This key article discusses common questions for Dell solutions in the Symantec Management Platform 7.x, specifically, Dell Client Solution and Dell Management Console.

Question: What Dell solutions are available for the Symantec Management Platform?
Answer: There are several Dell solutions that can be used in the Symantec Management Platform. These vary depending on the platform version:

Symantec Management Platform 7.1
Dell Management Console 2.0.2 (7.1 SP1) and 2.0.3 (7.1 SP2)
Deployment Solution for Dell Servers x64 7.1***

Symantec Management Platform 7.0 MR4
Dell Client Solution 3.2**
Deployment Solution for Dell Servers x86 7.1***
 
Symantec Management Platform 7.0 pre-MR4
Altiris Patch Management Solution for Dell Servers 7.0*
Dell Client Manager 3.1**
Dell Management Console 1.1
Deployment Solution for Dell Servers x86 7.1***

Notification Sever 6
Dell Client Manager 2.2 (discontinued) ****
 
* Altiris Patch Management Solution for Dell Servers 7.0 is no longer available starting in Symantec Management Platform 7.0 MR4.
** Dell Client Manager was re-branded as Dell Client Solution. Dell Client Manager 3.1 is incompatible with 7.0 MR4. Dell Client Manager/Solution is no longer available starting in Symantec Management Platform 7.1
*** Deployment Solution for Dell Servers x86 is only available for Symantec Management Platform 7.0, which is 32-bit only, and Deployment Solution for Dell Servers x64 is only available for Symantec Management Platform 7.1, which is 64-bit only.
**** Dell Client Manager 2.2 does not include support for newer Dell models and is discontinued and out of date. Information on this can be found in the following article:

Does Dell Client Manager 2.2 support newer Dell models, such as the OptiPlex 760?
http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=HOWTO10741

Question: What is the difference between Dell Management Console and Dell Client Solution?
Answer: DMC is designed to be used with Dell servers and is sold and supported exclusively by Dell directly, and Dell Client Solution is to be used with Dell workstations and was sold and is supported by Symantec. These share some components, such as the warranty extractor and reports. But each is a separate product, and as noted, are treated very differently support-wise.

Question: Where can I obtain technical support for Dell solutions in the Symantec Management Platform?
Answer: Symantec Technical Support offers assistance for Dell client solutions (Dell Client Solution/Dell Client Manager) in the Symantec Management Platform 7.0 but does not provide assistance for Dell Management Console. Assistance for Dell Client Manager, including issues trying to uninstall it, are provided exclusively by Dell, who can be reached here:
 
Dell Technical Support for the Dell Management Console
Telephone (800) 945-3355
Web/Additional information http://support.dell.com/support/index.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=biz

Additional information about errors occurring when Dell is installed/uninstalled can be found here:

Trying to uninstall Dell Client Solution or Dell Management Console results in errors, or, having them installed results in resource errors
http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH167462

Question: What is the differences between Dell Client Solution and Dell Management Console?
Answer: There are important differences in what both products are designed to do and how they work in the Symantec Management Platform.
 

• Dell Client Solution aides in administering Dell computers that are workstations, such as the Dell OptiPlex 745. Specifically, only the OptiPlex, Latitude and Precision models can be used.
• Dell Management Console aides in administering Dell computers that are business servers, such as the Dell PowerEdge. 
   

For more information on using Dell Client Solution or Dell Management Console, refer to their user guides: 

Dell Client Manager 3.2 User Guide
http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=DOC3514

Dell Management Console 1.1 User Guide
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/software/smdmc/11/en/ug/ug.pdf

Note: Dell Client Solution should not be attempted to be used to administer Dell servers, and Dell Management Console should not be attempted to be used to administer Dell workstations. While these may be used as such, this is not their intended purpose and therefore issues may occur when attempting to use them in a manner they were not designed for.

Question: My Altiris Console shows that it is "Dell Management Console" when I load it. Is this really Dell Management Console and I have to contact Dell for technical support?
Answer: Installing Dell Client Solution or Dell Management Console (or any other Dell product) into Altiris will re-brand the Altiris Console as "Dell Management Console". Note: This should not be confused with the Dell Management Console product, which is sold and supported exclusively by Dell, and is used to manage Dell servers. If a customer has an issue with a branded Dell Altiris Console, Symantec Technical Support will help assist the customer for standard Altiris-related issues. If the issue turns out to be Dell Management Console product-related, however, the customer will be asked to call Dell directly for further assistance with their product.
 
The re-branding will then appear as shown in Figure 1, below.

Figure 1: The re-branded Altiris Console as "Dell Management Console"

This is a cosmetic change only. Contact Symantec Technical Support who can provide a method to change this back to the original Symantec branding if so desired.

Question: How can I tell what Dell solutions are installed?
Answer: After either Dell Client or Management solutions are installed, the Symantec Management Platform is re-branded as "Dell Management Console -- Powered by Altiris", even if just Dell Client is installed. Seeing this does not therefore indicate that Dell Management is actually installed or not. The way to verify what Dell solutions are installed is to open Symantec Installation Manager and review the installed products there.

Question: I see several other Dell solutions listed in the Symantec Installation Manager that aren't mentioned here. What are these?
Answer: Several other Dell "solutions" will appear in the Symantec Installation Manager. These are parts of other Dell solutions and are installed automatically. They are simply listed as components in the Symantec Installation Manager as they can be updated separately from their parent solutions. Some of these include the following:
 

• Dell Client Manager Standard
• Dell Common*
• Dell Common Update
• Dell Solutions
• Dell Solutions Update
  
  * While Dell Common is part of Dell Management Console, it is also installed and used by Dell Client Solution. Among other things, this installs the Warranty Extrator task. If Dell Common fails to work, this may then be considered to be a DMC-related issue and the user referred to Dell Technical Support.

Question: I no longer want to use Dell solutions or I see issues after installing them or I uninstalled Dell solutions and now see issues occurring elsewhere in Altiris. How can I successfully remove these from Altiris?
Answer: Use Symantec Installation Manager to remove all Dell solutions and components. If there were issues caused by any Dell solutions, this should resolve them. If not, please contact Technical Support to obtain an special clean-up script and reference KB TECH159959.

Question: Does Symantec offer assistance in programming Dell OMCI, for Dell Client Solution or Dell Management Console, such as to access web services, etc.?
Answer: No. Contact Dell, who may provide programming assistance for this.