3Com e-PC c10/s10, User Manual, Page: 14 / 122

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The Managed PC Boot Agent (MBA) enables a PC to boot from a remote server even if the
local operating system (OS) is unable to boot or is nonexistent. It enables administrators to
perform a wide range of preboot management tasks such as virus scanning, backups,
disaster recovery, reconfiguration, and applications and OS installation and updates. MBA
can also be used to compare desktop profiles to a centralized software image from a server.
MBA can enable a multicast boot, bringing up hundreds of PCs simultaneously. All of these
preboot processes are transparent to the user, since the PC behaves as if the boot took place
from the local hard drive.
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MBA improves IS productivity and responsiveness as well as end-user satisfaction by
eliminating most of the need for on-site troubleshooting and disaster recovery. Instead, the
vast majority of problems can be solved remotely and rapidly. Studies show that nearly half
of all help desk calls are related to booting problems, which are normally impossible to solve
remotely. Because boot failures typically make it impossible for users to connect with the
network, even the most sophisticated enterprise management tools at the administrator's
disposal are of no use.
MBA guarantees that every PC on the network—even those with damaged operating systems
and new PCs with no OS and unformatted hard disks—will connect to the network. The ability
to boot under management control also protects PCs when they are most vulnerable to boot
sector viruses. In addition, MBA improves IS productivity by enabling administrators to
configure or update any number of PCs very efficiently by making changes to a single image
on a network server.
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PCs can be configured to boot from a server using a combination of configuration files, boot
image files, and (needed in most cases) software residing on the server's hard disk. MBA
retrieves the required information (for example, an operating system, memory managers,
network drivers) from these files on the server when the workstation starts. This process has
commonly been described in the past as remoteboot.
Traditional remoteboot may not be adequate in establishing a complete work environment
due to requirements imposed by today's GUI operating systems and applications. In this
case, MBA can become a compelling administrative tool when configured to perform a Pre-OS
boot prior to every local boot. Using MBA software and utilities including Pre-OS, a network
administrator can make use of diagnostics, configuration, or maintenance tools prior to
completing the local boot process.
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MBA supports Wired for Management (WfM). It also supports all major boot protocols,
including not only the new Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) protocol originally defined
in the Net PC specification, but also existing protocols such as BOOTP, DHCP, RPL, and
NCP/IPX. 3Com customers thus have the flexibility to use NT Server or another specialized
server that supports PXE, or to “roll their own” management solutions using the booting
support built into other platforms such as NetWare, HP UX, Sun Solaris, and OS/2 WARP.