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0695Part No. 098-60740
Microsoft® Systems Management Server integrates an extensive
collection of management functions into a single productproviding
system administrators with the key features they need to manage
distributed systems from one central location. Because Systems
Management Server can manage a few computers, or tens of thousands
of computers, you can be sure it will meet your requirements now
and in the future.
Systems Management Server is the ideal solution for computer professionals
who are concerned with the cost and complexity of building, maintaining,
and managing a business critical network. Many companies today
are trying to implement client-server solutions but lack an expert
management solution, so this is costing them money. Often companies
have several locations around the country or the world, making
centralized management even more critical. These enterprises
need to take control of their distributed systems from one central
location and provide proactive management solutions for their
users.
With Systems Management Server, an administrator can perform the
following tasks, all from one central location:
Not only does Systems Management Server provide all of these integrated
features in one product, it also provides multiple protocol support
for the leading operating systems. This allows Systems Management
Server to communicate with your clients and servers today, in
your existing LAN and WAN environments, with no change required.
Systems Management Server supports the leading networking operating
systemssuch as Novell® NetWare® and Windows NTas well
as the major desktop platforms available today, allowing for expansion
as you upgrade your systems.
In addition, Systems Management Server has been designed to work
with today's industry standard management protocols. The complete
integration and extensibility provided by the BackOffice suite
and the Systems Management Server Software Development Kit (SDK)
help assure that Systems Management Server will remain the ideal
management solution for networked computers far into the future.
A primary focus of Systems Management Server 1.1 is support of
the Windows® 95 operating system. The advantages of upgrading
to Windows 95 are becoming very well known: a redesigned interface,
plug & play technology, a true 32-bit architecture, built-in
networking, and reduced support costs are just a few of the key
reasons so many IS managers are looking at Windows 95.
- Many organizations are concerned about the costs of migrating
to Windows 95. The senior MIS strategists in many corporations
realize that this upgrade will take time and money, and that an
operating system upgrade is far from simple. However, a Gartner
report published in August 1994 shows that with thorough advance
planning and use of powerful tools, the cost of migration to Windows
95 can be reduced by as much as 70%.
- Systems Management Server 1.1 can play a vital role in
migration to Windows 95. Systems Management Server can greatly
reduce the time involved with the planning and preparation necessary
to migrate to Windows 95. It can perform the actual upgrades
automatically, without the need to visit each computer in your
enterprise. Upon completion, you can use Systems Management Server
to produce reports showing the status of the upgrades, and continue
to use it to centrally manage the new Windows 95 desktops.
The Systems Management Server Software
Development Kit
The release of Systems Management Server 1.1 includes the first
Software Development Kit (SDK) for Systems Management Server.
The SDK will allow developers and Solution Providers to take
advantage of the extensible open architecture by providing them
with the interfaces used to communicate with the underlying services,
such as the inventory database and user interfaces.
An integrated part of Microsoft BackOffice
Systems Management Server 1.1 is one of the Microsoft BackOffice
suite of products. Microsoft BackOffice is an integrated family
of server software built on the Windows NT Server operating system.
This family is the foundation of an information network that provides
traditional file & print services as well as powerful, new
network server solutions to help companies improve decision-making
and streamline their business processes. The BackOffice family
of products allows desktop computers to access and integrate information
from a variety of sources with unparalleled ease, price, and performance.
One of the main goals of systems administrators is to reduce the
time and effort involved with managing their networks. A primary
objective of Systems Management Server is to make centralized
management of distributed systems within large scale networks
easy. Systems Management Server provides the ability to
inventory, distribute and install software, and perform remote Help Desk functions on networked computers anywhere in your network
, all from one location. Systems Management Server 1.1 has expanded
on this design goal by providing a number of new, key features
that make it even easier to manage your environment, as well as
reduce the costs of keeping your network operational.
Improved queries
To enable systems administrators to reduce setup time and create
environments that are easy for their operators to use, we have
added a number of new features to the query engine of Systems
Management Server 1.1. Using these new features, system administrators
will spend less time configuring the system and training their
operators, and more time working on other tasks.
- Pre-defined queries. In response to customer
requests, we have included several pre-defined queries that are
installed during Setup. These queries give first time users the
opportunity to become familiar with how queries are created and
run before trying to design their own. Administrators who are
already familiar with queries will spend less time setting up
the system when they are deploying Systems Management Server.
- Prompted Queries. Systems Management Server
has been extended to provide prompted (or parameterized) queries.
This allows you to write a generalized query that prompts for
more information when it is run. For example, you could write
a query that tests for low hard disk space remaining, but leaves
the definition of what is considered low to be made by the person
running the query. When the query is run, the operator will be
prompted for the actual value to be used in the query. If a query
contains more than one prompted expression, each is resolved in
sequence using a Wizard type interface, and a summary dialog box
is presented at the end for reviewing all resolved expressions
(see following screen). Several of the pre-defined queries take advantage of the new
prompted query feature. For instance, there is a query for "Computers
by Operating System." When you select and run this query,
Systems Management Server displays the Resolve Query dialog box,
which prompts you for the Operating System name to include in
the query. You can select the name you want from a drop-down menu
that includes the names of all operating systems for all computers
inventoried at that time. For example, after upgrading Windows
computers to Windows 95, you could run a query looking for computers
running Windows 95, as shown in the screen above.
- Added 'NOT-Condition' query. Do you ever need to find
machines that don't have a specific application installed, or
don't use a sound card? Systems Management Server 1.1 gives you
the ability to solve this problem by allowing you to query on
values and items which are NOT in the database. When you specify
certain NOT conditions, the program creates a special machine
group for computers that meet these NOT conditions. This feature
is especially useful when you are planning a software upgrade,
as it gives you the ability to identify computers that do not
have a particular software program on them.
- Faster operation. Do you manage, or want to manage
a large number of machines? If so, then the improved speed and
performance of the query engine will greatly reduce the amount
of time that your operators spend waiting while trying to find
specific information from the inventory database.
Improved auditing database
Do you need a method for finding applications that your users
have installed on their local machines? Systems Management Server
1.1 makes this easy by providing you with a software audit database
containing over 2500 software packages from many of the leading
software vendors. We have been working with the Business Software
Alliance (BSA) to provide this as part of Systems Management Server
1.1. The software audit database allows administrators to identify
and locate software installed on computersan extremely useful
feature when performing software auditing or enforcing software
license control.
Easy retrieval of inventory rule data.
Software auditing requires more than just the file name, and now
Systems Management Server 1.1 makes it easy for you to browse
for and retrieve specific properties from a file such as date,
time, size, checksum, and crc.
In the example above, specific information is being collected
about the file POWERPNT.EXE. Only computers that have the POWERPNT.EXE
file with the defined properties will be included in the audit
or inventory.
New MIF entry form
Do you need to obtain specific information from your users which
is not necessarily related to their computers? The new MIF entry
form makes it easy for users to provide you with the information
you require to extend your existing database.
Once the information is entered and saved, it is processed as
a standard MIF. The Inventory Agent gathers the data and enters
it into the database along with the other inventory information
from the computer, all automatically. In the screen above, the
easy-to-use MIF entry form is displayed on a Windows 95 machine.
To help reduce the costs associated with ongoing management, Systems
Management Server provides the integrated features that a system
administrator needs to maintain the network from one central location.
After talking to customers, we realized that there are a variety
ways that they use their systems, and a successful management
product must be flexible enough to meet diverse customer requirements.
With this in mind, Systems Management Server 1.1 integrates into
existing environments and provides administrators with more control
over their systems.
Adjustable bandwidth control
Would you like to control the bandwidth used by the software distribution
process? Do you want to adjust the amount of bandwidth depending
on the time, so that you can limit excessive load when your network
is already busy? Systems Management Server 1.1 allows you to
do this.
Systems Management Server uses a Sender, which is a Windows NT
Service, to transfer instructions and data between sites. The
communication link may use any number of protocols-such as IPX,
TCP/IP, or ISDN-and is referred to as an address. The Sender
uses the address to establish connections between sites, manages
the connection, transfers and ensures the integrity of data, handles
error recovery, and closes the connection.
Systems Management Server 1.0 gave administrators the ability
to control when each type of send process would occur. Version
1.1 enhances the Senders so that administrators can now specify
the percentage of network bandwidth that this process takes.
The settings to adjust bandwidth control are located in the Windows
NT Registry. We have provided a utility called the Sender Manager
to allow you to change these settings.
From the Sender Properties window shown above, you can define
the total number of concurrent connections that can be opened
at any one time, the maximum number of concurrent connections
to one destination site, and the percentage of bandwidth that
can be utilized. All of these settings can be specified on an
hour-by-hour basis throughout the day.
Improved remote Help Desk
In response to customer requests, we now support a number of key
features that improve the functionality of the remote Help Desk
feature. We have added Remote Chat, seamless remote control across
a TCP/IP WAN for servers running the Microsoft Windows Internet
Name Service (WINS), several new Help Desk options, and, of course,
support for Windows 95.
- Remote Chat. This feature allows administrators to
communicate with a user at a remote computer. Both the administrator
and the remote user can type text messages that are displayed
on the other person's computer. In the following screen, an administrator
helps a new Windows 95 user by implementing the Remote Chat feature.
- Support for DHCP/WINS. Systems Management Server takes
advantage of DHCP and WINS services on Windows NT servers to offer
seamless remote control across a WAN without the need to manually
edit and maintain hosts files.
- New Help Desk Options.To enhance security at the
client computer, we have added several options that either allow
or prevent an administrator or Help Desk technician from accessing
the client. These features are especially useful when Systems
Management Server is being deployed in a secure environment.
These new options are:
- Allow MS-DOS® Diagnostics. This allows the administrator
to examine the information that Systems Management Server can
gather from a computer running MS-DOSsuch as CMOS information,
Device Drivers, ROM Information, Interrupt Vectors, and MS-DOS
Memory.
- Allow Windows Diagnostics. This allows the administrator
to examine the information that Systems Management Server can
gather from computers running the Windows® operating systemsuch
as Windows Memory, Windows Modules, Windows Classes, Global Heap,
and GDI Heap.
- Allow Ping Test. An administrator can now "ping"
the client computer to determine if it is capable of sending and
receiving packets.
- Permission Required. This option gives the user the
ability to grant or deny permission to explicit remote options
on the client computer. These options are displayed at the client
computer, as shown in the next screen.
- If an administrator attempts to remotely access a client computer,
the user is asked if he/she would like to allow the administrator
to perform the requested action. If the user refuses or the timeout
period is reached, the administrator will get a message stating
that the "Remote user has denied permission."
- Support for Remote Windows 95 clients. To allow you
to take advantage of centralized management as you migrate your
existing desktops to Windows 95, we have added full support for
all of the remote Help Desk tools for Windows 95 clients.
New real time properties for Windows
NT machines
Do you ever need to perform remote diagnostics on a Windows NT-based
computer that is in another location? With Systems Management
Server 1.1, you can do this across your network without having
to physically visit the remote computer. When you view the properties
of a Windows NT-based computer, a new property icon appears that
allows you to invoke the Windows NT diagnostics program on the
Windows NT-based computer. This new feature is extremely helpful
when a Help Desk call comes in, as it enables you to obtain information
from the Windows NT-based computer while it is running. The options
that are available are shown in the following screen.
Database maintenance features
As with all database applications, the Systems Management Server
SQL Server database requires you to perform periodic maintenance
tasks. Systems Management Server 1.1 integrates a number of the
more common maintenance tasks into the SMS Administrator, removing
the need to perform these tasks from a SQL Server Administration
program. This new feature allows the administrator to delete
specific information from the database, such as Inactive Machines,
Machine History and completed jobs.
- Delete Special. This feature is invoked through a
context-sensitive menu option in the SMS Administrator. You can
delete inactive machines or machine history information from the
Sites window, and jobs and events from their respective windows.
The screen below shows the Delete Special dialog box that is
displayed when executed from the Jobs window. By choosing Delete
Special with the Jobs window active, the administrator can specify
which items to delete by setting filter options in the Delete
Special dialog box.
Added fields in the sites window
System Administrators and operators often need to know which users
are logged onto which computers. In version 1.1, we have added
new fields in the Sites window to display more information about
each computer and the current user logged onto it.
These fields have been added in response to a number of requests
from administrators; especially administrators of Novell networks,
which don't support actual machine names. These fields provide
a new, easy way for administrators to identify the Novell workstations.
Customizable machine properties
Many Help Desk technicians or system administrators like to be
able to customize the management tools to gain easier access to
the information they need. We have added a new feature that allows
operators to do this.
You can use the SMS Administrator to view hardware and software
inventory information for any computer in the system. In version
1.1, we have added the ability to individually customize the properties
displayed for each administrator through the Personal Computer
Properties dialog box. Settings for each administrator are stored
in the Registry and are loaded when the administrator logs on.
In the screen below, the administrator does not need to monitor
the workstation status or gain information about Macintosh®
machines, and so these properties will not display.
Do you need to manage many different type of machines? Does your
company have a number of different networking standards? Systems
Management Server 1.1 can help by providing comprehensive support
for heterogeneous environments. Systems Management Server was
designed to provide not only a number of integrated management
features within one product, but also to work within customer's
existing environments by supporting the leading network and client
operating systems. Systems Management Server 1.1 enhances this
interoperability by adding additional support for recently released
network and client operating systems. This allows customers to
extend their management reach to these new systems, and continue
to reduce the costs associated with deploying new systems in their
environments.
Support for Windows 95
Are you thinking about migrating some of your desktops to Windows
95? Do you like to automate this process? Do you want to provide
support for your users when they move across to Windows 95? Systems
Management Server 1.1 not only supports migration to Windows 95,
but both product teams have been working closely together to make
the Windows 95 migration smooth and easy by using Systems Management
Server.
- Save time by automatically qualifying target workstations.
Systems Management Server can help you locate and inventory workstations
targeted for the upgrade to Windows 95. The Windows 95 Deployment
Guide provides details of the installation process for users migrating
to Windows 95. One of the first steps is to determine which machines
should be upgraded:
- Locate machines that can be successfully upgraded.
There are a number of requirements that need to be considered,
such as processor type, memory, available disk space, and specific
software configurations. Compiling the information about each
computer connected to the corporate LAN or WAN can be a costly
challenge, especially if your computers are distributed over a
wide geographic area.
- Systems Management Server performs automatic inventory.
You don't have to visit each machineall of the hardware and software
details are gathered automatically from each machine and stored
in a central database. You simply query the database for the
machines that match your upgrade criteria, and then organize them
into Machine Groups that can be targeted for automatic upgrades.
If for some reason one or more of these computers cannot be successfully
upgraded, you can use Systems Management Server's remote Help
Desk tools to resolve the issues from a central location. You
can even reboot the remote computer for the next upgrade attempt.
The following screen shows a sample query used to find machines
that can be upgraded.
- Save money by performing unattended installations.
Once you have identified the target workstations, Systems Management
Server can make the upgrade process easy and cost-effective.
- Automatically distribute the software. Systems Management
Server reduces network traffic by compressing the Windows 95 files
into a "package." This package is then distributed
across the network to a local server at the remote site.
- Use existing file and print servers. You can use your
Novell NetWare servers as "distribution points" for
the Windows 95 files. Systems Management Server can add value
to your existing environment because it supports the leading network
operating systems.
- Advanced scheduling provides full control. You can
control when and how the distribution process takes place and
decide which communication protocols and links to use. After
distributing the software package, Systems Management Server can
automatically invoke the Windows 95 upgrade process at a pre-determined
time, with no input required from the users.
- Provide status information. Systems Management Server
can inform the administrator when the installation has been successfully
completed. Or, should the upgrade fail for some reason, Systems
Management Server will send an error message to the administrator
so that the problem can be resolved.
- All of these tasks are key to the successful migration to
Windows 95. Systems Management Server is uniquely qualified to
help the system administrator perform these tasks: these features
are, in fact, a core part of the product. The following screen
shows the package provided with Systems Management Server 1.1
that it used to upgrade to Windows 95.
- Provide increased control by taking advantage of centralized
management. There are many great management features built
into Windows 95, such as System Policies and User Profiles. When
these are coupled with the extensive centralized integrated management
features of Systems Management Server, the administrator can achieve
outstanding control of the network.
- Systems Management Server provides pro-active support for
users. Using the inventory database, you can automatically
install and upgrade software, and prevent many of the problems
associated with these processes.
- Use the powerful Help Desk functions. Perform remote
control and troubleshooting from a central location across any
number of wide area and local area links to resolve user problems,
without having to physically visit the user's computer. In the
screen below, an administrator is using the remote control features
to monitor the processes on a remote Windows 95-based computer.
As more and more administrators are faced with the spiraling
cost of deploying and supporting personal computers, this type
of systems management functionality is becoming a standard for
IS organizations.
Support for Windows NT Server 3.51
Are you planning to upgrade to Windows NT Server 3.51? Systems
Management Server 1.1 fully supports the latest version of Windows
NT Server, the best network foundation for a new generation of
business solutions. The latest version is easy to install, manage,
and use, and provides everything you need for networkingright
out of the box. With the included utilities, protocols, and services,
Windows NT Server 3.51 integrates easily with existing systems,
such as NetWare and UNIX®.
Windows NT Server 3.51 offers a number of new features and benefits:
- Licensing Management Tools. New tools have been built
into the product to help customers track Server and Client Access
Licenses. During Setup, customers are required to acknowledge
the terms of the licensing agreement. In addition, the licensing
tools track licenses and usage, and alert administrators when
they are out of compliance.
- Additional Concurrent Licensing option. This option
has been added to meet the needs of customers with special-use
servers such as occasional-user servers, Remote Access Servers,
and Internet servers. Under this option, a Client Access License
is purchased for each concurrent connection to a particular server.
The new licensing tools include a metering function to help manage
this option
- NTFS File Compression. This allows users to compress
data to reduce the amount of storage space used on a server.
For maximum flexibility, users can choose to compress on a per-file
or per-directory basis.
In this release we also support Windows NT Workstation 3.51 as
a client. We will also continue to support customers who continue
to use their existing installations of Windows NT Server 3.5 and
Windows NT Workstation 3.5.
Support for SQL Server 6.0
Systems Management Server uses Microsoft's advanced SQL Server
relational database management system (RDBMS ) for distributed
client-server computing. The SQL Server database is used to store
Systems Management Server inventory information and takes advantage
of the advanced scheduling features of Systems Management Server.
Systems Management Server 1.1 offers support for the latest version
of SQL Server, version 6.0. This is the first RDBMS designed
specifically to meet the demanding requirements of distributed
client-server applications. It brings critical features such
as data replication, parallel processing, and large database support
to cost effective standard hardware platforms, yet remains easy
to manage and use. SQL Server addresses key issues of remote
administration and operational control via a comprehensive object-based
distributed management framework. It also introduces innovations
such as OLE automation and scripting via the Visual Basic programming
system to improve integration with desktop computing environments,
and interoperates with a wide variety of legacy database platforms.
An integrated part of Microsoft BackOffice
BackOffice is the first integrated family of server software designed
to make it easier for companies to improve decision-making and
streamline their business processes with client-server solutions.
It is the foundation for an information network that provides
traditional file and print services plus a wealth of powerful,
new network server solutions. Based on the Windows NT Server
operating system, the BackOffice family of products allows desktop
computers to access and integrate information from a variety of
sources with unparalleled ease, price, and performance. Not only
does BackOffice offer a number of technical benefits to customers
who need an integrated system, it offers the benefit of a cost-effective
way to purchase these integrated advanced server applications
in one box.
Microsoft BackOffice consists of the following products:
- Microsoft Windows NT Server as the network foundation
- Microsoft SQL Server for managing and storing data
- Microsoft SNA Server for host connectivity
- Microsoft Systems Management Server for managing PCs
and servers
- Microsoft Mail Server for distributing information
Support for OS/2 Warp & LAN Server
4.0
As part of continuous support for heterogeneous environments,
we have added support for third party operating systems. Systems
Management Server 1.1 offers client-side support for IBM's Warp
desktop operating system and their latest release of LAN Server,
4.0, both of which were released after Systems Management Server
1.0.
Compaq asset control
Compaq recently released new hardware which supports advanced
asset information that is part of their new advanced intelligent
manageability features. Systems Management Server 1.1 takes advantage
of the information offered by these new features to gather the
monitor serial number, system serial number, system board revision
level, manufacturer, model, and asset tag for Compaq computers.
This information is placed in a Management Information File (MIF)
and passed up the network hierarchy to the Systems Management
Server SQL database.
New Network Monitor parsers
The Systems Management Server Network Monitor allows you to analyze
network traffic and pinpoint problems or potential bottlenecks.
Network Monitor is entirely software-based and provides a number
features that can help with remote fault finding on your network.
With Network Monitor, you can capture frames directly from the
network, display and filter captured frames, edit and transmit
captured frames onto the network to test network resources or
reproduce network problems, and even capture frames on a remote
computer and display the capture statistics on the local computer
at intervals you specify. In Systems Management Server 1.1 we
have increased the parsers we support to include the following:
- HTTP Parser
- IPXCP Parser
- IPCP Parser
- NBTFCP Parser
- CBCP Parser
- CCP Parser
- PPP PAP Parser
- SNMP Parser
- Netlogon Broadcast Parser
- SPX2 Parser
During the design phase of Systems Management Server, customers
described their own ideas of just what makes up systems managementwe
found they have many different requirements. As a result, we
designed Systems Management Server with an extensible open architecture,
thereby allowing companies to build products and services that
add value to Systems Management Server in their unique environments.
To take advantage of this extensible architecture, we are making
the first Systems Management Server Software Developers Kit (SDK),
available with the release of Systems Management Server 1.1.
The SDK is a collection of tools that makes it easy to extend
Systems Management Server to meet specific requirements. It contains
a set of libraries, header files, on-line help, and sample programs
that you can use to create applications which take advantage of
the core resources of Systems Management Server, thereby extending
its functionality.
Who can benefit from the Software Development Kit? Just about
anyone who uses Systems Management Server:
- Independent Software Vendors who wish to either extend
the functionality of Systems Management Server or would like to
integrate a complementary management solution with Systems Management
Server.
- Solution Providers can use the tools to add value to
the services that they offer to their customers, either as part
of a large scale deployment or as a developer of custom applications
that leverage the services of Systems Management Server.
- Corporate customers who are using the product to provide
centralized management of their distributed systems can use the
advanced documentation and tools to gain more from the system,
and integrate Systems Management Server with other information
systems that they use.
The SDK provides the interfaces required to communicate with underlying
services, such as the inventory database, allowing customers to
develop practical solutions that take advantage of Systems Management
Server. The kit contains not only development tools,
but also documentation and utilities to help you use typical productivity
applicationssuch as Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excelto gather
information from the system. The key new features and benefits
of the SDK are:
- New report tools allow you to gain access to the extensive
inventory data, using standard applications and report tools.
- Extending the database allows you to add your own custom
data to the inventory database.
- New APIs allow you to interact with the core services,
using Visual C++ or Visual Basic®.
- Extend the user interface with your own custom Icons
and data.
- Distribute applications with Systems Management Server
and understand what's required.
- Extend the Network Monitor to add you own custom parsers.
The Systems Management Server SDK will be released as part of
the Microsoft BackOffice Software Development Kit. The BackOffice
SDK allows companies to develop integrated line-of-business applications
to take advantage of the entire range of BackOffice services.
Do you need to gather system information regarding all of your
distributed servers and workstations, and then integrate this
data with your normal productivity applications to produce quality
reports? With the new SDK, you can create reports using standard
tools that extract detailed information from the inventory database.
In keeping with its open design, Systems Management Server stores
all its data, such as inventory and events, in a SQL Server database.
In addition to taking advantage of the power and features of
SQL Serversuch as its scalability, speed, and reliabilitythis
means that any ODBC-enabled application can gather data from
the Systems Management Server database.
We provide details of how to set up the ODBC connection to the
database, how to create views that provide an abstraction of the
database, and then provide two sets of tools that allow you to
read data from the inventory information.
- Crystal Reports is a powerful, easy-to-use program
for creating custom reports, lists, and form letters, using data
from your Systems Management Server database. The program works
by establishing connections with the database and then extracting
the values from selected database fields to put into a report.
Crystal Reports is available as part of Microsoft Visual Basic
Programming Language and the Systems Management Server SDK, and
includes samples that create basic reports using information from
the inventory database.
- Microsoft Sample Applications created in Microsoft
Access, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft Excel, take advantage of
SQL Views to extract information from the Systems Management Server
database. The following Excel spreadsheet demonstrates how you
can display information that has been extracted from the Systems
Management Server database:
Do you need to gain detailed information about other devices on
your network, such as printers, to help you manage these devices?
Do you need to extend the existing computer inventory information
with other asset details, such as office location, phone numbers,
etc.? Systems Management Server SDK can help you do this.
The open architecture of Systems Management Server and its database
has been designed around the Management Information Format (MIF)
created by the Desktop Management Task Force (DMTF). This means
that you can easily extend the system's inventory capabilities
in a standard way. Because the MIF format is open you can use
it to define new objects, such as printers, and also to extend
existing objects, such as computers. In this way, you can use
MIFs to easily extend the inventory database to include office
furniture, printers and any other computer accessories you choose;
or even information about users logging on to computers.
The SDK provides a detailed explanation of the MIF structure and
syntax, and the process of defining the objects that you want
to include in the database, as well as how to add them to the
database.
Do you want to integrate your existing management applications
with Systems Management Server? Would you like extend the functionality
of Systems Management Server in a specific way? The Systems Management
Server SDK can help you do this.
The Systems Management Server Applications Programming Interfaces
(APIs) allow developers to interact with the core services of
the product and use the extensive inventory database to build
custom solutions, such as Help Desk solutions. You can use these
APIs with either Visual C++ or Visual Basic (using the Visual
Basic interface supplied as a sample on the SDK) to view the inventory
data information, access the packages and jobs within the database,
and perform various other tasks.
You can also use APIs to create queries, packages, and jobs required
to distribute software based on certain rules. For example,
you could tie a software repository system to the distribution
capabilities of Systems Management Server. The information in
the repository could be used to create packages, including detailed
inventory rules, for the various components. The APIs could then
be used to create the appropriate jobs to deploy the application
to the servers and clients.
Systems Management Server provides automatic software distribution
and installation by automating many steps that an administrator
would normally need to take. It provides a number of key features,
such as advanced scheduling and load balancing, to perform unattended
installations for workstations and servers throughout your network.
Would you like to extend your own application to take advantage
of the software distribution services provided by Systems Management
Server? The SDK will give you the detailed instructions you need
to do this.
The SDK details the process of developing applications that can
then be easily distributed with Systems Management Server. It
provides all the detail that an application developer needs in
the design phase of a program, along with guidelines for writing
setup programs or scripts, so their applications will be easy
to distribute and run with Systems Management Server.
In the SDK, the developer will find information about using a
MIF file to create a report of the installation status. This
can then be passed up the hierarchy to the Systems Management
Server database. We also document how to develop your own Package
Definition Files (PDFs) to define the properties for the package
you wish to distribute and install.
In addition to extending the inventory database with your own
custom data, have you ever wanted to add your own icon to display
your product name or other symbol? The SDK provides the tools
you need to do this.
Using the SDK, you can register an icon that represents the data
that is displayed. These icons are exposed in the Systems Management
Server user interface by creating resource DLLs that are loaded
only when a specific inventory item is detected on a particular
computer. This allows application developers to customize the
Systems Management Server user interface with their own display
information.
Network Monitor extensions
Do you manage computers that use a specific protocol for communication?
Do you need to monitor the traffic between the machines? The
SDK can help extend the Network Monitor to allow you to reach
those machines.
The Network Monitor extensions provide instructions and samples
that allows a developer to create protocol parser DLLs. A protocol
parser monitors the raw data passing over the network and identifies
key components to display on the screen. This allows developers
to create parsers for new protocols and, therefore, extend the
functionality of Network Monitor.
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