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Abstract |
The IBM Support Assistant saves you time searching
product, support and educational resources. If a PMR needs to be opened,
IBM Support Assistant helps you gather support information, then create
and track your electronic problem report.
IBM Support Assistant is a free stand-alone application that you can
install on any workstation, then enhance by installing plug-in modules for
the IBM products you use. |
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Content |
Important Note: This document refers to IBM Support
Assistant V2.0 which has been superseded by IBM Support Assistant V3.0. If
you are looking for information about pluggable tools that work within IBM
Support Assistant, then you will want to look for the 3.0 or 3.1 version
of IBM Support Assistant. More information about these versions is
available on the official IBM Support Assistant
page.
Are you faced with questions about product installation, configuration,
or deployment and prefer to investigate and resolve questions without
taking the time to call of IBM Support?
The IBM Support Assistant brings many of IBM’s support resources
to you in a single application. It runs on the AIX 5.2 and 5.3, Linux
(x86) on RedHat Advanced Server 3 and SuSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES)
9, HP-UX 11, Solaris 8 and 9, and Windows® platforms. The IBM Support
Assistant increases your capacity for self-help by making support
resources available through IBM client software on your desktop.
How can it help?
The IBM Support Assistant provides the following services to you, the IBM
customer:
- Improves your ability to locate IBM support, development
and educational information through a federated search interface
(one search – multiple resources).
- Provides quick access to the IBM Education Assistant and
key product education roadmaps.
- Simplifies access to IBM product home pages, product
support pages, as well as product forums or newsgroups, through convenient
links.
- Saves you time submitting problems to IBM Support by
collecting key information, then electronically creating a Problem
Management Report (PMR) from within IBM Support Assistant.
Is there any training material to show me how to use IBM Support
Assistant?
The following resources are available:
- IBM Education
Assistant training modules have been created to show how to install
and use IBM Support Assistant.
- IBM Support Assistant comes with a built-in user
guide.
- The install image that you download includes an HTML
Installation and Troubleshooting Guide.
Where do I get it?
- Go to the IBM Support Assistant download page to download the
installation package for any platform where you will install IBM Support
Assistant.
You will need to login using your IBM web identity (same id as used for My
Notifications, developerWorks, etc).
If you do not already have an IBM web identity, you may complete the free
registration process to obtain one.
- Download the compressed archive file(s)
- Uncompress the archive file in a temporary directory using a tool such
as WinZip.
The archive contains an installer program and the Installation and
Troubleshooting Guide.
- Follow the directions in the Installation and Troubleshooting
Guide to install IBM Support Assistant.
How do I customize IBM Support Assistant for my different IBM software
products?
The IBM Support Assistant provides a framework for IBM software products
to deliver customized self-help information into the different tools
within it. Customize your IBM Support Assistant client by adding product
plug-ins which can be found using the following searches:
The WebSphere Application Server V5.0 / V5.1 plug-in is included in the
IBM Support Assistant V2.0 download. Find additional plug-ins using the “
Find Plug-ins” feature, located at the top right corner of IBM Support
Assistant client. Check often for new plug-ins.
How do I install a product plug-in?
Manually install product plug-ins using the instructions included with
the product plug-in download. To view common instructions:
- Open IBM Support Assistant.
- Select User Guide tab.
- Select the "Details" link under the "Find plug-ins" option in the left
hand navigation panel.
Alternatively, you can reference the instructions from the "Related
information" section below.
What happened to the IBM Support Assistant for WebSphere Application
Server V6.0?
The IBM Support Assistant V1.0 is no longer available, beginning with
WebSphere Application Server V6.0.2. The administrative console no longer
allows downloading the IBM Support Assistant V1.0 plug-in.
Customers are encouraged to use the IBM Support Assistant V2.0
stand-alone product. It provides you with simpler installation and
management of product plug-ins.
IBM Support Assistant V2.0 is available from the IBM Support Assistant download page.
Summary
The IBM Support Assistant is part of an IBM Software Group cross-brand
(Information Management, Lotus, Rational, Tivoli, WebSphere) initiative to
improve customer self-help and to make it easier to find information about
IBM products. We want to help you avoid the need for opening a PMR, or
save you time resolving your problem if you do need to open a PMR.
Change history
Release date: 7 March 2005
Last updated: 2 January 2008
- 02 January 2008: Added information about ISA 3.x
release
- 31 October 2005: Added Lotus product plug-in link
- 26 August 2005:
- Added version information for supported Operating
Systems.
- Added pointers to training resources including IBM
Education Assistant.
- 03 August 2005: Published V2.0.0.2:
- Service component fixes (collector and UI),
- Fixed installation problem for AIX 5.3 ML 1+,
- Added release notes (readme.txt) to Windows image,
- Minor UI bug fixes,
- Enhanced troubleshooting information in release
notes.
- 13 July 2005: Added information about downloading and
installation.
- 11 July 2005:
- Revised list of queries for available plug-ins.
- Updated to indicate that V1.0 is no longer available for
download.
- 10 June 2005: Revised list of queries for available
plug-ins.
- 23 May 2005: Published V2.0.0.1:
- Minor bug fix to collector,
- License update - license may not be necessary,
- Added ability to search information centers as a separate
category.
- 11 April 2005: Published IBM Support Assistant V2.0
- 9 December 2004: Published IBM Support Assistant V1.0
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