ServerCAR®
Quick Start Guide
An illustrated introductory guide to using Server Consolidation
Analysis Resource tool
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© 2015 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
ServerCAR® Overview
ServerCAR is an web based tool to analyze server consolidation scenarios. You first import or create a
list of existing (installed) servers, then create a list of replacement (target) servers. You can optionally
specify more details such as workload type and the amount of installed memory. ServerCAR
automatically provides an analysis of the performance and environmental differences between the
installed and target servers. By adjusting server counts and target utilization levels, you can determine
the number and configuration of target servers necessary to match the performance of the installed
servers.
Most of these actions are done in the ServerCAR project Workspace, pictured below. The Workspace
features three distinct areas, or panes : Analysis, Installed server list, and Target server list.
View performance, memory, space,
and environmental benefits of your
proposed consolidation in the
Analysis Pane
Import or create a
list of servers you
are planning to
consolidate or
replace in the
Installed Pane
ServerCAR
home page
Project
Workspace
The Add Servers tool
lets you manually
choose Installed or
Target servers
Define possible
consolidation
solutions in the
Target Pane
The Target Server
Wizard guides you
through choosing
servers you plan to
consolidate onto.
Add Servers window
Target Server Wizard
You can save your project for later recall and update, export to a spreadsheet, or analyze electricity cost
savings and carbon emission reductions using the integrated Carbon Calculator.
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Using the Home Page
ServerCAR home page provides a main menu, a direct link to the project
Workspace, links to saved documents, common tasks and external information, as
well as What’s New and Latest Updates.
QuickView
provides a look-up
search for server
descriptions
My Profiles lets you edit
your registration profile,
display settings, and
Alert subscriptions
Open the
project
Workspace
Consolidate multiple
projects together for
a combined analysis
Import an
inventory of
servers with
Smart Import
Personalize server
definitions on the
Custom Servers page
View all recent
changes to RPE2 and
power data with the
Server Watch tool
On-line User Guide, email
support & feedback, plus
background information on
the RPE2 performance
estimates used in ServerCAR
Click the What’s New
headings for
descriptions of the
latest enhancements
to ServerCAR
Latest Updates highlights
the most recent server
models added into this tool,
and other significant data
changes
My Documents
provides access
to your saved
projects in
ServerCAR and
other Competitive
Profiles modules
Tasks provides links to the most common functions or
information resources using plain English descriptions.
Note that some links duplicate main menu functions
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Project Workspace Overview
This page provides an overview of the project Workspace, while the following pages of this guide
describe the project Workspace operation in more detail.
The core functions of ServerCAR are carried out using the project Workspace and the associated Add
Server and Target Server Wizard functions.
The project Workspace has three distinct areas, or panes. These are named Analysis, Installed and
Target. Above these three panes, there is the main menu bar and options to manage your projects.
The project management
area includes functions to
save, recall and delete
projects, and to
customize your view of
the Workspace
The Workload Type
selects the metric to use
to represent the
performance capacity of
each server
Installed Pane lists the servers you
are planning to consolidate or
replace. Servers can be added using
the Add Servers button, or by using
the optional Smart Import tool
Analysis Pane provides
estimated benefits in
performance, memory,
number of servers, server
space, power and cooling
Target Pane are the servers onto
which you plan on consolidate. Target
servers can be added with the Add
Servers button, or by using the Target
Server Wizard
In the Analysis pane are
graphical and numerical
displays to show the computing
and memory capacity
differences between Installed
servers and target servers
Power and heat values
shown in Workspace
depend on the power
data option selected in
My Profile
HINT: Each of the three panes, Analysis, Installed and Target, can be collapsed or expanded as
required to optimize screen real estate. Simply click on the
or the
symbol as required.
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Creating a new Project
First, create a New Project and choose the Workload Type
If you have an existing project displayed, click
Existing function
or select New Project from the Open
Select the type of application that is running on installed servers by choosing a Workload Type from
the drop-down menu under the Project name:
The Workload Type will define which RPE2 performance metric will be used to represent server
performance capacity for the consolidation analysis. There are five available workload types:
Composite, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Java, OLTP, and Compute Intensive.
HINT! If you are running a mix of different workload types, or if your application does not match one
of the ServerCAR Workload Types, choose the Composite type.
Second, create your Installed servers listing
There are two options to build a list of installed servers. Using Add Servers, as described following, or
by using Smart Import – please refer to the separate Quick Start Guide provided with Smart Import.
1. Click Add Servers button in
the Installed server pane.
The Add Servers Search
window will open as a pop-up.
2. Use the relevant search options
and then click Search to list servers
matching your criteria in the
ServerCAR database.
Search Tips provides more
information on how to best use the
search options.
Reset criteria returns the search
options to the default state.
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Creating a new Project - continued
3. From the Search Results,
select the server or servers
matching your actual
installed servers, and click
Add to Installed.
Repeat Steps 1 - 3 until you have fully populated the Installed servers list.
4. Once your Installed servers list is
prepared, use the Count field to indicate
how many of those servers you have. Enter
values in the optional Utilization % and
Memory fields, if known. ServerCAR will
assume 100% utilization and maximum memory if the Utilization or Memory fields are left blank. Alternatively,
you can assign global utilization and memory values in the Analysis pane.
HINT! Use a fraction in the Count field (e.g. 0.25) to represent a slide of a single server, such as a
partition or virtual machine.
Third, create your target server or servers listing
There are two options to build a list of target servers. You can use the Target Server Wizard to
automatically choose target servers that best match your criteria, or you can manually
select servers with the Add Servers button.
To Add Servers using the Target Server Wizard:
1. Click the Target Server Wizard button to launch
the Target Server Wizard in a new window.
2. In Step 1 of the Target Server Wizard, filter the
potential target server products by high level
characteristics, such as server form factor,
architecture, and chip profiles. A count of potential
products from each vendor is dynamically updated as
you limit criteria.
3. In Step 2 of the Target Server Wizard, you will see
the potential server products that match your
criteria. Pick one or more server products.
Configurations of these server products that match
the “best of” criteria from Step 1 will be shown in
Step 3.
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Creating a new Project - continued
4. In Step 3 of the Target Server Wizard,
you are shown configurations for each
server product, along with the number of
servers needed to match your
performance target. Sorting options and
a ranking system let you compare these
configurations based on various metrics,
such as performance per server.
Select one configuration from Step 3 to import back into the Target Pane in the Workspace.
For more information about using the Target Server Wizard, please refer to the separate Target Server
Wizard Quick Start Guide.
Instead of using the Target Server Wizard, you can manually Add Servers as described below:
1. Click Add Servers
from the empty target
servers list.
2. Use the relevant search options to list the
matching server or servers in the ServerCAR
database.
Selecting “Currently Marketed only” can be helpful
to filter selections if you are intending to purchase
the target server(s).
3. Using the information
provided in the Search Results
list, select the target server or
servers desired, optionally with
a range of chip/core options to
be evaluated, and click Add to
Target
You now have a list of Installed servers with their Counts and optional Utilization % and Memory
factors, and have selected target server or servers as replacements. In creating these server lists,
performance and environmental data is automatically included.
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Creating a new Project - continued
You now use the bar graph and numbers in the Analysis pane to compare the computing capacity
and memory of the Installed servers to that delivered by the target servers.
The Analysis pane also allows you to apply a Growth factor to your Installed servers. You can also
apply an optional Average Utilization % factor, Virtualization Overhead % factor , and Memory Max
% factor to use for any installed or target servers that don’t explicitly include that data.
The Installed Performance + Growth
compute capacity bar is driven from
the Workload Type, the Installed
server selections, Count, any
optional Utilization factors, plus an
optional Growth factor.
A green dot
indicates a
user-defined
Custom
Server
The Installed memory bar is driven from
the Installed server selections, Count,
any optional Installed memory amount
memory, and the optional global
Memory Max % factor
Applying a global Average
Utilization % does not
overwrite Utilization %
entered at a server level.
The Target Performance
achieved bar is driven
from the Workload
Type, the target server
selection, Count and
optional Average
Utilization % factor.
The global Max
Memory % defines
memory amount
for servers whose
memory is not
defined in Installed
or Target panes
Local Utilization
% entered by
user or
automatically
from Smart
Import.
The Target memory bar is
driven from the target
server selections, Count,
any optional target
memory, and the optional
global Max Memory %
factor
The Analysis pane provides details of the physical and environmental benefits.
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Additional Workspace Features
The project data can be exported from the Workspace into Excel using
the “Export” link in the upper right of the Workspace.
You can delete or clone rows in the Installed and Target panes by marking the row (checking on the
box at the right edge of the row), then clicking the appropriate command at the bottom of the pane.
By selecting a row and clicking Ignore, you can cause ServerCAR to exclude that row from the
project analysis. This is a convenient way to allow you to place multiple potential solutions in the
Target pane, and then selectively analyze each solution independently. Rows marked Ignore will be
in faded, italic text. You can re-include Ignored rows back into the analysis by selecting the row and
clicking Restore.
Buttons to Delete, Clone, Ignore, and Restore a selected row appear at
the bottom of both the Installed and Target panes
Rows that were chosen to be Ignored
appear in faded, italic text
To select one or more rows, check the box in the “Mark”
column for that row, then click the desired command button
If you have licensed Competitive Profiles as well as ServerCAR, you can click on a server
description to see its profile information in Competitive Profiles. In addition, it is easy to create a
comparison of installed versus target servers, or even compare target server options, all backed
up by the extensive data and tools in Competitive Profiles.
Click the server description to
open the product profile
information in Competitive
Profiles
Click Compare to create
a side-side comparison
in Competitive Profiles
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Adjusting Workspace view
You can control which columns are displayed in the Workspace by using the column controls above
the Analysis pane.
The Hide columns / Show hidden
columns link will toggle between
showing all columns and showing only
those you’ve selected in your General
Preferences.
Modify column views will open your
General Preferences (see below), where
you can choose which columns you want
displayed on the Workspace.
Fields that are
checked in this
General Preferences
will remain visible
when you click Hide
Columns in the
Workspace.
HINT! You can hide columns to minimize the size of your Workspace window while still keeping
visible the data that you want to see for your project. All hidden columns will appear in a project
export.
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Choosing power data type
ServerCAR contains power consumption estimates for servers under two different configuration
scenarios, called power data types.. You can select which power data type that ServerCAR should
use in the General Preferences tab of the My Profile area.
A message indicating which
power data type is being
used is shown in Workspace,
and is also included in other
screens and exports.
When using the server power data associated with Sample Configurations (called “sample power
data”), power values for servers assume that the servers contain the same options used in the
sample configurations in CPServers. These sample configurations are defined such that similar
servers contain the same type and number of options ,such as hard drives.
When using the server power data associated with Worst Case Configurations (called “worst case
data”), power values for servers assume that each server is configured with the most options that
the server can support..
Choose the power
data type in the
General Preferences
tab of the My Profile
menu.
HINT! Using the Sample power data type is most appropriate when you which to compare servers
that are going to be configured similarly to each other, such as with the same number of internal hard
drives.
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Custom Servers
ServerCAR includes the ability to add your own server
definitions into the built-in library of hardware
products. This lets you extend ServerCAR analyses to
include additional vendors, products, or server types;
or to supply your own environmental or performance
data. For example, Custom Servers could represent
self-built servers, converged systems, non-server
devices, and virtual machines.
Click on Custom
Servers in the
blue navigation
bar
A list of Custom Servers that you have created appears on the main Custom Servers page. From
this page, you can add, edit, or delete your personalized server definitions. Click on the Create a
custom server at the top of the Custom Servers page to make a new server definition.
Create a new custom server
Edit or Delete Custom Servers that you have created
When you create a Custom Server, you define characteristics such as environmental and performance
attributes. You can create your own values for these attributes, or you can copy them from other
server definitions in the Gartner database.
The Description text is used
throughout ServerCAR as the
name for your Custom Server.
If you do not define a
parameter for a Custom
Server, ServerCAR will use
a default value of 0 for
that parameter when the
Custom Server is used in a
server consolidation
analysis.
Except for the Description,
all fields are optional
In addition to creating Custom Servers for your personal use, you can share Custom Servers with
other users using the Publications feature.
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Custom Servers – Virtual Machine Wizard
The Virtual Machine Wizard simplifies the creation of
Custom Server records used to model virtual machines.
This Wizard defines a virtual machine as a fraction of
the host physical server. You choose a host physical
server, core count(s), and optionally memory
amount(s), and the Wizard will create Custom Servers
that include appropriate specifications, performance,
and power consumption estimates.
When you start the wizard, first
select the physical server that
represents the host of the virtual
machine(s).
Select a core count that represents the fraction of
the physical server used by the virtual machine.
Click this button to generate a standardized
Description for this virtual machine. Alternatively, you
can enter your own Description
Virtual Machines that you have defined are listed here. Click “Create
Custom Servers” to save these records into ServerCAR.
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Managing Projects
One of the first things you may want to do after creating a project is to save it.
ServerCAR enables you to save your projects, secured under your user profile. Only you can access
your saved projects. Saved projects remain available until you delete them.
Enter project name
Click Save Project
When you Save a
project, the
Workload Type
selected is saved as
well.
ServerCAR will also highlight if you have unsaved changes to a project you have previously
saved, as a prompt to save those changes if desired.
You can recall or delete a saved project using the Open Existing selection tool. This tool provides an
expanding selection process by clicking on the + symbols.
An example of an expanded saved projects structure is:
Click to start a new project
Click on a project name to open it in your
project Workspace. You will be prompted to
save any existing open project.
Fully expand a project entry by clicking the +
symbol to access the Delete function. The Load
function duplicates clicking on the project name.
NOTE: When you create a project in ServerCAR, it is retained in your project Workspace even if
you save the project or close the browser session. This is a temporary project storage area that
will be overwritten if you start a new project or load an existing project. Of course, you will
receive a warning message to save your project in those circumstances.
When you make changes to the data for the project in your project Workspace data, ServerCAR
works with the browser software to ensure your changes to the temporary project Workspace
aren’t lost if you close the browser or navigate away. You will see messages appear in the
browser in these circumstances. It is of course advisable to save project data changes regularly
using the Save Project function as above.
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Sharing Projects
You can share your saved projects with other Competitive Profiles users. Projects are shared using
the Publications feature, which can be accessed from a link on the Tasks menu in the ServerCAR
home page.
A Publication is like an electronic envelope in which you send selected documents to others. It
works by sending links (URLs) to other users via email. When the user clicks on that link, the project
will open in their ServerCAR workspace. They can simply view it, or save it as per one of their own
projects.
Only saved project can be shared with other users. Any updates you make to the project after
sharing and prior to the recipient opening the link will be included in that user’s copy.
On the ServerCAR
home page, click the
“Share ServerCAR
project…” link
Enter a title for your
publication, and
optional notes. You
can also password
protect the project.
In Step 2, select a project
from the directory tree to
share. In Step 3, enter the
recipient’s email address
and an optional message
to include in an email.
Click Send Email when
completed.
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Consolidating Multiple Projects
ServerCAR includes the ability to combine the benefits analysis from multiple projects.
Click on Consolidation in the main menu
On the
Consolidation
page, open the
Select Project:
function and
saved projects list
by clicking on the
+ symbols.
Then simply select the
projects you wish to
combine the benefits for by
clicking on the project
names.
You will then have a table with the combined benefits of the selected projects and the selected
project summaries. This information can be exported to Excel using the link provided, or using
copy/paste.
To remove a project from your consolidation
group, click the remove this project link
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Carbon Calculator
ServerCAR includes an integrated Carbon Calculator designed to provide you with rapid analysis of
electricity cost savings and CO2e and carbon emission reductions from consolidation projects.
To access the Carbon Calculator, click the Carbon Calculator link located at the right hand side of the
project management area in both the ServerCAR Workspace and Consolidation pages.
There are three distinct areas on the Carbon Calculator page:
1. The project benefits analysis table *
2. The Carbon Calculator panel itself
3. The Cost and Conversion Parameters panel.
* From the current Workspace project, or for multiple projects from the Consolidation page.
The Carbon Calculator combines information from a ServerCAR project benefits analysis with a
number of parameters, including location specific CO2e conversion factors and electricity costs or
your own custom factors to produce its outcomes.
The complete information can be
exported to a spreadsheet for further
personal analysis.
Click to create a
project summary
report in PDF form.
Above is an example of a Carbon Calculator analysis for multiple projects. CO2e stands for CO2
equivalent.
Note that on your first access to the Carbon Calculator, there will be no calculations until you’ve
selected the location to base the Cost and Conversion Parameters factors on.
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Setting Cost and Conversion Parameters
The ServerCAR Carbon Calculator combines information from three points:
• the project benefits analysis table
• optional selections within the Carbon Calculator itself
• factors from the Cost and Conversion Parameters
On your first access to the Carbon Calculator, Use IDEAS factors will be selected by default. The Carbon
Calculator can operate with either the IDEAS supplied location factors or any custom factors you have
previously saved. Your previous selection will be remembered.
Use the My location selector to choose the country to base the Carbon Calculator calculations on, then
any secondary selection offered, such as state where applicable. Note that not every country selection
will have a secondary selection.
You have the option to set
parameters for situations
where the installed and
target server locations are
different.
Your location selection will
determine the factors for
electricity cost and electricity
consumption to CO2e
conversion. Sources of this
data are shown.
The default factors for
datacenter operational hours
per annum and air
conditioning electricity
consumption will be
consistent between all
locations in the IDEAS factors.
Inclusion of the air conditioning savings is on by default, but can be switched off in the Carbon
Calculator calculations if either you are not sure which option to use, or specifically do not wish to
include air conditioning electricity savings in the Carbon Calculator calculations.
Note that you can overwrite or change any of these parameters (apart from the CO2e to carbon
factor) and those changes will be applied automatically in the Carbon Calculator panel calculations.
Your factor and selection changes however will not permanently overwrite the IDEAS factors.
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Setting and Using Custom Factors
The ServerCAR Carbon Calculator allows you to create, save and recall custom factors . This feature can
be useful where you have specific factors you want to be able to store and reuse. An example may be
where you have specific negotiated electricity costs and want to use that value but with the other
IDEAS values for the selected location. You can base your custom factors on an IDEAS set of location
factors, only changing a specific value or values and save these while retaining the unchanged IDEAS
factors, or create a completely new set of factors.
To create a set of custom
factors, click the Use my
factors option.
The immediately previous
factor settings are still
displayed, you can
overwrite desired factors
and change default
settings.
Options are provided to
select the price currency
for electricity cost and lbs
or kgs for the CO2e
conversion factor.
The complete set of
factors and selections will
be saved under your
custom factor name, not
just the ones you changed.
This includes the cooling
calculation option and
default value.
You can also delete
previously saved custom
factors that are no longer
required.
To use your custom factors, simply select Use my factors and select the specific custom factors
required in a similar manner to choosing a location.
To delete a set of saved custom factors, simply select the factors you wish to delete and click
OK.
Note that the Save and Delete functions for custom factors are only visible when Use my factors is
selected.
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Carbon Calculator outcomes
The ServerCAR Carbon Calculator produces outcomes from a server replacement or consolidation
project or multiple projects in terms of annualized electricity savings, reductions in emissions of both
CO2e and carbon as well as the carbon footprint reduction percentage.
It uses location based or custom factors described previously along with the project benefit analysis
information as two of its three data inputs. The third source of input factors is located within the
Carbon Calculator panel itself.
The Carbon Calculator panel provides the choice of using Maximum power and heat values or Utilized
power and heat values. This selection defaults to Utilized power and heat as representing the most
accurate estimate.
You can also choose metric or imperial for the units in the calculations. Your selection is
remembered for next access.
The Carbon Calculator will provide a breakdown for both the installed and target servers as well as
the reductions obtained. An example of a Carbon Calculator analysis is:
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QuickView
QuickView lets you make ad hoc searches of the ServerCAR server configuration database, collect
multiple results into a Basket, and then export data on those configurations into an Excel file.
Click on QuickView in the main menu
An enhanced Search capability in the first
pane of QuickView allows you to quickly
find specific configurations in the
ServerCAR database.
HINT! Selecting “Currently Marketed only”
can be helpful to filter selections if you are
intending to purchase the target server(s).
You can select multiple
configurations from the Results
pane and move them into your
Basket of results.
More information about
Individual configurations can be
viewed by clicking the + symbol
The contents of the Basket are retained until you delete
them, so that you can assemble a Basket with results
from more than one search.
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ServerCAR Watch
The ServerCAR Watch tool allows you to browse a list of recent changes in RPE2 and power
consumption data.
Click on Server Watch in the main menu
Choose whether to browse
changes that have occurred in the
last day, week, month, or quarter
Choose whether you want to see
servers that have updated RPE2
values, maximum power values, or
idle power values.
Check this box to restrict the report to those servers used in
one of your saved Projects
Only those server descriptions
which have a change matching the
filter criteria will be included in the
tree view
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Before, After, and the change
amount (in percent) is shown.
RPE2 numbers may or may not be
visible on this screen, depending
on your license rights.
ServerCAR Quick Start Guide
If the listed server appears in one
of your saved ServerCAR Projects,
the name of that project will be
listed here.
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Alerts Management
Alerts Management allows you to subscribe to push emails that will alert you when RPE2 or
power consumption estimates in ServerCAR have changed.
Access ServerCAR Alerts Management from the My Profiles tab on the main menu:
Alerts are sent to the email address listed in your Registration Profile. For alerts covering change in
performance (RPE2) and power consumption values, choose a single frequency (daily, weekly, or
monthly) that governs how often a report might be sent to you. All alerts will be included in a single
email.
In addition to changes to existing values, you can also configure a Product Alert that will send you an
email when a new server model is added to the ServerCAR database.
Choose how often you wish to
receive an emailed report of
changes.
Define the server(s) for which you
would like an alert when a data
value changes. You can select all
servers from a vendor, or choose
only a family, model, or single
configuration of a server.
Product Alerts, generated when a
new server model is added into the
ServerCAR database, are always
sent on a daily basis.
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To configure an alert when a
performance value (RPE2 value)
changes, check the “RPE2” box.
For alerts when a power
consumption value changes, check
the “Power” box.
Chose how large a change must
occur before triggering an alert.
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Help and Support
ServerCAR includes comprehensive help and support features as part of the subscription.
Help and Support features include this Quick Start Guide, an on-line User Guide with context
sensitive access, and email based support for “how to” usage queries and support for queries on
the ServerCAR data.
Access to explanatory information regarding Gartner Relative Performance Estimate Version 2
(RPE2) is also included on-line.
This Quick Start Guide is
accessible from the link on the
ServerCAR home page,
underneath Tasks.
Help from the main menu opens to provide access to the on-line
User Guide.
Click Support to place an email support request with IDEAS
support staff.
Feedback provides an email channel for you to make
suggestions regarding current features of the product, or offer
suggestions for enhancements.
About RPE2 provides on-line PDF documentation on this unique
server relative performance data.
Click the Help icon at the
top right on any page to
open the on-line User Guide
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