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Adapter configurations 70
• Compliance with the Wired for Management Baseline (WfM) 2.0 specification
• Compatibility with legacy boot agent environments that use BOOTP protocol
• Customization in pre-boot, Windows®, and DOS environments
Operating environment
The Boot Agent operates in a client/server environment. Often, in this environment, one or more servers
provide remote boot services to a large number of client computers through a common network. The
computer system where the Intel® Boot Agent is loaded is considered to be a client with respect to the
remote boot capability even if that system acts as a server after the system has finished booting.
Configuration options
The Intel® Boot Agent software provides configuration options that allow you to customize the behavior of
the Boot Agent software. You can configure the Boot Agent in a pre-boot environment (before the
operating system is loaded).
Configuring the Boot Agent in a pre-boot PXE or RPL environment
You can customize the behavior of the Boot Agent software through a pre-boot (operating system
independent) configuration setup program contained within the adapter's flash ROM. A single user
interface allows you to configure PXE and RPL protocols on HP Gigabit adapters. You can access this pre-
boot configuration setup program each time the client computer cycles through the boot process. The boot
process is triggered whenever any of the following boot events occur:
• Power on
• Hard reset (Reset button on system, if available)
• Soft reset (Ctrl+Alt+Del)
• Operating system or application-initiated system restart
When the boot process begins, the screen clears and the computer begins its Power On Self-Test (POST)
sequence. Shortly after completion of the POST, the Boot Agent software stored in flash ROM executes.
The Boot Agent then displays an initialization message, similar to the one below, indicating that it is
active:
Initializing Intel(R) Boot Agent Version X.X.XX
PXE 2.0 Build 083 (WfM 2.0)
Press Ctrl+S to enter the Setup Menu.
This display may be hidden by the manufacturer's splash screen. Refer to your manufacturer's
documentation for details.
To customize the behavior of the Boot Agent software in a pre-boot PXE or RPL environment complete the
following steps:
1. Press the Ctrl+S keys immediately after the initialization message appears. A configuration setup
menu appears allowing you to set configuration values for the Boot Agent. The configuration setup
menu is the same for both kinds of adapters.
If you do not press the Ctrl+S keys, the Boot Agent software will proceed with the boot process
eventually bringing up the operating system. If you miss your opportunity to press the Ctrl+S keys
within the allowed number of seconds, reboot the computer to try again. If you select a Setup Menu
Wait Time setting of zero or a Show Setup Prompt setting of Disabled, you will not be prompted to
press the Ctrl+S keys even though you can still enter the configuration setup menu using this key
combination.