Patent ID: 7877646

Claim:
A method for monitoring a computing device, comprising: passively receiving, by a data collector, a plurality of system messages from a hardware system controller, wherein the data collector is physically wired to a hardware serial port of the hardware system controller, wherein the hardware system controller is factory preconfigured to automatically send the plurality of system messages via the serial port when the data collector is connected to the serial port, wherein the computing device comprises the hardware system controller to monitor and control hardware on the computing device, and wherein the data collector is independent of the computing device and comprises a storage module, a hardware processor, a power unit, a wireless port, and a physical synchronization button; storing data from the plurality of system messages in the storage module on the data collector; receiving, via the physical synchronization button, by hardware processing unit on the data collector, a data transmit request; and wirelessly transmitting, by the data collector, the data to a field receiver via the wireless port on the data collector.