the service plan from the WARRANTY list. After the desired filters are set, click UPDATE to view the results in a tabular format.
5 Managing your assets After you deploy SupportAssist, the system details are automatically collected and displayed in the Manage Assets page in TechDirect. Use the Manage Assets page to organize your assets into groups and to integrate your SupportAssist alerts with ServiceNow. NOTE: You require Device Management Administrator rights to manage your assets in TechDirect.
Table 6. My Assets Column Description NOTE: If the asset is managed by SupportAssist, the Service Tag column displays a icon. For systems running SupportAssist for business PCs 2.1.0 and later, the Service Tag is hyperlinked. To view the asset details and manage the system, click the Service Tag. For more information, see Managing a single PC. Region Region where the asset is present. Product Type Type of the asset. Model Model number of the asset. Warranty Plan Service plan of the asset.
Create dispatch request Create dispatch requests for parts in case of a hardware failure. Prerequisites Sign in to TechDirect with Device Management Administrator or Device Management Technician rights. Steps 1. Go to Services > Device Management > Manage Assets. The My Assets page is displayed. 2. Select a site, and if required, select a group. 3. Select the asset for which you want to create a dispatch request. 4. Click CREATE DISPATCH. The Create Dispatch Request page is displayed. 5.
2. Select a site, and if required, select a group. 3. Select the asset for which you want to review the warranty status. 4. Click and click REVIEW WARRANTY NOW. The Check Warranty Status page is displayed. 5. Verify the Service Tag of the asset and click VALIDATE. Download asset inventory data Prerequisites Sign in to TechDirect with Device Management Administrator or Device Management Technician rights. Steps 1. Go to Services > Device Management > Manage Assets. The My Assets page is displayed. 2.
Create asset group Create groups to organize assets based on your requirement. Prerequisites Sign in to TechDirect with Device Management Administrator rights. Steps 1. Go to Services > Device Management > Manage Assets. 2. Click Organize Assets and Groups. 3. Click CREATE GROUP. The Create a New Group window is displayed. 4. Select a site and enter a group name. 5. To move assets to the group, select Yes and select the assets that you want to move to the group. 6. Click CREATE.
4. Locate the row where the details of the asset site or group that you want to update are listed, click , and click Edit. 5. Edit the site or group name, and click SAVE. Delete asset group Prerequisites ● Ensure that the group that you want to delete does not contain any assets. To delete a group that has assets in it, move the assets to another group. See Move assets between existing groups. ● Sign in to TechDirect with Device Management Administrator rights. Steps 1.
6 Managing single PC SupportAssist for business PCs enables you to perform remote optimizations instantly on a system. You can also initiate remote optimization tasks to run later. To view the status, run scans, and perform updates and optimizations on the system, go to the My Assets page and click the Service Tag of the PC. For more information, see Actionable PC recommendations for a single PC.
NOTE: After drivers and downloads updates are complete, a message is displayed if a system reboot is required. You cannot perform other optimizations until the system is rebooted. Initiating remote optimization tasks to run later You can initiate the following optimizations on systems for maintenance purposes at regular intervals: ● Scan and install driver updates that are available for the system (only for systems running SupportAssist for business PCs version 2.1.1 and later).
7 Recommendations for your PCs SupportAssist for business PCs enables you to review the recommendations for the systems. These recommendations are displayed based on scheduled scans or the latest collection data that is received from the systems. To optimize the systems, go to Services > Device Management > Get PC Recommendations. NOTE: You require Device Management Administrator rights to review recommendations for your PCs and remotely optimize them.
Table 7. Recommendation types for multiple assets Tile Type of Recommendation Action Tune Performance Indicates the number of PCs that have not been tuned for performance in x number of days, where x denotes 30 days, 60 days, or 90 days. To tune the system performance, perform the following steps: 1. Click REVIEW PC LIST. 2. Select the systems on which you want to tune the system performance. 3. Click RUN.
8 Managing SupportAssist alerts in TechDirect SupportAssist alerts can be managed using your organization's TechDirect account or ServiceNow solution. If you have configured SupportAssist with your TechDirect account credentials, all alerts are forwarded to your TechDirect account. You can also integrate ServiceNow with SupportAssist to redirect all alerts to your ServiceNow solution.
b. From the Select Relationship list, select a relationship. c. From the Select Time Zone list, select a time zone. d. From the Select Technician list, select a support technician. 8. Click SAVE ALERT RULES. View SupportAssist alerts in TechDirect When an issue is detected on the systems that are monitored using SupportAssist, an alert is automatically created in TechDirect. Prerequisites Sign in to TechDirect with Device Management Administrator or Device Management Technician rights.
Table 8. SupportAssist Alerts Name Description ● ● ● ● Take ownership of the case Update the case details Close the case Forward the case to Dell NOTE: Users with Device Management Administrator rights can perform all the actions available for users with the Device Management Technician rights. An administrator can also assign a case to one of their technicians. SupportAssist alert actions You can take action on the alerts that are created by SupportAssist through TechDirect.
2. Click Integrate with ServiceNow. The ServiceNow Case Management Integration page is displayed. 3. From the Select SupportAssist Site list, select a site. NOTE: The site displayed in the Select SupportAssist Site list is the company name that you entered for the SupportAssist configuration file. NOTE: Selecting a site enables TechDirect to forward alerts that are generated from all systems in the site to ServiceNow. 4. Clear Inactivate (continue managing SupportAssist Alerts in TechDirect). 5.
9 Retrieve SupportAssist data using WMI You can get information about the state of each system where SupportAssist is deployed by using Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) classes. The namespace to access the SupportAssist profiles and classes is root\supportassist. The information that are exposed by WMI classes is as follows: ● ● ● ● Registration status Support request details Alert details Configuration and entitlement details This section provides information about the available WMI classes.
Table 11. DSA_CaseInformation Property Property Type Description Status CIM_UNIT16 An integer that indicates the status of the support request. The possible values are: ● 0—any other status. ● 1—the support request has been submitted. ● 2—the support request is open. ● 3—the support request is reopened. ● 4—the support request is in progress. ● 5—the customer has deferred the support request. ● 6—the support request is closed.
Table 13. DSA_SystemInformation Property Property Type Description ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● 0—Other 1—Basic 2—ProSupport 3—ProSupport Plus 4—Premium 5—Premium Support Plus 6—ProSupport Flex for Client 7—Unknown Warranty EntitlementExpiryDate CIM_DATETIME Indicates the expiry date of the system service plan. Version CIM_STRING A string that identifies the SupportAssist version installed on the system.
10 Resources This section provides information about the documentation resources and other useful links that provide more information about SupportAssist for business PCs. Table 14.
