Using Modems for Remote Management

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Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

A modem can provide remote access to a single server through its out-of-band serial port. Modems can be useful when you have just a few servers to manage remotely, such as a branch office with one or two servers. For an example of this type of implementation, see "Designing the Hardware Configuration" later in this chapter.

Take the following considerations into account when selecting a modem to use for out-of-band remote management:

  • Security for modem connections is determined by the modem. The preferred security mechanism for modems is dial-back.

  • The modem must be configurable and must not rely on initialization. Emergency Management Services does not initialize the modem, so you must configure the modem to answer or dial back automatically and pass all serial data through unchanged. For information about configuring modems for callback, see "Configure client callback options" in Help and Support Center for Windows Server 2003.