Managed Computers and Devices Page

Article
08/13/2008

The Managed Computers and Devices page on the Computers and Devices tab is where you can manage the servers, client computers, and other devices that are located on your Windows EBS network.

For more information about managing computers and devices in Windows EBS, see the Microsoft Web site (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=108931).

Page layout

Item	Details
Results pane	Lists computers and non-computer devices that are managed by System Center Essentials or have an Active Directory Domain Services account in the root domain.
Details pane	For the managed device that is selected in the results pane, shows detailed device information, the number and type of alerts, free disk space, the status of updates, and installed Windows EBS roles.
Tasks pane	General device administration and management tasks. For more information, see the Managed Computers and Devices Tasks section later in this document. Administration and management tasks for the device that is selected in the results pane. For more information, see the <Device> Tasks section later in this document.

Results pane

Lists computers and non-computer devices that are managed by System Center Essentials or have an Active Directory Domain Services account in the root domain.

Details pane

For the managed device that is selected in the results pane, shows detailed device information, the number and type of alerts, free disk space, the status of updates, and installed Windows EBS roles.

Tasks pane

General device administration and management tasks. For more information, see the Managed Computers and Devices Tasks section later in this document.

Administration and management tasks for the device that is selected in the results pane. For more information, see the <Device> Tasks section later in this document.

Additional information

When a device has a Critical Alert, the icon for the page tab changes.
By default, devices with Critical Alerts appear first in the results pane.
Newly discovered devices are indicated by a distinctive icon.
If System Center Essentials is set up to automatically discover new computers that are joined to the domain, the details pane may not show detailed information about the computer for up to 24 hours.

Working with the data

To refresh the page: On the View menu, click Refresh.
To group the objects in the results pane: On the View menu, click Group By, and then click a field name. To ungroup the objects, on the View menu, click Group By, and then click Ungroup.
To sort the objects in the results pane: On the View menu, click Sort By, and then click a field name. Alternatively, click a column heading in the results pane and sort the objects in a field.
To customize the arrangement of data in the results pane: On the View menu, click Customize Results View. Then in the Customize the Results View dialog box, select and rearrange the columns.
To save the data in the results pane: On the File menu, click Save As CSV.
To display a task menu: Right-click an object in the results pane. To start a task, click the task name in the menu.
To start the primary task associated with an object: Double-click the object in the results pane.

Managed Computers and Devices tasks

Task	Details
View recent critical alerts	Starts the System Center Essentials console to display critical alerts from the last seven days for all managed devices.
Manage updates	Starts the System Center Essentials console to manage updates.
Create and deploy a software package	Starts the System Center Essentials console to create and deploy a new software package.
Configure update-management settings	Starts the Update Management Configuration Wizard in System Center Essentials.
Discover computers and devices	Starts the Computer and Device Management Wizard in System Center Essentials.
Alert notification options	Opens the Alert Notification Options dialog box to enable or disable sending alerts by e-mail for all managed devices.

<Device> tasks

Important

The tasks displayed for a device change with the device type (for example, server or client). Some tasks appear only when the System Center Essentials agent or specific roles are installed on the device.

Note

Some tasks connect to a remote device by using Terminal Services RemoteApp™ or Remote Desktop Connection. When prompted at the beginning of a remote session, type appropriate credentials to log on to the device.

Task	Details
View recent alerts	Starts the System Center Essentials console to display alerts from the last seven days for the device.
View computer details	Starts the System Center Essentials console to display hardware and software details for the computer.
View Update Deployment status report	Starts the System Center Essentials console to display an Update Deployment status report for the device.
Ping device	Opens a Command Prompt window to ping the device.
View performance	Starts the System Center Essentials console to display the performance of the device.
Services console	Starts the Services console on the device.
Event Viewer	Starts the Event Viewer console on the device.
Computer Management	Starts the Computer Management console on the device.
Server Manager	Starts the Server Manager console on the device.
Active Directory Users and Computers console	Starts the Active Directory Users and Computers console on the device.
System Center Essentials console	Starts the System Center Essentials console on the device. (Management Server only)
DHCP console	Starts the DHCP console on the device.
DNS console	Starts the DNS Management console on the device.
Share and Storage Management	Starts the Share and Storage Management console on the device.
Print Manager	Starts the Print Management console on the device.
IIS Manager	Starts the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager console on the device.
Exchange Management Console	Starts the Exchange Management Console on the device. (Security Server and Messaging Server only)
Forefront Threat Management Gateway console	Starts the Forefront TMG console on the device. (Security Server only)
Connect to computer	Starts Remote Desktop Connection to connect to the device.
Connect using Remote Assistance	Starts Windows Remote Assistance to connect to the client computer that is running a Windows XP or Windows Vista operating system.
Restart computer	Opens the RestartComputer dialog box to confirm that the computer will be restarted remotely.