Mastering System Center 2012 Configuration Manager E-Book

Steve Rachui

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 1107

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2012

Beschreibung

Expert coverage of Microsoft's highly anticipated network software deployment tool The latest version of System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) is a dramatic update of its predecessor Configuration Manager 2007, and this book offers intermediate-to-advanced coverage of how the new SCCM boasts a simplified hierarchy, role-based security, a new console, flexible application deployment, and mobile management. You'll explore planning and installation, migrating from SCCM 2007, deploying software and operating systems, security, monitoring and troubleshooting, and automating and customizing SCCM 2012 with scripts. * Features an unparalleled team of authors, two of whom are insiders at Microsoft and have worked with SCCM since nearly its inception * Provides in-depth coverage and offers a hands-on approach to learning all there is to know about SCCM * Explores why SCCM 2012 is the most significant update in its 16-year history Packed with real-world scenarios to show you how to use SCCM in various contexts, Mastering System Center Configuration Manager 2012 covers all aspects of this powerful and complete network software deployment tool.

Leseprobe

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

About the Contributing Author

Introduction

Chapter 1: Overview of Operations Management

Defining Operations Management

Understanding IT Service Management

Overview of System Center Configuration Manager

Chapter 2: Planning a Configuration Manager Infrastructure

Gathering Deployment Intelligence

Planning the Configuration Manager Environment

Designing Your Configuration Manager Environment

The Bottom Line

Chapter 3: Migrating from Configuration Manager 2007

Introducing Migration

Migration Functionality in Configuration Manager 2012

Planning a Migration

Performing the Migration

Migrating Packages to the New Application Model

Migrating Branch Offices with the Physical-to-Virtual Migration Toolkit

The Bottom Line

Chapter 4: Installation and Site Role Configuration

Understanding Configuration Manager 2012 Site Types

Implementing Site Servers

Installing Site System Roles

Understanding Configuration Manager 2012 Site System Roles

The Bottom Line

Chapter 5: Role-Based Administration

Overview of Role-Based Administration

Security Roles

Security Scopes

Collections

Administrative Users

The Bottom Line

Chapter 6: Client Installation

Creating Client Settings

Discovering Network Objects

Configuring Boundaries and Boundary Groups

Client Installation Methods

Verifying Client Installation

Troubleshooting a Client Installation

Ensuring Client Health

The Bottom Line

Chapter 7: Application Deployment

What’s New in Application Deployment?

Dependencies for Application Deployment

Elements of Application Deployment

The Application Deployment Process

The Bottom Line

Chapter 8: Software Updates

What’s New in Software Updates

Prerequisites for Software Updates

Elements of Software Updates

The Software Update Process in Configuration Manager

Planning to Use Software Updates in Configuration Manager

Configuring Software Updates

Preparing Software Updates for Deployment

Deploying Software Updates with the Deploy Software Updates Wizard

Using System Center Updates Publisher

Monitoring Software Update Deployments

The Bottom Line

Chapter 9: Operating System Deployment

What’s New in Operating System Deployment

Planning for OSD with Configuration Manager 2012

Deployment Process

Preparing Configuration Manager 2012 for Operating System Deployment

Adding Operating System Installers

Developing a Task Sequence for Creating a Capture Image

Capturing an Operating System Image

Deploying an Image

Deploying the Operating System on Bare Metal

Installing Device Drivers into OSD

Servicing Your Operating System Images Offline

Using User Device Affinity

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2012

Maintaining the User State

The Bottom Line

Chapter 10: Asset Intelligence

Requirements for Asset Intelligence

Elements of Asset Intelligence

Configuring Asset Intelligence

Import Software License into Asset Intelligence

The Bottom Line

Chapter 11: Inventory and Software Metering

Inventory in Configuration Manager 2012

Software Metering in Configuration Manager 2012

The Bottom Line

Chapter 12: Reporting

Installing SQL Server Reporting Services

Running a Report

Working with Reporting Security

Managing Reports

Creating Reports

Importing and Exporting Reports

The Bottom Line

Chapter 13: Compliance Settings

Overview of Compliance Settings

Configuring Compliance Settings Client Settings

Creating Configuration Items

Building a Configuration Baseline

Compliance Settings Reporting

Importing Configuration Packs

The Bottom Line

Chapter 14: Mobile Device Management

What’s New in Mobile Device Management

Requirements for Mobile Device Management

Troubleshooting

The Bottom Line

Chapter 15: Troubleshooting

Creating the Maintenance Plan

Using Troubleshooting Tools

Troubleshooting Configuration Manager Deployment

Troubleshooting Configuration Manager Database Replication

The Bottom Line

Chapter 16: Disaster Recovery

Planning for Disaster Recovery

Backing Up Configuration Manager

Restoring Configuration Manager

Recovering Configuration Manager

Other Site Maintenance Options

The Bottom Line

Chapter 17: System Center Endpoint Protection

Differences between FEP and SCEP

Additional Benefits of SCEP

Endpoint Protection Site System Role

Endpoint Protection Client Agent

Endpoint Protection Policies

Definition Files

Alerts

Reporting

The Bottom Line

Chapter 18: Client Health

Understanding the Client Health Mechanism

Client Health Evaluation: Results

The Bottom Line

Appendix: The Bottom Line

Index

Acquisitions Editor: Agatha Kim

Development Editor: Tom Cirtin

Technical Editor: Brett Bennett

Production Editor: Dassi Zeidel

Copy Editor: Linda Recktenwald

Editorial Manager: Pete Gaughan

Production Manager: Tim Tate

Vice President and Executive Group Publisher: Richard Swadley

Vice President and Publisher: Neil Edde

Book Designers: Maureen Forys, Happenstance Type-O-Rama; Judy Fung

Proofreader: Rebecca Rider

Indexer: Ted Laux

Project Coordinator, Cover: Katherine Crocker

Cover Designer: Ryan Sneed

Cover Image: © Thomas Northcut / Digital Vision/ Getty Images

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

ISBN: 978-1-118-12898-5

ISBN: 978-1-118-22545-5 (ebk.)

ISBN: 978-1-118-23840-0 (ebk.)

ISBN: 978-1-118-26301-3 (ebk.)

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], fax [phone]. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Web site is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Web site may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Web sites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.

For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at [phone], outside the U.S. at [phone] or fax [phone].

Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011945673

TRADEMARKS: Wiley, the Wiley logo, and the Sybex logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

Dear Reader,

Thank you for choosing Mastering System Center 2012 Configuration Manager. This book is part of a family of premium-quality Sybex books, all of which are written by outstanding authors who combine practical experience with a gift for teaching.

Sybex was founded in 1976. More than 30 years later, we’re still committed to producing consistently exceptional books. With each of our titles, we’re working hard to set a new standard for the industry. From the paper we print on, to the authors we work with, our goal is to bring you the best books available.

I hope you see all that reflected in these pages. I’d be very interested to hear your comments and get your feedback on how we’re doing. Feel free to let me know what you think about this or any other Sybex book by sending me an email at [email protected]. If you think you’ve found a technical error in this book, please visit http://sybex.custhelp.com. Customer feedback is critical to our efforts at Sybex.

Best regards,

Neil Edde, Vice President and Publisher, Sybex, an Imprint of Wiley

I’d like to dedicate this book first to my beautiful and supportive wife, Sherri. She is a true gem—one I was very lucky to find. I’d like also to dedicate this book to my family—immediate, extended, and acquired by marriage! Their constant support and belief in me are the best gifts they could ever give. Last—and should be first—my Lord. Christ is the true meaning of life. The rest is just filler material.

—Steven Rachui

I dedicate this book to my loving and understanding wife, Susanne, who never seems to stop amazing me. I also want to dedicate this book to my two wonderful children, Nanna and Julie. Thank you for putting up with me while I was writing this book. You are forever in my heart and thoughts—You’ll Never Walk Alone!

—Kent Agerlund

I dedicate this book to my wonderful wife, Karla, for helping me achieve all our goals in life; love you in this life and the next one. To my son, Bryan Emir, for being such a great son; keep up with the basketball—you will be an NBA player one day. To my daughter, Naomy Arwen, for all your questions overnight about what I’m doing and why; you are so awesome—keep dancing like you always do; I enjoy watching you and your brother grow.

—Santos Martinez

I dedicate this book to my father; you are still deeply missed. To my mother, for all of your love and support in my life. To my girlfriend, Samantha, and our son, Stef; thanks for putting up with me and for all of your love and support while writing this book.

—Peter Daalmans

Acknowledgments

First and foremost—thanks to God for salvation and providing the true meaning in life. Without Him everything else would be useless. I’d also like to thank my many friends and colleagues across Microsoft—particularly in the product team, Premier Field Engineering, and Customer Support Services—for always keeping me sharp. This is a great product and a milestone achievement for ConfigMgr—it was great to write about it! And, as already stated, my wife. Sherri is an inspiration and a great sounding board even though there isn’t a ConfigMgr bone in her body! Lastly, my bichon, Mollie, a constant companion while writing.

—Steven Rachui

I want to thank the Microsoft Configuration Management team for giving us a great product to write about. Especially warm thanks go to Wally Mead, Doug Eby, and Carol Bailey for always taking their time to answer my questions. I also want to thank all my colleagues at Coretech for being the best bunch of guys I have ever worked with. I also want to thank my family for allowing me the time required for this book and for being the true inspiration in my life.

—Kent Agerlund

The first person I want to thank is God for bringing me into this world and giving me a wonderful mother, Isabel. She always encouraged me to do better when I was a kid. Also I want to thank God for giving me the strength and the clarity of mind to take on this project. I want to truly thank my wife, Karla, for being by my side for the past 14 years. We’ve learned a lot together, and every goal I have achieved is because of her support.

I also want to thank my MVP lead Fernando Garcia Lorea; during my eight years on the MVP program, he always guided me to be a better MVP and challenged me to do great things for the MVP LATAM community. Fernando, thank you for your support all these years.

To my friend Elias Mereb, thanks for your support; you are like my brother and always will be.

To my manager, David Tolkov, for giving me the opportunity to join Microsoft and the great team of South Central. You are the best manager I have had in many years, and without your support and motivation, this project wouldn’t be complete. Thank you.

To my mentor Neil Peterson at Microsoft; you don’t really know how much your words have impacted my career and my role as a premier field engineer.

To the PFE ConfigMgr community; you have been there when I needed some advice and have supported me to achieve successful engagements with many customers. Thank you all for being such great peers.

To the Premier customers: you are always friendly and open when I come onsite to guide you, and together we learn about this wonderful product. Thank you for your kind words; your business will be always be appreciated.

To the TechNet Forum users; thank you for all your questions over these past few years. Keep supporting the product and the forums, and you will always find the solutions to your questions from professionals who are as passionate about this product as yourselves. Thank you for your support.

Finally, I want to thank my technical editor, Brett Bennett, for his efforts and work on this book; I will always be grateful to have had you on this team. To my peer authors, Steve, Kent, and Peter; you guys rock as a team, and I’m looking forward to co-authoring more books with you. Also I want to thank the entire Sybex team for their efforts and patience during these months that we have been working together; from the bottom of my heart to all of you, thanks.

—Santos Martinez

Special thanks to my family and friends. I had to balance my time with you with my commitment to writing chapters for this book. I couldn’t have done this without you guys!

I also want to thank Agatha Kim and Pete Gaughan at Wiley/Sybex for giving me the opportunity to write this book. I never thought I would be writing a book about this great product!

Furthermore, many thanks to the Configuration Manager product team, who created this great product, and to Nicole Pargoff of Microsoft and her splendid Community Evaluation Program team, who allowed me to become familiar and play with the early versions of Configuration Manager 2012, which allowed me to blog about it in the first place.

Also special thanks to my employers, Marco and Koos from IT-Concern, who allowed me to build a real-life Configuration Manager 2012 lab environment, which gave me a good foundation for writing this book.

Finally, many thanks to my coauthors Kent, Santos, and Steve and editors Brett and Tom and the rest of the Sybex team for guiding and supporting me in the writing process.

—Peter Daalmans

About the Authors

Steven Rachui, premier field engineer for Microsoft, has supported System Center products—including Configuration Manager and Operations Manager—at Microsoft for 13 years. Steven blogs at blogs.msdn.com/steverac. Steven is well known in ConfigMgr circles and has spoken at the Microsoft Management Summit several times. Little known to most is the fact that Steven started his career as a microbiologist. ConfigMgr was quite a change!

Steven has traveled extensively—in the United States and also internationally—training and consulting on ConfigMgr. He and his wife live in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area of Texas, with their bichon, Mollie.

Kent Agerlund is a System Center specialist working as a certified trainer and consultant in the area of Configuration Manager. He started his computer endeavors back in the late eighties working with databases such as dBase, Paradox, and FoxPro. Almost since the beginning of his professional computer career, Kent has been working as a certified trainer and consultant. Today Kent works for Coretech, a Danish System Center house, where he also contributes by writing articles and sharing tips and tricks on http://blog.coretech.dk. In recent years Kent has been traveling around the globe delivering Mastering Configuration Manager 2007 training and now 2012 training. Kent also speaks at events around the world.

Over the years, Kent has attained various certifications and achievements such as MCSE+A, MCT, and Configuration Manager MVP. Kent was a co-founder of SCUG.DK, the Danish System Center User Group, in 2009.

Kent resides 10 miles outside Copenhagen, Denmark, with his wife, Susanne (his high school sweetheart), and his daughters, Julie and Nanna. When not working on technical information or solutions, he can be found exploring the local forest or highway in his running shoes or on his bike.

Santos Martinez was born in Caguas, Puerto Rico, in 1982, and grew up in Caguas. Santos has more than 10 years of experience in the IT industry. He has worked on major implementations and in support of ConfigMgr and SMS migrations for financial institutions in the United States and Puerto Rico. Santos was a senior Configuration Manager engineer for a Fortune 500 financial institution and an IT consultant before joining Microsoft. For the Fortune 500 company, he helped with the implementation and support of more than 200 ConfigMgr servers and support of more than 165 clients worldwide. After completing this project he did IT consulting work for many other corporations that were implementing ConfigMgr.

Santos was a SQL Server MVP from 2005 to 2009 and then a ConfigMgr MVP from 2009 to 2011. He is well known in the Microsoft LATAM communities as a mentor for other MVPs and for helping other IT community members. He has also participated in Microsoft Tech Ed and Microsoft MMS as a technical expert for SMS/ConfigMgr. Santos is also a former Puerto Rican martial arts champion and currently holds a fourth-degree black belt in TaiFu Shoi Karate Do.

Santos and Karla (a pastry chef) have been married for 11 years and have two kids, Bryan Emir and Naomy Arwen.

Santos currently is a premier field engineer for Microsoft in the south central region of the United States.

Peter Daalmans is a senior technical consultant at IT-Concern, a Gold Certified Microsoft partner in the Netherlands. Peter worked with deployment tooling from Microsoft competitors since 1998; in 2005 Peter discovered BDD and SMS 2003 deployment tooling and has embraced them since then. In recent years numerous (international) deployment projects have crossed Peter’s path.

Peter is an active member of the Community Evaluation Program for Configuration Manager 2012 and the Configuration Manager community, and he shares his experiences on his weblog (www.systemcenterblog.nl) and at myITForum.

Peter resides in Breda, in the south of the Netherlands, with his girlfriend, Samantha, and his son, Stef. In addition to his daily work, he is the chairman of the NAC Museum Foundation, which preserves the history of the soccer club NAC Breda. Australia is also a huge passion; he travels Down Under whenever he gets the chance to sniff the outback and the Aussie lifestyle.

About the Contributing Author

Brett Bennett is a senior premier field engineer at Microsoft and has been working with SMS/ConfigMgr since SMS 1.0. Brett lives in Texas with his wife, Rosalie, and their three children. His daughter, Brittany, and his oldest son, Jamie, attend Texas A&M University (gig ’em!) and his youngest son, Justin, is in high school. The Bennetts have three dogs: two black labs (Yogi and Boo Boo) and a golden retriever (Reeses). Brett’s hobbies include playing golf, playing the guitar, cycling, and watching movies in his home theater.

Introduction

Microsoft has accomplished a lot in making System Center 2012 Configuration Manager the product that it is today. It started as a little-known niche product, back when there wasn’t even really a name for what it did, and it’s now the premier configuration management product on the market.

This book is written by a group of individuals who have endured the growing pains of this product, some even from day one, and who have even helped Microsoft improve Configuration Manager with countless hours of real-world use and testing.

Welcome to Mastering System Center 2012 Configuration Manager. We hope that you find this book helpful in learning how to use Configuration Manager to its full potential.

The Mastering Series

The Mastering series from Sybex provides outstanding instruction for readers with intermediate and advanced skills in the form of top-notch training and development for those already working in their field and provides clear, serious education for those aspiring to become pros. Every Mastering book includes the following:

Real-world scenarios, ranging from case studies to interviews that show how the tool, technique, or knowledge presented is applied in actual practiceSkill-based instruction, with chapters organized around real tasks rather than abstract concepts or subjectsSelf-review questions, so you can be certain you’re equipped to do the job right

What This Book Covers

Mastering System Center 2012 Configuration Manager covers Microsoft’s System Center 2012 Configuration Manager. We detail the changes to Configuration Manager since 2007.

These new features include, but are not limited to, the following:

A completely new mechanism for content distribution—focusing on the needs of the user while retaining the ability to distribute to systems as wellA user self-service catalog for content deploymentUpdates to software update management and operating system deploymentThe ability to manage mobile devices, including Windows Phone, iPhones, iPads, Android, and moreA robust alerting mechanismA redesigned infrastructure to increase scale and reduce complexity

What You Need to Get the Most Out of This Book

To be able to follow the step-by-step instructions in this book, it is recommended that you have a minimum of Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 and SQL Server 2008 R2 with all the applicable updates installed; read more on this subject in Chapter 2. Also, make sure you have the media for Configuration Manager 2012 RTM, because we will go through installing this software in the first few chapters. Your computer also needs an Internet connection so you can download updates in various parts of the installation process. Evaluation versions of any of this software are fine for our purposes.

How We Structured This Book

To help you understand the features of Configuration Manager, we have structured this book to match the names of features as they are listed in the Configuration Manager administrative console wherever possible, with a few exceptions.

Chapter 1, “Overview of Operations Management,” covers general management concepts, such as ITIL and MOF, and how System Center 2012 Configuration Manager supports those concepts.

Chapter 2, “Planning a Configuration Manager Infrastructure,” covers site roles, how they are leveraged, and their application in your enterprise.

Chapter 3, “Migrating from Configuration Manager 2007,” covers the process of moving from ConfigMgr 2007 to ConfigMgr 2012. Discussions include planning the migration, using the new migration tool, and more.

Chapter 4, “Installation and Site Role Configuration,” covers the details of site role installation, configuration, and troubleshooting.

Chapter 5, “Role-Based Administration,” covers the new approach to security in ConfigMgr 2012. Role-based security is used to assign the access needed for specific job functions.

Chapter 6, “Client Installation,” covers client installation aspects in relation to Configuration Manager 2012, such as the various installation methods found within Configuration Manager 2012.

Chapter 7, “Application Deployment,” provides a comprehensive look at planning, configuring, and using the new application deployment model in ConfigMgr 2012, including elements like deployments, deployment types, dependencies, rules, and relationships.

Chapter 8, “Software Updates,” gives you a step-by-step guide of this completely redesigned feature that is now based on Windows Server Update Services.

Chapter 9, “Operating System Deployment,” gives you an in-depth look at how Configuration Manager 2012 allows an administrator to deploy a single operating system to multiple types of machines.

Chapter 10, “Asset Intelligence,” covers the mechanism ConfigMgr 2012 uses for tracking assets, including hardware, software, and licensing.

Chapter 11, “Inventory and Software Metering,” focuses on the heart of Configuration Management Server 2012, one of the core features that most other features tie into.

Chapter 12, “Reporting,” discusses probably the most used aspect of Configuration Manager by users outside the IT department. It gives other users the ability to report on various parts of Configuration Manager.

Chapter 13, “Compliance Settings,” offers an in-depth look at setting up a predefined level of standards for all your devices and how Configuration Manager 2012 will ensure your clients are maintained at that standard.

Chapter 14, “Mobile Device Management,” gives you an inside look at mobile devices and how Configuration Manager 2012 can manage these types of devices.

Chapter 15, “Troubleshooting,” shows how to ensure your Configuration Manager 2012 environment stays healthy and gives you a baseline of where and what to look for if problems arise.

Chapter 16, “Disaster Recovery,” provides the information necessary to protect your Configuration Manager databases by backing them up properly so that you can use those backups to recover from a disaster if it strikes.

Chapter 17, “System Center Endpoint Protection,” details the use of ConfigMgr to manage malware protection throughout the computing environment.

Chapter 18, “Client Health,” covers the new mechanism ConfigMgr 2012 uses to help ensure clients remain healthy.

Errata

We have done our best to make sure that the content in this book is as accurate as possible at the time it was written. If you discover any mistakes that we have missed in the editing process, please let us know at http://sybex.custhelp.com so we can address them in future versions of this book.

Chapter 1

Overview of Operations Management

System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, like the previous versions of the product, plays a very important role in operations management in the information technology (IT) world. As IT professionals, we are not responsible for every task required to accomplish a key business activity in our environments. However, we are an important piece of the IT systems management process. This is one of the many reasons Microsoft created the Microsoft Operations Framework (MOF), which is based on the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL).

The idea behind MOF and ITIL is to create a complete team structure with the ultimate goal of service excellence. Numerous groups fall under the IT department tag, but we often see many of them acting as separate departments rather than as one cohesive unit. Desktop support, application developers, server support, storage administrators, and so forth are all members of IT, but they are not always as unified as they should be.

System Center 2012 Configuration Manager was built with MOF and ITIL in mind, so we will start the book by describing these two systems and how they are the basis for the System Center family of products. System Center Configuration Manager, or ConfigMgr, is much more than just a mechanism to deploy software. In this chapter, you will learn how we define IT service management, how ITIL is the foundation, and how MOF expands ITIL, but you will also learn about all of the Microsoft System Center products and new features of the ConfigMgr 2012.

Defining Operations Management

There is often some confusion when it comes to the actual definition of operations management. Microsoft’s System Center family of products comprises several products that span a wide range of “management” aspects. The most confusing overlap of this area is between systems management and operations management. This section looks at the differences between the two.

Systems Management

Systems management is typically defined as using software to centrally manage large groups of computer systems. This software contains the tools to control and measure the configuration of both hardware and software in the environment.

Microsoft’s solution in this arena is a product called System Center 2012 Configuration Manager. Configuration Manager provides remote tools, software update management (otherwise known as patch management), software distribution, hardware and software inventory, software metering, settings management, operating system deployment, and much more. With each capability of Configuration Manager you take advantage of, you can reduce the total administrative effort required to maintain the systems within your environment, thus lowering the total cost of ownership (TCO) of the resources that are being fully managed.

Operations Management

Now that you have an understanding of what falls under the category of systems management, we can explore operations management. Operations management is mainly focused on ensuring that business operations are efficient and effective through processes that are aimed at improving the reliability and availability of IT systems and services. You accomplish this by gathering information from your current systems, having the proper people in place to decipher that data, and having proper procedures in place to carry out any tasks that may arise if there is a current or potential problem in your environment.

The System Center solution that addresses this need is System Center Operations Manager. Operations Manager provides you with the information you need (i.e., performance, security, scalability, knowledge, and so on) to help reduce time and effort in managing your IT infrastructure by automating service tasks and giving you a proactive approach to determining possible problems.

Understanding IT Service Management

The IT Infrastructure Library and the Microsoft Operations Framework were introduced as a way to deliver consistent IT service management (ITSM). Some of the key objectives of ITSM are as follows: