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4.5.3 Electronic Service Agent and Service and Support Manager
IBM has transformed its delivery of hardware and software support services to help you
achieve higher system availability. Electronic Services is a web-enabled solution that offers
an exclusive, no-additional-charge enhancement to the service and support available for IBM
servers. These services provide the opportunity for greater system availability with faster
problem resolution and preemptive monitoring. The Electronic Services solution consists of
several separate, but complementary, elements:
Electronic Services news page
The Electronic Services news page is a single Internet entry point that replaces the
multiple entry points that are traditionally used to access IBM Internet services and
support. The news page enables you to gain easier access to IBM resources for
assistance in resolving technical problems.
IBM Electronic Service Agent (ESA)
The Electronic Service Agent is software that resides on your server. It monitors events
and transmits system inventory information to IBM on a periodic, client-defined timetable.
The Electronic Service Agent automatically reports hardware problems to IBM.
Service and Support Manager (SSM)
SSM is part of the System Director Management Console and available as a plug-in
module for IBM Systems Director. ESA is integrated into SSM and provides event
monitoring and call home function for SDMC and IBM Systems Director.
Note: SSM installed on IBM Systems Director has more restrictive levels of eligible
hardware and operating systems compared to SSM on SDMC. SSM on Systems
Director cannot monitor AIX and Linux on POWER partitions managed by a Hardware
Management Console (HMC) or IVM. In addition, SSM on Systems Director does not
support JS and QS blades.
ESA is available on VIOS, AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. This tool tracks and
captures service information, hardware error logs, and performance information. It
automatically reports hardware error information to IBM support as long as the system is
under an IBM maintenance agreement or within the IBM warranty period. Service information
and performance information reporting do not require an IBM maintenance agreement or do
not need to be within the IBM warranty period to be reported. Information collected by the
Electronic Service Agent tool is available to IBM service support representatives to help
diagnose problems.
Early knowledge about potential problems enables IBM to deliver proactive service that can
result in higher system availability and performance. In addition, information that is collected
through the Service Agent is made available to IBM service support representatives when
they help answer your questions or diagnose problems. Installation and use of IBM Electronic
Service Agent for problem reporting enables IBM to provide better support and service for
your IBM server.
To learn how Electronic Services can work for you, visit:
https://www.ibm.com/support/electronic/portal
Chapter 4. Continuous availability and manageability
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