Desktop Management Interface (DMI) is a software system used to manage computer components, including hardware and software. It works by collecting data and generating small files called management information format files that are accessed through the DMI software framework. The service layer is the critical path to the DMI, and the management interface provides means for specific programs to access and modify MIF files. The DMI was developed by the Desktop Management Task Force (DMTF®) and later integrated into the DMTF® Common Information Model (CIM) standard.
The desktop management interface (DMI) is a software system used to identify and manage the components of a computer system. It is useful for any type of computer and the components used by the computer can be either hardware or software. The system is also capable of working over a network, allowing this information to be sent from one computer to another. With the DMI software framework, an administrator can establish a central management location to monitor the hardware and software running on any number of DMI-compliant computer systems.
A coalition of hardware and software vendors known as the Desktop Management Task Force (DMTF®) first developed the desktop management interface framework. It was their first foray into developing a means of managing computer hardware and software to facilitate the administration of large computer networks. As such, it was designed with just that in mind, so many of the DMI concepts were later integrated into the DMTF® Common Information Model (CIM) standard. The DMTF® then announced the “End of Life” for DMI in 2005.
The way the desktop management interface works is by collecting data about the components of a computer system, which can be read, written and collected for administration purposes. DMI-enabled hardware and software components, also called manageable products, generate small files that identify the characteristics, functionality, and relationships of a component to other components. These files are called management information format files and are accessed through the other software that makes up the DMI.
This is where the desktop management interface (CI) component interface (CI) software comes into play. The CI is an application programming interface that allows you to read and write MIF files. Acting as a sort of bridge between a given component of the computer system and the administrator, the CI then communicates across the service layer of the DMI framework.
The service level is the critical path to the desktop management interface. In a DMI-managed computer system, the service layer is similar to a device driver. It is managed by the operating system and always takes up a small part of the computer’s memory to fulfill its role as the primary intermediary for the DMI framework software. Collecting the information via the CI, the service layer then takes the data from the MIF files and collects it into a database. In this crucial role, the service layer is nested between the component interface and the higher layer known as the management interface (MI).
At the top level of the desktop management interface structure, the MI provides the means for specific programs to access and modify MIF files through the service layer. These programs, called management applications, can run on the DMI-managed computer or on a network to establish centralized administration of multiple computer systems. An administrator can use MI applications to view and change a computer’s components and their status, and receive alerts if something has gone wrong.
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