Intel® Active Management Technology Use Case #3: Hardware Inventory Management (Discover)

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February 11, 2010 11:00 PM PST


Intel® Active Management Technology (Intel® AMT) improves the visibility of enterprise hardware platforms, dramatically improving the completeness of hardware inventories. Capabilities of Intel® AMT help to reduce the impact of software-agent removals, powered-down machines, non-functioning operating systems, and other system failures during hardware inventories. These problems make as many as 15%-20% of all systems not visible down-the-wire at any given time. Wireless environments and laptops make this even more challenging since at any point in time, laptops may be connected over the wireless network (Mobile mode) or remotely connected to a corporate LAN via VPN (Remote mode) or may not be connected to an AC power source.

With Intel® AMT, hardware inventories are more efficient to conduct; greatly assisting compliance with government regulations, as well as management of recalls, warranties, and configurations. This use-case includes hardware inventory to determine the type and quantity of hardware in the environment, and the state of the hardware's warranty.

Conventional Hardware Inventory Management Limitations Conventional tools have traditionally been available for hardware inventory work on an in-band basis only; that is, these tools require the target system to be operational, and they fail if the platform is powered off or if the operating system is non- functional. Moreover, users can intentionally or inadvertently remove the software agents on which the tools depend.

As a result, IT organizations must traditionally depend on users to report their installed hardware, or technicians must be sent to inventory the hardware manually. No common, persistent asset ID exists, and there is no remote down-the-wire method to discover hardware-inventory information for platforms that are powered off. Using Intel® AMT to Overcome Limitations.

Using a third-party hardware inventory management application that supports Intel® AMT, the IT organization can discover platforms and their firmware-resident hardware information, remotely down-the-wire in the following scenarios:

  • Desktop mode - Platforms are AC powered and connected to the corporate LAN via a wired LAN via a wired LAN connection (not over VPN)
  • Mobile mode - Laptops in S0 that are on battery power or laptops on the corporate wireless network (not connected via VPN) and have access to their firmware-resident information remotely. Note that as of Intel® AMT 4.0, Laptops can be in any Sx state for out-of-band connectivity.
  • Remote mode - laptops in S0/H0 that are connected to the corporate network via VPN. Note that as of Intel® AMT 4.0, Laptops can be in any Sx state for out-of-band connectivity.
Intel® AMT makes this possible via out-of-band (OOB) remote access to the platform's persistent, tamper-resistant asset ID and firmware-resident hardware information (as populated by the BIOS during the last successful boot). Additional information per FRU can be stored in Intel® AMT's third-party data store by the remote management application or a third-party hardware inventory client application, which can be retrieved at any time (e.g., warranty information).

By gathering this inventory information accurately, quickly, and remotely, IT can more efficiently and effectively detect configuration drift; as well as manage its hardware inventories, recalls, and warranties.

In case of laptops, since all of them might not be within the corporate network (Mobile mode) or connected to the corporate LAN via VPN (Remote mode) when the inventory is taken, either some manual checking might be necessary, or the inventory might span over multiple days in order to catch all laptops connected appropriately.

Key Functionality Enabled by Intel® AMT that Underlies this Use Case

The following table summarizes the features and functionality utilized in this use case that are provided by Intel® AMT or enabled by Intel® AMT in third-party software:

Feature Functionality
Out-of band (OOB) access Accessing the persistent asset ID and field-replaceable unit (FRU) inventory information when the operating system is unavailable or the platform is off
Remote hardware inventory Utilizing the existing FRU data stored in dedicated flash memory space to discover the platform's FRUs


The Advantage of Intel® AMT

The use of Intel® AMT in this use case reduces or eliminates the need for manual inventory audits, making asset inventory audits faster, more accurate, and timelier. Intel® AMT makes this possible through remote, down-the-wire access, assuming that the platforms are either in desktop mode (AC powered (but not necessarily turned on) and connected to the corporate network via a wired connection (not over VPN)), mobile mode (within the corporate environment on wireless or battery connected (not VPN connected), or remote mode (connected via VPN - AC or DC powered and wired or wirelessly connected) to the platform's tamper-resistant, persistent asset ID and firmware-resident field-replaceable unit (FRU) list.

Inventory accuracy is improved, regardless of the platform's operating system or power state. More accurate FRU inventory information enables better management of FRU inventories, recalls, and warranties. In addition, these benefits facilitate regulatory compliance.

Business Value of the Intel® AMT Solution§

IT organizations can save substantially on hardware maintenance contracts (both platforms and hardware) by knowing which platforms require what maintenance levels (rather than covering them all with the most expensive option).



Hardware Inventory Management Usage Case Implementation

Description: Perform inventory audit to determine what hardware is still under warranty. Implementation of this Use Case depends on the following preconditions:

  1. AMT clients are provisioned.
  2. All clients are connected to the network.
  3. AMT enabled clients are powered (S5, S4, S3, S1, S0).
  4. AMT enabled management console on the network and working.
The implementation of the Hardware Inventory Management usage case follows these steps:

Step Workflow
1 IT professional uses a 3rd-party asset management app that supports Intel® AMT to discover platforms and their firmware-resident hardware information, remotely down-the-wire, regardless of operating system or power state.
2 The management console checks queried FRU data and logs the data in an inventory history database.
3 IT professional can use the serial number data against the purchase date information to check if the hardware is still under warranty.
Alternate Flow (Scheduled)
1 Using a 3rd-party asset management app that supports Intel® AMT, a scheduled event can initiate the console to discover platforms and their firmware-resident hardware information, remotely down the wire, regardless of operating system or power state (Sx & Hx).
2 Management console checks queried FRU data and logs the data in an inventory history database.
3 Console then generates a report that the IT professional can compare against the purchase information to check warranty information or for missing inventory.


Post Conditions for Hardware Inventory is as follows:

  • PC returns to same state as before the performing the Hardware Inventory.
The following table lists the relevant Software Development Flows for Hardware Inventory. Each flow is based on the WSMan Realm that is applicable and is shown in more detail further down in this Use Case Document.

Relevant Software Development Flows WSMan Interface Realm
1 Discovery General Info
2 Hardware Asset Inventory Hardware Asset
3 Power Control Power Control
4 Writing/Reading to Third-Party Data Storage Storage


The following SDK sample source code provides WS-Man Samples of the components involved for implementing a Hardware Inventory Management use case:

  • GeneralInfo
  • RemoteControl
  • AssetDisplay
  • Storage
Additional information on the features associated with this Use Case can be found in the Intel® AMT SDK html based documentation. Download and install the SDK; open the file default.htm found under ...\ DOCS\Implementation and Reference Guide\. Under the "Contents" tab select "Intel® AMT Features".