Compaq iPAQ Desktop

Compaq offers a managed PC to fit any need or budget. The company's Insight Manager LC doesn't yet support as many protocols as some of the other utilities we tested, but we do like that Compaq offers versions of its Insight Manager to match various sizes of organizations and IT expertise levels.

Insight Manager LC, Compaq's scaled-down console-management tool bundled with both the Compaq Deskpro Workstation 300 and iPAQ Desktop, uses DMI and SNMP to collect system information from workgroups that have Compaq and third-party machines. A one-to-one management console, Insight Manager LC won't perform more advanced functions—software or BIOS updates and remote diagnostics—on more than one machine at a time. For managing multiple PCs at once, you'll need Compaq's more robust Insight Manager XE, which comes bundled with Compaq servers.

For a smaller network, however, Insight Manager LC does a fine job of reporting configuration changes and machine diagnostic alerts. The System Software Manager portion of the utility can alert the administrator if any newer drivers are available for the PC's hardware. Insight Manager LC is browser-based, with easy-to-read, color-coded status indicators and alert icons. A limitation of Insight Manager LC is that it does not retrieve CIM and WMI data, so you won't get as complete a rundown of each PC as you would from utilities that support those reporting protocols.

To let administrators deploy software and operating system images remotely, Compaq bundles a version of Altiris eXpress application. System personality settings (Web bookmarks, personal e-mail address books, and so on) can be transferred from a user's old machine to a new one, using PC Transplant Pro, also from Altiris.

The Compaq Deskpro Workstation 300 is the top of the line for single-processor PCs and can be configured with either a 1.4- or 1.5-GHz Pentium 4 processor. Available in only the mini-tower, Deskpro can be converted into a flat-lying desktop by rotating the drive bays. This makes stocking components (such as hard drives and system boards) easy. Compaq's Product Lifecycle Management program includes a guarantee that the product line will be available for at least 12 months and that the company will automatically notify the customer (via e-mail) of any planned software or hardware changes.

The Compaq iPAQ Desktop was the first of the new breed of sealed-box managed PCs. It's virtually immune to user customization—which in turn makes for a more stable corporate PC environment. Available either completely legacy-free or with support for legacy devices, the iPAQ can be configured with a 700-MHz Celeron or a 866-MHz Pentium III processor. If you want to add external devices, six USB ports are available. Administrators can choose to disable these (as well as the serial and parallel ports), through the Insight Manager console, to prevent end users from adding hardware—a common cause of costly help desk calls.

The iPAQ has a lockable security bracket, which is supposed to prevent its case from being opened—although that didn't work. We were able to gain access to the memory slots by prying it back with the bracket in place. One feature borrowed from portable PCs is the hot-swappable MultiBay, which can accept a CD-ROM, floppy disk, CD-RW, or DVD-ROM drive from Compaq's Armada line—a real plus for companies that use only Compaq products. For an IT department with limited resources, the iPAQ's hard drive can be easily removed and installed in a new box, reducing, and in some cases, eliminating the need for on-site service.