http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desktop_Management_Interface

Desktop Management Interface

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused with SMBIOS.

The Desktop Management Interface (DMI) generates a standard framework for managing and tracking components in a desktop, notebook or server computer, by abstracting these components from the software that manages them. The development of DMI marked the first move by the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF) into desktop-management standards.^[1] Before the introduction of DMI, no standardized source of information could provide details about components in a personal computer.

Due to the rapid development of DMTF technologies, such as Common Information Model (CIM), the DMTF defined an "End of Life" process for DMI, which ended on March 31, 2005.

From 1999, Microsoft required OEMs and BIOS vendors to support the DMI interface/data-set in order to have Microsoft certification.^{[citation needed]}

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DMI and SMBIOS[edit]

DMI exposes system data (including the System Management BIOS (SMBIOS) data) to management software, but the two specifications function independently.

DMI is commonly confused with SMBIOS, which was actually called DMIBIOS in its first revisions.

Optional additional services: MIF data and MIF routines[edit]

When software queries a memory-resident agent that resides in the background, it responds by sending data in MIFs (Management Information Format) or activating MIF routines. Static data in a MIF would contain items such as model ID, serial number, memory- and port-addresses. A MIF routine could read memory and report its contents.

DMI and SNMP[edit]

DMI can co-exist with SNMP and other management protocols. For example, when an SNMP query arrives, DMI can fill out the SNMP MIB with data from its MIF. A single workstation or server can serve as a proxy agent that would contain the SNMP module and service an entire LAN segment of DMI-capable machines.

System Management BIOS

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from SMBIOS)

Not to be confused with DMI.

In computing, the System Management BIOS (SMBIOS) specification defines data structures (and access methods) that can be used to read information stored in the BIOS of a computer. Circa 1999, it became part of the domain of the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF). Before this integration, SMBIOS functionality had the name DMIBIOS, since it interacted with Desktop Management Interface(DMI). At approximately the same time Microsoft started to require that OEMs and BIOS vendors support the interface/data-set in order to have Microsoft certification.

The DMTF released the current version of the specification, version 2.8.0, on April 3, 2013.

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Structure types[edit]

As of version 2.7.1, the SMBIOS specification defines these structure types:

Type	Description
0	BIOS Information
1	System Information
2	Baseboard (or Module) Information
3	System Enclosure or Chassis
4	Processor Information
5	Memory Controller Information (Obsolete)
6	Memory Module Information (Obsolete)
7	Cache Information
8	Port Connector Information
9	System Slots
10	On Board Devices Information
11	OEM Strings
12	System Configuration Options
13	BIOS Language Information
14	Group Associations
15	System Event Log
16	Physical Memory Array
17	Memory Device
18	32-Bit Memory Error Information
19	Memory Array Mapped Address
20	Memory Device Mapped Address
21	Built-in Pointing Device
22	Portable Battery
23	System Reset
24	Hardware Security
25	System Power Controls
26	Voltage Probe
27	Cooling Device
28	Temperature Probe
29	Electrical Current Probe
30	Out-of-Band Remote Access
31	Boot Integrity Services (BIS) Entry Point
32	System Boot Information
33	64-Bit Memory Error Information
34	Management Device
35	Management Device Component
36	Management Device Threshold Data
37	Memory Channel
38	IPMI Device Information
39	System Power Supply
40	Additional Information
41	Onboard Devices Extended Information
42	Management Controller Host Interface
126	Inactive
127	End-of-Table
128–255	Available for system- and OEM- specific information

Accessing SMBIOS data[edit]

From Linux[edit]

The Linux kernel contains an SMBIOS decoder, allowing systems administrators to inspect system hardware configuration and enable or disable certain workarounds for problems with specific systems, based on the provided SMBIOS information.

The userspace command-line utility dmidecode(8) can be used to inspect this data. Information provided by this utility typically includes system manufacturer, model name, serial number, BIOS version and asset tag, as well as a lot of other details of varying level of interest and reliability — depending on the system manufacturer. The information often includes usage status for the CPU sockets, expansion slots (including AGP, PCI and ISA) and memory module slots, and the list of I/O ports (including serial, parallel and USB).^[1]^[2]

From Windows[edit]

WMI is the preferred mechanism for accessing SMBIOS information from Windows.^[3]

On Windows systems that support it (XP and later), some SMBIOS information can be viewed with either the WMIC utility with 'BIOS'/'MEMORYCHIP'/'BASEBOARD' and similar parameters, or by looking in the Windows Registry under HKLM\HARDWARE\DESCRIPTION\System

Raw SMBIOS data can be retrieved using various utilities, such as "smbiosw"^[4] and "SMBIOS Peek".^[5]

From UEFI[edit]

In UEFI, the "SmbiosView" shell application can be used to view the SMBIOS data.