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3C990B Client and Server NIC Features
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The 3Com DMI Agent allows any DMI management application to access information
such as:
■ NIC driver location, version, and size
■ Packets-sent statistics
■ Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) receive errors
A network administrator can then use this type of information to remotely configure and
manage a client or server computer.
The 3Com DMI Agent consists of a DMI browser with the following components:
■ DMI service layer
■ DMI agent
■ GUI installer
■ NDIS drivers
For detailed information about the 3Com DMI Agent, refer to the 3Com DMI Agent User
Guide included with the DMI software on the EtherCD. For information about installing
the 3Com DMI Agent and downloading the 3Com DMI Agent User Guide, see
Appendix B, "Installing the 3Com DMI Agent."
Remote System Alerts
You can configure the 3C990B NIC to transmit a number of different packet alerts to the
management server to notify the network administrator that there is a system issue that
requires attention. These alerts support the Alert Standard Forum (ASF) specification and
provide system monitoring in the OS-absent environment. The alerting capability is
present whether the system is powered off, booting up, in sleep mode, or the OS has
hung. There are many different alert types, including those that relate to:
■ Physical security — chassis intrusion, heartbeat, loss of connection
■ Environmental conditions — fan speed, temperature, voltage deviations
■ BIOS issues — ROM initialization, system memory
Remote Control
The 3C990B NIC can also receive commands via Remote Control and Management Protocol
(RMCP). This feature is also specified in the ASF specification and lets network administrators
troubleshoot and resolve system issues across the network. Commands include:
■ Power on
■ Power off
■ Reboot
■ Reboot from an alternative device (for example: MBA, CD-ROM, and so forth)
Both monitoring alerts and sending commands are available in the system console
through the 3Com Remote System Alert Manager. This management plug-in is available
for HP OpenView Network Node Manager, Microsoft Systems Management Server, and
Intel LANDesk Client Manager.
Keep-Alive
The 3C990B NIC can also transmit a workgroup keep-alive packet periodically while the
computer is in a sleep state. This packet prevents the computer workstation address from
being aged-out of switch router tables.