White Paper: The All New 2010 Intel® Core™ vPro™ Processor Family: Intelligence that Adapts to Your Needs

Receive alerts even if a system is off the corporate network

PCs with a new Intel Core vPro processor have policy-based alerting built into the system. IT administrators can define the types of alerts they want to receive. Although all alerts are logged in the persistent event log, IT administrators can receive only the alerts they want.

In this way, alerts that are not as critical do not add substantially to network traffic.

Alerting within the corporate network

Since alerting uses the OOB communication channel, IT administrators can receive critical notifications from PCs within the corporate network out-of-band, virtually anytime, even if the OS is inoperable, hardware has failed, or management agents are missing.

This capability also allows IT administrators to use their existing PXE infrastructure within an 802.1x, Cisco SDN, or Microsoft NAP network. The result is better security for PCs and a more reliable network, regardless of the PC’s OS state, application state, or the presence of management agents.

Intel® Trusted Execution Technology (Intel® TXT)

The new generation of laptop and desktop PCs with a new Intel Core vPro processor include Intel Trusted Execution Technology (Intel TXT). Intel TXT helps build and maintain a chain of trust from hardware to a Virtual Machine Monitor (VMM). This helps to protect information in virtualized environments from software-based attacks. For more information about Intel TXT, visit www.intel.com/technology/security/.

Alerting from outside the corporate network

IT can even receive notifications from a PC (awake and OS operable) that is connected to the corporate network through a host OS-based VPN or when connected via wired or wireless LAN on an open network outside the corporate firewall. IT administrators can now be notified rapidly and automatically when a system falls out of compliance, hardware is about to fail — sometimes even before users know they have a problem, or applications hang.

Out-of-band management even with 802 1x, Cisco SDN, and Microsoft NAP

In the past, IT administrators often felt they had to choose between using out-of-band management and maintaining full network security with 802.1x, Cisco SDN, or Microsoft NAP. With the latest PCs with a new Intel Core vPro processor, network security credentials can be embedded in the hardware. This includes an Intel® Active Management Technology1 (Intel® AMT) posture plug-in, which collects security posture information (such as firmware configuration and security parameters), and the Intel AMT Embedded Trust Agent.

This capability allows the 802.1x authentication or the Cisco, or Microsoft posture profile to be stored in hardware (in protected, persistent memory), and presented to the network even if the OS is absent. The network can now authenticate a PC before the OS and applications load, and before the PC is allowed to access the network. IT administrators can now use out-of-band management for maintenance, security, management, or PXE purposes, while still maintaining full network security, including detailed, out-of-band compliance checks.

Faster, easier remote manageability helps reduce costs

PCs with a new Intel Core vPro processor make it even easier to reduce maintenance costs. Built-in capabilities in these PCs include remote configuration, diagnosis, isolation, and repair of PCs, even if systems are unresponsive. Remote, automated manageability features – including new, hardware-based KVM Remote Control2 in PCs with a new Intel Core i5 vPro processor (and select Intel Core i7 vPro processor-based PCs) – make PC upkeep easier even for complex issues, and help keep service costs low while improving user productivity. The all new 2010 Intel Core vPro processor family includes other new features, such as PC Alarm Clock. IT managers can also quickly upgrade to Windows 7 remotely and overnight, minimizing disruptions to users and without losing access to legacy applications. Once Intel vPro technology is activated, IT administrators can take advantage of these built-in remote manageability capabilities.

Remote upgrades save IT and user time

PCs with a new Intel Core vPro processor make it easier to upgrade OSs and applications remotely and automatically. For example, IT can remotely upgrade to Windows 7 at night, regardless of the initial power state of the PC, and save users up to 40 minutes or more by performing the process off-hours5.

Resolve more problems remotely

One of the most critical IT needs is a greater ability to remotely resolve PC problems, especially when a laptop or desktop PC’s OS is down

or hardware has failed. According to industry studies, deskside and service-center calls make up only a small percent of PC problems in a typical business, but they take up the majority of the budget. In fact, the cost of a deskside visit is seven times the cost of a remote problem resolution.25

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