April 2010 Meeting

Hi folks,

What we're going to try to do this month is show 2 half-sized sessions coming up at this year's MMS. Joey & I will give a preview of our session BA38 Software Updates for Smart Admins. And Tim will preview his session The Philosophy of Configuration Manager.

We don't have a solid confirmation of Tim's participation on this yet, so if he can't make it, Joey & I will just go into more depth and Q&A.

Please use ClicktoAttend to register so you're entered for swag.

BA38 Software Updates for Smart Admins: Beyond the Handbook
Wednesday, April 21 2:15 PM - 3:30 PM, Veronese 2405
Speaker(s): Joey Gleason, Brian Mason
Track(s): Security & Compliance Management, Systems Management
Session Type(s): Breakout Session
Products(s): Configuration Manager 2007
In this session we'll compare how a small company manages software updates compared to a large corporation. What tricks do they have in common? What is different and why? Topics covered will include: Deployment Schedules, Maintenance Windows, Client\User Interaction, Pilot Collections, Reporting, Troubleshooting failed installs, Automating as much as possible. Finally, we'll review how SUP is configured in different environments, interacting with WSUS, what needs to be done as your company grows, and how to handle servers.

BA23 The Philosophy of Configuration Manager
Monday, April 19 4:30 PM - 5:45 PM, Veronese 2405
Speaker(s): Tim Benjamin
Track(s): Systems Management
Session Type(s): Breakout Session
Products(s): Configuration Manager 2007
Often we spend hours talking about HOW to do a very complex task in ConfigMgr in order to get something just right; however we rarely spend any time on WHAT and WHY. This session is not a discussion of cost savings or some other good MBA topic, but rather a discussion about how ConfigMgr's design, the way it works, lends itself to in your organization. Topics will include image composition, the pros and cons of different approaches (thin vs. thick) and what implications that has on other facets of systems management, the use of baseline collections and why that makes image deployment easier, naming standards, security and console organization. This session's goal is to help you better understand how to make ConfigMgr work for you.