OpenManage Components

Dell OpenManage Server Administrator

Capabilities

OS Support

Security

OMSA User Roles

Accessing the OMSA Web-based User Interface

Managing Multiple Servers

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Introduction

Dell and Systems Management

Managing Networked Components

Features

Components

Deployment of OpenManage Components

Array Manager

Server Diagnostics

Remote Access Card

OpenManage Connections

Review

The OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) was introduced with the Dell OpenManage Systems Management CD 3.x.

OMSA is a replacement for and an extension of previous Dell OpenManage tools. It provides an SNMP agent like the Dell Server Agent and the Dell Hardware Instrumentation Package included in earlier versions of the OpenManage tools. It also provides the diagnostic routines formerly available through the Dell OpenManage Server Diagnostics.

Using this tool, an administrator with an Internet/Intranet connection can manage the server from any location using either of two interfaces:

an integrated Web-based interface accessible locally or remotely from a Web browser (shown below)
a command-line interface allowing local execution or (with other software tools) remote scripted execution

Using OMSA, an administrator can

obtain status information
run diagnostics
configure BIOS and system settings
perform updates of the system BIOS, component firmware, and some software

OMSA can be installed with some level of functionality in the following operating systems:

Windows NT Server 4.0 (SP6 or higher) supports:

System Instrumentation
Remote Access
Diagnostics
Storage Management
System Updates

Windows 2000 Server family supports:

System Instrumentation
Remote Access
Diagnostics
Storage Management
System Updates

Red Hat Linux 7.1 or higher supports

System Instrumentation
Remote Access
Diagnostics

NetWare 5.1 (SP3+) or 6.x supports

System Instrumentation
Remote Access

Security is provided by the authentication scheme of the OS on the server. Users log in with the IDs and passwords they already have established on the servers and are assigned roles corresponding to the privileges they have in the OS. The tables below show how these roles are determined and what each role permits.

	Determination of Roles

OMSA User Role	Windows NT Windows 2000	Linux	NetWare


User	Member of any group with "User" SID	User ID and Group ID both set greater than zero (zero is "root")	User ACL indicates "Read" privileges

Power User	Member of any group with "PowerUser" SID	User ID is greater than zero, Group ID is zero	User ACL indicates "Read/Write" privileges

Administrator	Member of any group with "Administrator" SID	User ID and Group ID are both zero	User ACL indicates "Supervisor" privileges


	User

	Power User

	Administrator

The OMSA GUI can be accessed either locally or remotely at https://IP_address:1311. Note that it uses a secure connection. The default port of 1311 can be changed to one of your choosing.

Access Rights Allowed

OMSA User Role

Read Access
(Display system and component health)

Write Access
(Change Configuration)

Full Control
(Reboot server or flash BIOS)

OMSA is designed to manage a single server at a time. However, it is possible to use a second Web browser window to compare the configuration of one OMSA-equipped server with another. If better support for management of multiple servers is required, OpenManage IT Assistant or another management console is recommended.