3.1.3 Setting up the TCP/IP environment
Before installing JP1/IT Desktop Management 2, you need to prepare the TCP/IP environment. This involves the following task:
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Defining host names and IP addresses
When you use IP addresses as node identification keys, relay systems and managed computers do not need to have host names defined, but management relay servers do need to have host names defined.
- Organization of this subsection
(1) Defining host names and IP addresses
First, you must define the host names and IP addresses in the user network.
When using host names as the node identification key, you use the host names defined in the user network in the user interface (the System Configuration window and Destination window) on the managing server. If you change a host name in these windows, you also need to change the definition of the host name in the user network.
JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 - Manager uses TCP/IP host names to identify computers. For this reason, the computer on which you install JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 - Manager must be able to determine an IP address from the associated host name.
There are three ways to define host names and IP addresses and allow the managing server to determine the IP address of a computer from its host name:
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Using DHCP and WINS
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Using DNS
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Editing the hosts file
Each method is described below.
(a) Using DHCP and WINS
Because DHCP dynamically assigns IP addresses to computers, it can reduce the workload associated with IP address allocation and maintenance. However, JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 cannot use a dynamically changing IP address as a node identification key. In environments that use DHCP, you need to use host names to identify nodes.
If you use WINS to manage the host names of individual computers, you do not need to define the host names on each computer. When DHCP dynamically assigns a new IP address to a computer that has been moved from one subnet to another, the WINS database is updated automatically to reflect the change. This removes the need to change definitions manually.
When a computer is shut down, its information is removed from the WINS database. As a result, JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 will no longer be able to determine an IP address for the computer from its host name, and jobs may end in an error. For details about how to configure DHCP and WINS, see the Windows Help.
(b) Using a DNS
You can use a DNS if you need to specify hosts connected via the Internet as connection destinations. By defining the host names managed by the DNS in JP1/IT Desktop Management 2, you can execute jobs that perform remote installation in a remote domain.
For details about how to configure the DNS, see the Windows Help.
Note the following when using a DNS:
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To use a DNS, you must configure the network software associated with the TCP/IP protocol. Specify the name of the domain to which the computer belongs, and the IP address of the server that manages the name.
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Configure the DNS so that it supports bidirectional conversion, allowing conversion from host name to IP address and vice versa.
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When using both a hosts file and a DNS, do not specify the fully qualified domain name of a host that uses a DNS for name resolution under another name in the hosts file. A fully qualified domain name consists of the host name followed by a period and then the domain name.
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If a remote host that is directly connected to a network provider is assigned a temporary name as its host name, JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 will not be able to manage that host.
(c) Editing the hosts file
In environments that do not use DHCP, WINS, or DNS, you must define the host name of the connection destination for each host. On the host where the managing server is running, you must define the host names and IP addresses of the connected relay systems, management relay servers, and managed computers. On each host where JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 - Agent is running, you must also define the host name and IP address of the managing server.
To define host names and IP addresses, edit the following file:
Windows-directory\system32\drivers\etc\hosts
- Format:
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IP-address host-name alias
- Example:
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192.0.0.1 hostA NetworkA-hostA
192.0.0.2 hostB NetworkA-hostB
(2) Using JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 - Agent (agent)
Before using JP1/IT Desktop Management 2 - Agent (agent), check the following aspects of the system:
- Check TCP/IP settings
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From the Control Panel, select Network. On the Configuration page, make sure that TCP/IP appears in the The following network components are installed area. If TCP/IP is not listed, click the Add button on the Configuration page and add TCP/IP.
Next, on the Configuration page, select TCP/IP and click Properties. When the TCP/IP Properties dialog box appears, make sure that the required network settings are in place.
- Configure the communication environment file
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The hosts file can be found in the Windows directory (called windows by default). In the hosts file, define the name of the higher connection destination host and its IP address.