Internet enabled computer system management

The configuration of a managed system (10; 15) can be viewed or changed over the Internet using an HTML document to list and display the managed systems, together with icons that represent the state of the managed systems. Using embedded commands or identifiers within template documents, a program can be created to automatically acquire needed system information. In another embodiment, an HTML CGI document containing desired system information and a reference link back to the system at the manufacturer's selected site is created, allowing the manufacturer's system to retrieve this system information automatically. The system information is then analyzed against a list of currently valid system configurations to detect potential problems. In turn, if potential problems are detected, the information is sent back to the managed system automatically. By using "active controls" or Java scripts, the state of the managed systems can be dynamically updated by changing the colour of associated icons or the displayed text.