Targeted and untargeted tasks

All IBM Director tasks — Native IBM Director tasks, tasks added by installing extensions, and external application tasks — are either targeted, untargeted, or both, depending on how the task can be started.

Targeted tasks
Targeted tasks are tasks for which a managed object is specified when the task is started. Targeted tasks are started in one of three ways:
  • By right-clicking a managed object and selecting the task
  • By dragging the managed object to the task in the Tasks pane
  • By dragging the task to the managed object in the Managed Objects pane
Typically, a targeted task performs an action on the managed object specified as the target. Examples of targeted tasks are Remote Control, Remote Session, and SNMP Browser.

When an external application is started as a targeted task, information about the specified target, including the IP address, MAC address, and computer name, is passed to the application by way of environment variables. For more information, see Use of environment variables when starting external applications.

Untargeted tasks
Untargeted tasks are tasks for which no managed object is specified when the task is started. Untargeted tasks are started in one of two ways:
  • By double-clicking the task in the Tasks pane
  • By selecting the task from the Tasks menu
Untargeted tasks perform actions that are not specific to a targeted managed object, perform actions that apply to all managed objects, or provide their own interface for selecting managed objects on which to perform actions. Examples of targeted tasks are Scheduler, Rack Manager, and Hardware Status.
Tasks that are both targeted and untargeted
A task may be both a targeted task and an untargeted task, with behavior reflecting the manner in which the task is started. The Inventory task is an example of such a task: if started from a managed object's pop-up menu or by dragging it to a managed object, it displays information for that object only; if started from the Tasks menu, it displays information for all managed objects.
Related tasks
Configuring external application tasks with the External Application Launch Wizard