User manual SONY VAIO VPC-EB17FX/W

[. . . ] 17 Questions & Answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Intelligent Manageability for Armada Portable Products Intelligent Manageability is Compaq's management solution that lowers the total cost of computing by making PCs more manageable and less expensive to own. This white paper discusses the full set of Intelligent Manageability features available for Compaq Armada portable PCs and the Presario 1710SB. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Intelligent Manageability is Compaq's response to customers' need for easy-to-manage PCs in stand-alone and networked environments. Compaq addresses this need by focusing on five areas of primary concern for customers today: · · · · · Asset Management--provides the user with detailed configuration information about the PC and allows the System Administrator to inventory and track PCs and their components from one central location. [. . . ] Local and Remote Management ­ SMART Hard Drives SMART hard drives are monitored by the Insight Management Agent. If the drive signals that an imminent failure is predicted, the end-user sees an appropriate Local Alert message similar to Figure 4. An alert is also sent over the network to the system administrator and Insight Manager similar to Figure 5. If a hard drive failure is imminent, the end-user will be alerted even when on the road. Once the Armada PC is connected to the network, the problem is brought to the administrator's attention as well. The administrator can use the "Mass Storage" button in Figure 3 to view screens with more details about the ailing SMART hard drive. These alert messages give the user or administrator time to backup the hard drive and replace it prior to experiencing possible downtime or loss of data. INTELLIGENT MANAGEABILITY FOR ARMADA PORTABLE PRODUCTS (cont. ) . . 12 In addition to these proactive alert mechanisms, the SMART hard drive is polled during each boot sequence. A warning is displayed if a problem is detected. Also, the end-user or visiting PC technician can check the health of the SMART hard drive through Compaq Diagnostics for Windows (Compaq Insight Personal Edition). Each time this application is started, the hard drive is polled and the status is reported through the Health Screen. All of these solutions are complementary because each provides unique capabilities for managing PCs over the network. Compaq Insight Manager Compaq Insight Manager is the best tool for proactively managing hardware problems and configurations associated with desktops, portables, servers and workstations from Compaq. Within the realm of Intelligent Manageability, Compaq Insight Manager delivers asset tracking solutions and Fault Management over the network. It provides detailed information about Compaq PCs connected to the network and it is able to receive network alerts from Compaq PCs when problems are detected. The intent here is to provide proactive notification before problems become critical and the right configuration information so that a PC technician sent out to solve the problem can bring the appropriate equipment and parts to quickly solve the problem. Lower costs associated with minimal end-user downtime and faster service calls are the result. Compaq Insight Manager is run on a console that communicates with Insight Management Agents running on each managed device via industry standard SNMP. Compaq Armada portable PCs come with the Insight Management Agent pre-installed, but the agent software is also available on the Support Software CD and the Compaq WWW site (www. compaq. com). The agent must be enabled on each Armada PC and SNMP services must be enabled to connect with Compaq Insight Manager. Instructions for installing the agent and SNMP services are included with the agent software. Instructions for installing and using Compaq Insight Manager are also available. The newest features described throughout this document require Compaq Insight Manager Version 3. 50 and the Insight Management Agent for Armada portable PCs Version 3. 50. Compaq Management Solutions Partners Program Complementing the integration with Compaq Insight Manager, the Management Solutions Partners Program delivers the best Asset Management solutions over the network. [. . . ] In addition, when connected, the system administrator can remotely monitor and collect information on the portable PC by using Compaq Insight Manager or any application from PC Management vendors in the Compaq Management Solutions Partners Program. Compaq Insight Manager also enables the administrator to receive alerts from any Armada portable PC connected to the network. Why is the Compaq Management Solutions Partners Program necessary?Rather than market technologies that provide minimal benefits, Compaq worked with the PC LAN management vendors to provide customers with viable solutions for managing Armada portable PCs from a single point on the network. [. . . ]