A system administrator must diagnose a boot failure on a rack-mounted server. The server is unresponsive over the primary network, and the administrator needs to access the UEFI/BIOS settings locally. Upon arriving at the rack, the administrator discovers the integrated rack KVM switch is already in use by another technician working on a critical incident. To avoid interrupting the other technician's work, which of the following tools should the administrator use to establish a console session with the unresponsive server?
The correct answer is a crash cart. A crash cart is a mobile trolley containing a keyboard, video monitor, and mouse. It can be wheeled to a server rack and connected directly to a server's ports to provide local console access. In this scenario, the standard rack-mounted KVM switch is unavailable, making the crash cart the most appropriate tool for direct, local hardware administration to access the UEFI/BIOS.
Serial over LAN is a plausible but incorrect choice. While it provides console access, it is typically a text-based command-line interface, which is less suitable for navigating modern graphical UEFI/BIOS interfaces or visually inspecting the entire boot process.
IP KVM and virtual administration console are incorrect because they are remote management tools that operate over a network. Although they provide KVM functionality, the scenario specifies a local troubleshooting context where the administrator is physically present at the rack. A crash cart is a tool used for direct, local connection.
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