If you change the computer name, the Symantec Management Console cannot be accessed locally or remotely, which makes the Symantec Management Platform unusable.

Changing the server name on which the Symantec Management Platform is installed is an untested and unsupported scenario.

The name of the Notification Server computer has been renamed. The following steps will need to be taken to correct this; however, it is not a guarantee that this  will solve any other issues that may be caused by renaming the server:

• If SQL Server is installed on the same machine as the Notification Server:Please visit this link How to: Rename a Computer that Hosts a Stand-Alone Instance of SQL Server 2005. If you are using a different version of SQL Server, you need to investigate what steps you need to follow to make this change as the link mentioned here refers to SQL Server 2005.
• Open the file [NS INSTALL DIRECTORY]\Notification Server\Config\CoreSettings.config, search for the word 'key=DBServer'. Replace the 'value' attribute of the found XML element from the previous server name to the new server name. (With later version, this file could be located at: \ProgramData\Symantec\SMP\Settings\CoreSettings.config)
• If account used for either the "Altiris Service" or the Notification Server web site is a local user (i.e. not a domain user), you will need to update the account to the new name. You can do so by following the 2nd  set of bullet points on this page. 
• Open Registry Editor, browse to the registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Altiris\express\Notification Server\. Find and replace any value that contains the old server name with the new name.
• Re-push the agent out to all previously managed machines.
• In some instances you may need to change the PreferredNSHost setting and add the new server name. See HOWTO10091 
• Run the Windows schedule named NS.Package Refresh to re-validate site/package server packages. To get to the Windows schedules, go to Start > Control Panel > Scheduled Tasks. 
• If you have hierarchy set up, you will need to remove and re-add the renamed server to the hierarchy. To do so, go to the Hierarchy Management page under the menu Settings > Notification Server > Hierarchy. In both cases, the Symantec Management Server log and the Windows Event log may contain useful information. The Symantec Management Server log can be accessed on the server by running Start menu > All Programs > Altiris > Diagnostics > Altiris Log Viewer.
  
  If the NS hosted computer has yet been renamed, a better alternative would be to point all NS clients to the new server name first. You can do this by going to the menu Settings > Agents/Plug-ins > Targeted Agent Settings. For each policy in the list, select the "Advanced" tab and specifies the new server name under the "Alternative URL for accessing NS" section. By doing this, all the clients will work automatically once the NS server has been renamed. 

Note: If the NS service account is a local user, the step above does not actually work. Symantec recommends switching the current local user to a domain user before renaming the machine.

The above solution has also been tested in a SMP7.1 environment successfully, however the console could not be accessed remotely. This was fixed by adding the user as a Symantec Administrator.

Applies To

Symantec Management Platform 7.0, 7.1, 7.5

185009 "How to join a standalone IT Management Suite instance to domain, along with FQDN change?"