Abstract: Examples relate to providing operating system (OS) agnostic validation of firmware images. In some examples, a request to verify a number of firmware images is received, where each of the firmware images is associated with a metadata set. A first installation of a first firmware image of the firmware images is accessed via a physical interface, and a first metadata set is used to verify the first installation, where the first metadata set includes a firmware signature that is used to verify the first installation. At this stage, the request is forwarded to a child management processor, where the management processors are in a trusted group and related according to a tree hierarchy.

Abstract: Techniques for support activity based self learning and analytics for datacenter device hardware/firmware fault management are described. In one example, a service event including a unique service event ID, a set of prioritized cause and support engineer actions/recommendations and associated unique support engineer action codes are generated for the support engineer upon detecting a hardware/firmware failure event. Support engineer actions taken by the support engineer upon completing the service event are then received. The support engineer actions are then analyzed using the set of prioritized cause and support engineer actions/recommendations and FRU configuration information before and after servicing the hardware/firmware failure. Any potential errors resulting from the support engineer actions are then determined and notified at real-time to the support engineer based on the outcome of the analysis.

Abstract: Examples disclosed herein relate to performing an action based on a pre-boot measurement of a firmware image. In an example, at a firmware component in a system, a measurement of a firmware image may be determined prior to booting of the system, beginning from a hardware root of trust boot block, by a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) emulator engine that emulates a hardware-based TPM. A pre-determined measurement of the firmware image may be retrieved from a storage location within the system. The measurement of the firmware image may be compared with the pre-determined measurement of the firmware image prior to booting of the system. In response to a determination that the measurement of the firmware image is different from the pre-determined measurement of the firmware image, performing an action.

Abstract: Some examples relating to managing servers distributed across multiple groups are described. For example, techniques for managing servers it assigning an identified server to a group based on analysis of grouping information associated with the identified server. The grouping information includes an access credential and the group includes a set of severs with each server accessible by a common access credential. Further, the techniques include generating multiple node topology maps for the group based on topology characteristics. Each node topology map corresponds to a topology characteristic and indicates a layout and an interconnection between servers in the group. Also a node topology map is selected based on characteristic of an operation to be executed on the servers in the group. Thereafter, a message including an instruction for executing the operation is communicated to a server based on the selected node topology map.

Abstract: An example device includes a processor coupled to a network and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory includes computer code for causing the processor to establish a secure connection between a manageability application and an interconnect device, the interconnect device being in communication with a newly connected networked device; and securely communicate, from the manageability application to the interconnect device, temporary login information for the networked device.

Abstract: An example computing system in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure includes a first controller and a second controller. The first controller is to verify integrity of a first root of trust (ROT), and generate an integrity signal indicating the results. The second controller is to verify integrity of a second ROT, write the firmware image to the first controller, and verify integrity of the written firmware image.

Abstract: In one example, a system is disclosed, which may include a network device, a new server connected to the network device, and a management server communicatively connected to a cloud-based service and the network device. The management server may include a server deployment engine to discover the new server in the system using the network device, obtain an encrypted data blob associated with the new server from the cloud-based service, establish a trust, via a secure protocol, with the new server using the encrypted data blob, and deploy the new server in the system upon establishing the trust with the new server.

Abstract: Examples include an authenticated access to manageability hardware components in a computing device. Some examples enumerate manageability hardware components connected to an operative system kernel of the computing device, the manageability hardware components comprising a bus configuration space and the bus configuration space comprising memory map registers. Some examples include encoding an address stored in the memory map registers of each of the manageability hardware components to produce encoded address to control unauthorized accesses and locks the bus configuration space of each manageability hardware component by setting a read-only attribute to the bus configuration space. Some examples reprogram, in response to a request for access of an authenticated OS component to a manageability hardware component, the memory map register of the requested manageability hardware component with an accessible address to provide the authenticated OS component with access to the manageability hardware component.

Abstract: Example implementations relate to secure update of firmware and software. For example, a method for providing secure firmware and software updates to a computing system includes receiving, by a management processor, an update request from a management station for the computing system, where the update request comprises update parameters indicative of components to be updated within the computing system. Further, the method includes storing details of the update request including the update parameters at a pre-defined memory location, where the update parameters include at least one certificate associated with the update request. The method also includes accessing, at least one of a firmware image and a software patch corresponding to the update request based on identification of the update parameters stored at the pre-defined memory location by an update manager, where the update manager has predefined access rights and privileges within an Operating System (OS) of the computing system.

Abstract: Techniques for detecting an early boot error are provided. In one aspect, a host processor may transition to a first phase of an early boot process. The early boot process may occur before the host processor initializes a primary link between the host processor and a management controller. The host processor may then update a dual purpose boot register to store an early boot phase identifier corresponding to the first phase and an early boot status identifier corresponding to the first phase.

Abstract: Example implementations relate to a server including a platform controller hub (PCH), where the PCH includes a peripheral device manager, a management processor coupled to the peripheral device manager, and a peripheral device interface to couple with a peripheral device and provide out of band access of the peripheral device via the management processor and peripheral device manager to a memory of the server.

Abstract: Examples relate to providing operating system (OS) agnostic validation of firmware images. In some examples, a request to verify a number of firmware images is received, where each of the firmware images is associated with a metadata set. A first installation of a first firmware image of the firmware images is accessed via a physical interface, and a first metadata set is used to verify the first installation, where the first metadata set includes a firmware signature that is used to verify the first installation. At this stage, the request is forwarded to a child management processor, where the management processors are in a trusted group and related according to a tree hierarchy.

Abstract: A robust hardware fault management system, method and framework for providing robust hardware fault management for enterprise devices are disclosed. In one example, hardware devices and associated hardware modules in each of the enterprise devices requiring the robust hardware fault management are identified. Further, error structures associated with each hardware module are determined and unique identifiers are assigned to the determined error structures. Furthermore, the error structures are modeled in a centralized repository. In addition, rules are associated with each modeled error structure for detecting hardware failures. Moreover, the rules of each modeled error structure are stored in the centralized repository using associated rule identifiers.

Abstract: Techniques for on-demand remote diagnostics for hardware component/device failure and disk drive data recovery using embedded media are described. In one example embodiment, a hardware device failure event alert along with a unique ID and a hardware device configuration fingerprint is sent upon detecting a hardware component failure event associated with the hardware device in a datacenter to an image management framework. A recovery image associated with the hardware device failure event is then obtained using the unique ID and the hardware device configuration fingerprint. The recovery image is then stored in an embedded storage media associated with the failed hardware device. The embedded storage media is then configured as a bootable hardware device. The hardware component failure is then diagnosed using the stored recovery image and the bootable hardware device upon hardware device boot-up. Recovering from the hardware device failure based on diagnosing the hardware component failure.

Abstract: Techniques for support activity based self learning and analytics for datacenter device hardware/firmware fault management are described. In one example, a service event including a unique service event ID, a set of prioritized cause and support engineer actions/recommendations and associated unique support engineer action codes are generated for the support engineer upon detecting a hardware/firmware failure event. Support engineer actions taken by the support engineer upon completing the service event are then received. The support engineer actions are then analyzed using the set of prioritized cause and support engineer actions/recommendations and FRU configuration information before and after servicing the hardware/firmware failure. Any potential errors resulting from the support engineer actions are then determined and notified at real-time to the support engineer based on the outcome of the analysis.

Abstract: In one implementation, a call home system comprises a configuration engine, a cluster engine and an assignment engine. The configuration engine can identify a plurality of potential call home devices. The cluster engine can group a plurality of compute devices into a plurality of clusters. The assignment engine can assign a master call home device to each cluster. In another implementation, a method for calling home can comprise broadcasting a first message, receiving a response from a call home master associated with a cluster, and selecting a group identifier to append to a second message.

Abstract: A robust hardware fault management system, method and framework for providing robust hardware fault management for enterprise devices are disclosed. In one example, hardware devices and associated hardware modules in each of the enterprise devices requiring the robust hardware fault management are identified. Further, error structures associated with each hardware module are determined and unique identifiers are assigned to the determined error structures. Furthermore, the error structures are modeled in a centralized repository. In addition, rules are associated with each modeled error structure for detecting hardware failures. Moreover, the rules of each modeled error structure are stored in the centralized repository using associated rule identifiers.

Abstract: A share group of servers comprises a first server and a second server. The first server has a server partition and a management processor which is separate from said server partition. Usage rights may be transferred from the first server to the second server by executing machine readable instructions on the management processor which is separate from said server partition.

Abstract: A system and method for performing operating system (OS) agnostic hardware validation in a computing system are disclosed. In one example, a hardware validation test is invoked by a management processor. Further, input parameters are obtained based on the hardware validation test by the management processor. Furthermore, hardware devices are determined based on the hardware validation test and the input parameters by the management processor. In addition, a request is sent to perform the hardware validation test on the hardware devices to a system processor by the management processor. Moreover, the hardware validation test is run on the hardware devices by invoking associated hardware specific run-time drivers in a system firmware (SFW) by the system processor. Also, results of the hardware validation test are sent to the management processor by the system processor.

Abstract: A multi processor computing system managing tasks based on the health index of the plurality of processors and the priority of tasks to be scheduled. The method comprise receiving the tasks to be scheduled on the computing system; preparing a queue of the tasks based on a scheduling algorithm; computing a health index value for each processor of the computing system; and scheduling the tasks on processors based on the health index value of the processors. A task from a processor with a lower health index may be moved to an available processor with a higher health index.