The WFM initiative is the collective work of Intel, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Compaq, and 25 other hardware vendors. Originally, the protocols were designed separately, but by combining the initiatives the vendors were able to agree on implementation and protocol requirements to make the combined whole stronger than the individual protocols. Now the four protocols that comprise WFM have been updated to fix or improve problems in the first versions or to replace other, older protocols. For example, WFM 2.0 builds on the DMI 2.0 standard that was finalized in 1996. DMI allows management software to speak with client stations to collect hardware configuration and inventory data such as serial numbers, installed hardware, and embedded firmware.
Management software can then query the PC and store the returned information in a database.
Using agents, DMI also coordinates messages between a PC's firmware and the network management console. For example, if the cover of a desktop PC is opened, the firmware tells the agent to send an intrusion alert to the management software to compare the current inventory data to the database. If, according to the inventory, memory has been removed from the PC, the management software sends an alert to the administrator who can replace the memory and fix the machine before theend-user has a problem. The ACPI and Wake on LAN combination allows a remote administrator or management tool to activate the system for routine maintenance, such as backing up data or scanning for viruses. To help administrators perform deployment or maintenance tasks on client machines, Wake on LAN powers on the machine remotely, and ACPI makes the machine start up faster.