What Is IPMI (Intelligent Platform Management Interface)?
IPMI is the standard that made out-of-band server management possible: a protocol for talking to a server's baseboard management controller (BMC) to read sensors, view hardware logs, and control power — even when the operating system is absent, hung, or the machine is powered off.
What IPMI Lets You Do
Sensor readings
Temperatures, fan speeds, voltages, and power draw.
Event log (SEL)
The hardware's own record of faults and warnings.
Power control
Power on, off, and cycle a machine remotely.
Console & inventory
Serial-over-LAN console and FRU hardware inventory.
IPMI, BMCs, and Vendor Flavors
IPMI is implemented by the BMC — the small always-on computer inside every server. Vendors wrap it in their own management interfaces: Dell iDRAC, HPE iLO, Lenovo XCC, Huawei iBMC, Supermicro IPMI. Under the branding, the same primitives apply, which is why one monitoring platform can speak to a mixed fleet. The usual toolchain is ipmitool on the command line for one server, and a platform like Sensaka when it's a thousand.
IPMI's age shows in security: older firmware suffers from weak cipher options and authentication flaws, which is why BMCs belong on an isolated management network, never the internet. Its successor, Redfish, replaces the binary protocol with RESTful HTTPS — but with decades of IPMI-only hardware still racked, real-world monitoring speaks both.
Common Questions About IPMI
What does IPMI stand for?
IPMI stands for Intelligent Platform Management Interface — a standard that lets you monitor and manage server hardware through its BMC, independently of the operating system.
What is the difference between IPMI and Redfish?
IPMI is the older standard (1998) using a binary protocol; Redfish is its modern successor (2015) using RESTful HTTPS and JSON. Most servers support both. New integrations should prefer Redfish, but decades of deployed hardware still speak IPMI.
Is IPMI secure?
IPMI has known weaknesses (notably cipher 0 and RAKP issues in older firmware). Best practice: put BMCs on an isolated management network, disable unused ciphers, use strong credentials, keep firmware current — and prefer Redfish over HTTPS where available.
What can you do with IPMI?
Read sensors (temperature, fans, voltage, power), query the hardware event log, control power (on/off/cycle), access the console via Serial-over-LAN, and inventory hardware — all without the OS running.