So I finally got the time and opportunity to write a few experiences coming through our ConfigMgr site Upgrades and Migrations so far ...

Before we even go at that level, I just want a make a few notes on the key features which got changed from SCCM 2007 to SCCM 2012 - So, In SCCM 2012 no longer uses mixed or native site modes.  Instead, it supports multiple management points on the same site, where a management point can be configured to support secured HTTPS client communication using PKI, a...

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As we were upgrading our infrastructure to Config Mgr SP1 CTP1 Build, I just wanted to list items on a over all phases we went through the up-gradation. We first ran a pre-upgrade task list as below, to make sure all the items are in place, before we apply the build (Up-gradation).
 

Task	Status
Server Suppression	ü
SCCM Backup	ü
SQL Backup	ü
Export SCEP Policies	ü
Export Bound...

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When we run preinst /deljob multiple times on the child sites. We can see the JOB files and TOSEND box will be cleared, however the SRQ files will still remain. We can find the orphaned SRQ files are still processing in the schedule.log (for example below).

Send Request 39OL14PA   JobID: 00208615   DestSite: ABC   FinalSite:      State:  Pending   Status:            Action:    None   Total size:        0k   Remaining:        0k   Heartbeat: 16:38   Start: 12:00   Finish:   12:00   Retry:      ...

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We have a few list of ConfigMgr Pot SP2 Hotfixes that are listed below.

NOTE: It is not suggested to install each and every hotfix one after the other - it is recommended only to install them if you are experiencing the problem described.

978022 Memory leak in System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 if the distribution point role is enabled High

981640 The “Backup ConfigMgr Site Server” task fails on a ConfigMgr 2007 site server High

977056 The memory allocation for the Wmiprvse.e...

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Cloud Computing – 1. The New Platform For Next Generation Business  There has been a lot of hype in the industry around cloud computing, also we have been hearing,observing& experiencing a proliferation of cloud service providers claiming to provide infrastructure, platform and application services consumable via the “cloud”. 

What does this really mean from an IT perspective? Microsoft believes the industry is going through a significant transformation across the entire stack:

• Datace...

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Below post will guide you on how to troubleshoot issues that may arise during the replication of packages assigned to Distribution Points (DPs).                                                                            If a package is targeted to a child site, the Package Distribution process includes replicating the package files to the child site, decompressing them, and copying them to the appropriate locations on the child site. The Distribution Manager manages the replication of package...

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This post describes the procedure to troubleshoot the SMS reporting site link performance issues.

 firstly, let's observer what will be impacted if there are performance issues with SMS reporting site link, you will not be able provide ready access to additional data.

·         For example, you might link a report that lists all site codes to another report that lists all recent error messages for a given site code. The source report passes a specific site code to the target report based o...

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You might be knowing that, WSUS gives you the choice, at the moment of installation, to choose a database instance where you would like to keep the WSUS database (SUSDB): Internal database (formerly known as SQL Server embedded), an existing database or an existing database on a remote computer.

Sometimes, for example if you are just spiking about WSUS and you don’t want to install any version of SQL Server, you best choice would be the Internal Database option. But what happens if you c...

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Below is the script to know a service status, whether it's Installed\running\stopped:

Const HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE = &H80000002
Const ForReading = 1
Const ForWriting = 2

'filenames for input/output
strComputerList = "Servers.txt"
strDefaultLogFile = "Service Details.log"
strCSVFile = "Services.csv"

set input = WScript.StdIn
set output = WScript.StdOut

set wshobj = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
Set source = fso.OpenTextFile(strComputerList, ForReading...

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The inbox folders in the \inboxes subdirectory of the ConfigMgr 2007 install directory temporarily store files before they are processed to the site database or transferred to another site or site component. Monitoring inbox folders on a Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 can help you troubleshoot problems with different ConfigMgr components.You should periodically examine the Configuration Manager 2007 inbox folders for a backlog of files that wait to be processed, as this ca...

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New Console Objects…

Administrative Users = Users and Groups that have admin rights in ConfigMgr

Security Roles = Role based permissions in ConfigMgr

Security Scopes = Securable Objects in ConfigMgr

Now lets take a quick glance on how it actually looks like:

We are going to setup a Packaging role and see the console difference after.

1) Full console access for an Administrator

2) Select Security & Permissions –> Right Click add user or group

3) Select Packaging Group or user fro...

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As a Configuration Manager (ConfigMgr) administrator, you might hear quite often a seemingly simple (but in reality very difficult) question: How many workstations our company exactly has? You know exactly how many ConfigMgr clients are on the ConfigMgr database, but how many of those are actually online and healthy? Which clients have problems with technologies that ConfigMgr utilizes e.g. WMI? If users have administrative rights on their workstations, they might even stop ConfigMgr client s...

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Microsoft IT Configuration Manager team has recently deployed Configuration Manager 2007 R3 beta in production as part of R3 dogfooding. And below are the detailed steps we documented for deploying Configuration Manager 2007 R3 beta. Special Thanks to Partha Chandran for the detailed operations documentation for R3 beta deployment.

This document highlights R3 beta upgrade preparation, server upgrade and validation tasks  to be performed post R3 beta upgrade. Please note this document is not ...

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The Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) subsystem has evolved over time to become a key dependency for many applications, Configuration Manager being one of them.   We've been intertwined since the .698 build of WMI shipped with Systems Management Server 2.0 (there was even a WBEM Inventory component in SMS 1.2).  

Given this history and relationship it's important to know what to do when something goes wrong. 

I've spent many years investigating / troubleshooting WMI related issues ...

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System Center team is working in partnership with Citrix to integrate the management of XenApp with Configuration Manager. A white paper is been put together that outlines how the new capabilities can be used to improve enterprise application management. The Citrix Connector for Configuration Manager will enable unified management of applications across the desktop and XenApp Server farm environment. The connector enhances Configuration Manager, enabling administrators to orchestrate the task...
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I am pleased to let you know about a new style of courseware available for Configuration Manager which i found on one of the System Center Team Blogs and liked it very much.

This course will take you down the path of understanding how Configuration Manager 2007 can be used to perform common tasks such as Operating System deployment, software distribution and update, asset tracking and intelligence, client health reporting and management, security, and network access protection.

On this site...

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As the System Center team heads towards the release of R3, Excitement to release of a refresh build of the ConfigMgr R3 beta comes here. This release incorporates fixes as well as enhancements to Power Management reporting. You can access this refresh here.
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Configuration Manager 2007 R3 Beta released

Power management is at the core of the ConfigMgr 2007 R3 release, and addresses the need that many organizations have to monitor and reduce both power consumption and CO2 emissions.  R3 Power Management leverages the power management features built into Windows to apply relevant and consistent settings to computers in the organization. 

There are three major components to power management in R3:

• Monitoring and Planning: The Power Management f...

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