Build number 3.1.1045
This document contains the following topics:
Dell Client Manager is the most powerful Dell hardware management solution available for Dell Precision* workstations, OptiPlex* desktops, and Latitude* notebooks. The unprecedented integration of Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation with the Symantec Management Platform has resulted in a single, remote console—the Dell Client Management Console.
Dell Client Manager provides three levels of capability to fit the varying needs and types of organizations. Each level—Standard, Plus, and Dell Client Management Suite—builds upon the previous level; each simply snaps additional management capability into the Dell Client Manager unified management architecture, adhering to and leveraging the same familiar interface, the same database, and the same management agent. With Dell Client Manager, you outfit yourself with sufficient capability to produce the outcomes you want in the near term and easily adopt additional capability—and the associated benefits—when you're ready to take the next step. Adopting and deriving the benefits of centralized, automated client management has never been easier or more straightforward.
With Dell Client Manager Standard you can perform the following actions:
Dell Client Manager Plus (formerly known as Dell OpenManage Client Administrator - OMCA) includes additional Symantec solutions to provide the following capabilities:
Dell Client Management Suite provides the following additional capabilities:
Dell Client Manager supports all Dell Precision workstations, OptiPlex desktops, and Latitude notebooks. Dell Client Manager does not support Dell Dimension desktops, Dell Inspiron notebooks, and Dell Vostro notebooks.
For the list of the Dell computers and devices that support patching, see the PDKPC readme at http://ftp.dell.com/cmsdk/PDKPC_Readme.doc
Dell Client Manager can inventory and manage the following displays:
1708FP-BLK, 1908FP-BLK, E1609W, E1709W, E1909W, E2009W, E2209W, E170S , E190S, E1910, E1910H, E2010H, E2210, E2210H, E2310H, G2210, G2410, P170S, P2210, P190S, P2010H, P2210H, P2310H, U2410.
All newer Business Client Models of the E, P, and U series are also supported. The consumer models (IN, ST, SX and AW series) are not supported.
Some Dell models are ASF 2.0 capable. To be ASF 2.0 capable, a computer must have a network adapter and computer BIOS that supports ASF 2.0. Some Dell computers have Broadcom network adapters that support ASF 2.0 while the computer BIOS does not. You can discover ASF-capable computers using the Out of Band Discovery policy. For more information, see the Out of Band Management Component Implementation Guide.
Supported ASF computers can be identified through the Supported ASF 2.0 capable Dell client computers filter. Dell Client Manager may recognize other models that have ASF-capable network adapters but do not have ASF 2.0 support in the computer BIOS. In these cases, these computers are listed as capable in the ASF/DASH Capable Computers filter. They can have the Out of Band Task Agent installed on them, along with fully supported models. ASF 2.0 functionality is not available on these computers, and it does not cause any problems to have the agent installed on the computers that are not fully supported.
Some Dell models support Intel AMT 2.0 and later. You can discover Intel AMT-capable computers by using the Out of Band Discovery policy. For more information, see the Out of Band Management Component Implementation Guide.
For more information on discovering, configuring, and managing Intel AMT-capable computers, see the Out of Band Management Component Implementation Guide.
The new features of this release are as follows:
This product can be installed on Symantec Management Platform 7.0 SP2.
You can deploy software patches to Dell computers that support patching.
You can set BIOS system password remotely from the Dell Management Console.
Dell Client Manager installs OMCI 7.7 to the client Dell computers.
Now you can view Dell Client Manager Alerts in the Event Console.
The Warranty Extractor task lets you extract warranty information from the client Dell computers.
The following is required for this release:
If you are installing for the first time, Symantec Management Platform is installed automatically when you use Symantec Installation Manager to install this product.
You can install this product by using the Symantec Installation Manager. You can download the installation files directly to your server or you can create offline installation packages.
For more information, see the Symantec Management Platform Installation Guide (see knowledgebase article 45732).
You can upgrade this product from 2.x versions if you run the Symantec Installation Manager on a Notification Server 6.x computer. To upgrade from the 2.x version, you must first upgrade your 6.x Notification Server to Symantec Management Platform 7.0 or later. During the Notification Server upgrade process, you can select to upgrade to the latest version of this product.
For more information, see the Symantec Management Platform Installation Guide (see knowledgebase article 45732).
After you upgraded the product, you must upgrade the Altiris Agent and the Dell Client Manager Agent that are installed on the target Dell computers.
The following issues are known issues related to installing and upgrading this product. If additional information about an issue is available, click the Article ID link.
Issue | Article ID |
Dell Client Manager upgrade issues |
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Client upgrade issues |
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The following are things to know about in this release. If additional information about an issue is available, click the Article ID link.
Things to know | Article ID |
Hierarchy is not supportedThis product does not support hierarchy and replication. |
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How to import Dell Client Update Packages Catalog from a custom locationDell Client Manager lets you import the Dell Client Update Packages Catalog from the Dell Web site or from a custom location. If you want to import from the custom location, follow these recommendations:
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The following are known issues for this release. If additional information about an issue is available, click the Article ID link.
Known Issue | Article ID |
Do not perform the shutdown operation after the BIOS version updateAfter performing a BIOS update, the computer must be restarted rather than shut down. If a computer is shut down, the BIOS upgrade will not take effect and you may cause the computer to not start properly.
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BIOS password restrictionsBIOS Passwords set in a BIOS policy have the following restrictions:
These restrictions apply to both setting passwords and password verification. |
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BIOS password numeric valuesWhen using a computer's BIOS configuration utility (after a start or restart), a BIOS password entered from the numeric keypad on the keyboard (under the NumLock key) doesn't match a similar password entered by using the numeric keys under the F1...F10 keys. Dell Client Manager does not recognize the format from the numeric keypad in the BIOS.
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Extracting .hdr file from non-packaged BIOS upgrade .exe fileWhen using DOS-based BIOS upgrade files, you must extract the .hdr file from the downloaded .exe file. You can do this by running filename.exe –writehdrfile. Some files may not extract correctly. This occurs because the extraction process requires more memory than it's allocated by default. If this occurs, right-click the .exe, click the Memory tab of the .exe file properties, and modify memory allocation values to maximum values for all settings. Then close the Properties dialog box and re-execute the extraction process. |
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Asset tag length limitationsWhen setting the Asset Tag value in the BIOS Settings Task, there is a 10-character limit. If you have more than 10 characters, this will cause the changing of an Asset Tag (of more than 10 characters) to fail. For example, if you use a %systemname% macro as a value for the Asset Tag, and if %systemname% is more than 10 characters, the set operation will fail. |
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Asset tag macro limitationsWhen you use a %username% macro as a value for the Asset Tag when no user is currently logged on the target computer, the set operation will fail. |
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Boot order limitations |
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BIOS upgrade not automatically performed with password-locked screen saverWhen using the BIOS Update Job for a client computer that has a password-locked screen saver, by default the screen saver will prevent the computer from automatically restarting and flashing the BIOS. (If the computer is manually rebooted, it will then flash the BIOS.) In the Restart by Power Control task, there is the Force applications to close without prompting option that is cleared by default. If you select this option, the computer will restart and flash the BIOS. |
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Hyperthreading settings management not possible on some modelsHyperthreading status on Dell OptiPlex 745 and 745C computers is displayed as Disabled or Enabled, but in fact, the settings are not supported by the BIOS and cannot be changed. On Dell Latitude D420, D520, D620, D820, Dell Precision Workstation M65, and M90 notebooks, changing Hyperthreading settings (using the BIOS Settings task or the Real-Time view) changes MultiCore settings instead. |
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You must upgrade BIOS on Dell Latitude 131L before managing the computerHardware inventory collection, monitoring policies, and stand-alone packages fail to run on Dell Latitude 131L computers with BIOS version 1.7 or earlier. To manage the computers, manually upgrade the BIOS to version 2.1 or later by running Dell's BIOS upgrade package on the client computer. The BIOS upgrade package can be obtained from the Dell Web site (http://support.dell.com/). |
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BIOS cannot be upgraded on Dell Latitude 131LYou cannot upgrade the BIOS to versions 2.1 or earlier on Dell Latitude 131L remotely, using the BIOS Update Task. You have to upgrade the BIOS manually by running Dell's BIOS upgrade package on the client computer. Dell is currently working on resolving the issue. Check the Dell Web site if a newer version of BIOS is available (http://support.dell.com/). |
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BIOS settings cannot be changed on Dell Latitude 131LBIOS settings on Dell Latitude 131L cannot be changed, either by using the BIOS Settings Task or the Real-Time view. |
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BIOS cannot be upgraded on Dell OptiPlex 740You cannot upgrade the BIOS to versions 1.0.5 or earlier on Dell OptiPlex 740 remotely, using the BIOS Update Task. Dell is currently working on resolving the issue. Check the Dell Web site if a newer version of BIOS is available (http://support.dell.com/). |
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ASF out-of-band power management limitationDell Latitude D531, D630, D631, and D830 notebooks with ASF 2.0 capability do not support the Reboot/Reset power action (see the Real-Time Console Infrastructure's Power Management task) using ASF technology—only Power On and Power Off power actions are supported. |
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ASF Configuration takes an excessive amount of time to complete or times out on Vista x64ASF Configuration/Inventory tasks take a long time to complete or times out completely. |
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Not possible to create dynamic filtersCurrently, it is not possible to create dynamic custom filters. |
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How to turn on the Dell Client Monitoring PolicyIf you turn on the policy by right-clicking Dell Client Monitoring Policy in the left pane and then clicking Enable, the automated action that is defined in the policy (By default: Email Automated Action for Dell Client Manager Alert) will not work. Instead, turn on the policy using the On/Off button on the upper-right of the Dell Client Monitoring Policy page, and then click Save changes. |
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Dell Client Monitoring Policy automated action issueWhen you click Edit input parameters on the Dell Client Monitoring Policy page, the Edit Job/Task Input Parameters virtual window appears. If you click Cancel or close this virtual window, the pre-populated Data Source fields can be lost. Instead, click OK, even if you did not change anything in the virtual window. If you did click Cancel, then navigate away from the Dell Client Monitoring Policy page without saving anything. Then come back to the page—the lost Data Source fields should be now restored. |
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Power Scheme Tasks conflict with Dell Control Point softwareWhen you run a power scheme task on a Dell computer with the Dell Control Point software installed, the power scheme settings take effect, but the values in the Power Options Properties dialog box on the Dell client computer do not change. |
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Where to look for the WSMAN event descriptionsWSMAN event messages in the Event Console do not contain a description of the event. To understand the event, you must refer to the Standard Message Registry. This registry is not provided in the Help documentation. The registry is attached to article 43656. |
43656 |
Do not use Dell Client Configuration Utility on computers with BitLockerDo not use the stand-alone Dell Client Configuration Utility to update BIOS version or change BIOS settings on the computers that have BitLocker drive encryption enabled. If you make changes to the BIOS without disabling BitLocker first, the computer will fail to start. A TPM recovery code is needed to start the computer again. To manage computers with BitLocker, use the BIOS jobs that are included with Dell Client Manager. |
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The "Reboot after change" option on the BIOS Settings and Boot Order pages does not workThe "Reboot after change" option on the BIOS Settings and Boot Order pages in the Resource Manager's Real-Time view does not work. After you click Save changes, the changes that you made apply to the target computer, but the computer does not restart. Changing some BIOS settings requires the target computer to be restarted. You can use the Real-Time Console Infrastructure's Power Management task to reboot the computer remotely. |
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Real-Time Console Infrastructure known issues in this releaseThis product installs Real-Time Console Infrastructure 7.0 SP2. For the list of Real-Time Console Infrastructure known issues in this release, see article 47197. |
47197 |
The product installation includes the following documentation:
Document | Description | Location |
User's Guide |
Information about how to use this product, including detailed technical information and instructions for performing common tasks. This information is available in PDF format. |
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Help |
Information about how to use this product. This information is the same as in the User's Guide. Help is available at the solution level and at the suite level. This information is available in HTML help format. |
The Documentation Library, which is available in the Symantec Management Console on the Help menu. Context-sensitive help is available for most screens in the Symantec Management Console. You can open context-sensitive help in the following ways:
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Resource | Description | Location |
Implementation Guide |
Information about how to install, configure, and implement this product. This information is available in PDF format. |
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Symantec Management Platform Release Notes |
Information about new features and important issues in the Symantec Management Platform. This information is available as an article in the knowledgebase. |
https://kb.altiris.com/article.asp?article=45141&p=1 You can also search for the product name under Release Notes. |
Installing the Symantec Management Platform products |
Information about using Symantec Installation Manager to install the Symantec Management Platform products. This information is available as an article in the knowledgebase. |
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Altiris 7 Planning and Implementation Guide |
Information about capacity recommendations, design models, scenarios, test results, and optimization best practices to consider when planning or customizing an Altiris 7 Infrastructure for your organization. This information is available as an article in the knowledgebase. |
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Knowledge Base |
Articles, incidents, and issues about this product. | |
Symantec Connect (formerly the Altiris Juice) |
An online magazine that contains best practices, tips, tricks, and articles for users of this product. | http://www.symantec.com/connect/endpoint-management-virtualization |
Online Forums |
Forums for users of this product. |
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