IBM has announced plans to equip its new PCs with online tools to diagnose and resolve common IT problems.

The 'self-healing' eSupport technology, licensed from Support.com, will be included in IBM ThinkPad notebooks, NetVista desktops, IntelliStation professional workstations and xSeries computers.

Officials at the company said that users would be able to access support services through an online portal that will run diagnostics applications after an individual user inputs his or her name.

David Hume, director of services development at the IBM Personal Systems Group (PSG), explained that Big Blue understood the importance of providing superior customer service. "We're committed to leveraging necessary internet technologies that will enable us to continue offering customers the best customer care," he said.

Hume added that the PSG unit intends to package eSupport with all IBM notebooks, PCs and Intel-based servers. Support.com will provide the infrastructure which IBM will utilise to maintain and support its customers including support for IBM servers running Windows NT.

Support.com's software provides web-based support across an extended enterprise of customers, supply chain partners and employees, to automate the management of support requests in ebusiness. Customers include Cisco Systems, General Electric, Bear Stearns, Excite@Home, Samsung and Compaq.

Tony Adams, a senior analyst at Gartner, said that automated technical support systems are gaining visibility and meeting with excellent customer approval in the marketplace. "The systems can really save customers time as they conserve a complex or new problem that merits their attention," he said.