Wake Up a Computer

In some instances, a computer may be started automatically, but the mainboard and the network card must support Wake on LAN (WoL).
WoL allows a computer to be 'woken' to allow for the Service Installer to initiate the installation or update of a software package's computer portion.
However, a computer does not have to be managed to use WoL. If the computer object is visible in the organization tree the computer can be started by one of the methods described below.

When waking up a computer, the DSMC sends a job 1) to the computer's last bootserver, 2) the Management Points in the computer's last site or 3) the BLS which in turn try to wake up the client. To wake up the computer either vPro or a Magic Packet is used.
As a standard, vPro is automatically used, if a computer supports vPro and vPro is configured in DSM (see: Intel vPro Support).
Otherwise, a Magic Packet (AMD trademark) is sent to a specific network address or via broadcast in order to wake a computer.

Using vPro can be time-consuming, especially when waking up multiple computers.

Configuring Wake on LAN (WoL)

Wake on LAN has a default configuration which can be defined by starting the Configure Wake on LAN task. This configuration can be changed using the appropriate variables for a domain, OU or computer in the detail tab Configuration.

To configure or change Wake on LAN (WoL) for containers:

  • Select a container in the Organization Tree and choose the Configure Wake on LAN task.
  • Choose the desired setting for the following configuration variables in the wizard:
    • Management Point for 'Wake up Computer'
      Depending on your selection, the last boot server or the Management Point of the computer's last known site are used preferably to send a WoL message.
    • Use vPro for 'Wake up Computer'
      Specifies whether the WoL message is sent via vPro. If No is selected, Magic Packet will be used instead.
  • Close the wizard.

    Your settings will be saved for the selected container and inherited to child objects, provided that no individual settings apply.

Waking Up a Computer

To wake up a computer proceed as follows:

  • Find the desired computer object in the Object window.
  • Start the Wake Up Computer task.

Waking Up a Computer on Reinstall

To wake up a computer on Reinstall proceed as follows:

  • Find the desired computer object in the Object window.
  • Start the Reinstall Computer task.
  • In the Reinstallation dialog, activate the Wake Up Computer option.

Waking Up a Computer via Policy

To wake up a computer when assigning a package proceed as follows:

  • Find the desired computer or software package in the Object window.
  • Start the Assign Package task.
  • In the Assign Package wizard, ensure to activate the advanced settings.
  • On one of the next wizard pages, activate the Wake Up Computer option.
  • Enable Wake up computer (WoL) for immediate installation or installation at a later time.
    For a bulk operation, also specify a sufficient time span to distribute the exact starting time of each client.
    See also: Installer WakeUp