The dmidecode command reads the system DMI table to display hardware and BIOS information of the server. Apart from getting current configuration of the system, you can also get information about maximum supported configuration of the system using dmidecode. For example, dmidecode gives both the current RAM on the system and the maximum RAM supported by the system.
Here are some sample command use
Find baseboard information
root@websvr:~# dmidecode --type baseboard # dmidecode 2.11 SMBIOS 2.4 present.
Handle 0x0002, DMI type 2, 15 bytes Base Board Information Manufacturer: Intel Corporation Product Name: 440BX Desktop Reference Platform Version: None Serial Number: None Asset Tag: Not Specified Features: None Location In Chassis: Not Specified Chassis Handle: 0x0000 Type: Unknown Contained Object Handles: 0
Handle 0x007F, DMI type 10, 8 bytes On Board Device 1 Information Type: Video Status: Disabled Description: VMware SVGA II On Board Device 2 Information Type: Sound Status: Disabled Description: ES1371
List info about the bios
root@websvr:~# dmidecode --type bios # dmidecode 2.11 SMBIOS 2.4 present.
Handle 0x0000, DMI type 0, 24 bytes BIOS Information Vendor: Phoenix Technologies LTD Version: 6.00 Release Date: 09/21/2011 Address: 0xE72C0 Runtime Size: 101696 bytes ROM Size: 64 kB Characteristics: ISA is supported PCI is supported PC Card (PCMCIA) is supported PNP is supported APM is supported BIOS is upgradeable BIOS shadowing is allowed ESCD support is available Boot from CD is supported Selectable boot is supported EDD is supported Print screen service is supported (int 5h) 8042 keyboard services are supported (int 9h) Serial services are supported (int 14h) Printer services are supported (int 17h) CGA/mono video services are supported (int 10h) ACPI is supported Smart battery is supported BIOS boot specification is supported Function key-initiated network boot is supported Targeted content distribution is supported BIOS Revision: 4.6 Firmware Revision: 0.0
And here is a list of valid keywords types
root@websvr:~# dmidecode --type list Invalid type keyword: list Valid type keywords are: bios system baseboard chassis processor memory cache connector slot
As always; I hope this helps some of you. For me these are just notes so I have a place to turn to for reminders.