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Troubleshooting Windows 7 deployments: Maybe two trips to Vegas are in my future

By | February 2, 2010, 7:43am PST

Summary: The Microsoft Management Summit (MMS) 2010, back in Las Vegas yet again, has some interesting sessions on the docket, even for those IT pros who aren’t Configuration Manager geeks. Expect more on Microsoft’s private cloud strategy, two of its key management products, and even some Windows 7 troubleshooting goodness.

I hate Las Vegas. I’ve successfully whittled down my travel schedule so that I have only have to be there once a year (for Microsoft’s Mix conference). But I’m starting to wonder whether I’m going to have to break my own rule and go twice in 2010.

The Microsoft Management Summit (MMS) 2010, back in Las Vegas yet again, has some interesting sessions on the docket, even for those IT pros who aren’t Configuration Manager geeks. MMS runs from April 19 to April 23.

Microsoft is slated to detail in depth at MMS two new management products the final versions of which it is on tap to roll out a few weeks after the conference: System Center Essentials 2010 and Data Protection Manager 2010. There’s the intriguing sounding “Troubleshooting Windows 7 Deployments” on the just-released full session line-up. And there are promises of more about the Dynamic Infrastructure Toolkit for System Center — the tool Microsoft introduced this partner-centric offering a year ago with claims of it being a key piece of its foundation for its private cloud. The final version of the Dynamic Infrastructure Toolkit is due out in the first half of 2010.

System Center, Microsoft’s suite of management products, is already over a billion-dollar business for Microsoft. And making management integral to everything from Windows 8 to Windows Mobile is top of mind inside Microsoft these days.

Yes, I used Windows 7 in the headline for this post because “DPM 2010: Coming soon” would scare off more than attract most readers. But the upcoming releases of Microsoft’s key management wares are worth a look, in their own right.

System Center Essentials 2010, currently in the near-final Release Candidate test phase of development, is a new software deployment and patch app aimed at mid-size businesses with between 50 and 500 PCs. It is a bundle built with other System Center products — and like other products in the Microsoft “Essentials” family, scaled to target mid-market users. DPM 2010 is all about protection and recovery of Exchange 2010 and 2007, SharePoint 2010 and 2007 and SQL Server 2008.

And here’s more on that touted and potentially handy Windows 7 session from the MMS session line-up:

Troubleshooting Windows 7 Deployments
Speaker(s): Michael Niehaus

When everything works, Windows 7 deployment is great. But what about when things break? In this session, we’ll look at common causes and solutions for failed Windows 7 deployments, looking at issues with the Windows 7 installation process itself (SETUP and related tools), Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 (Lite Touch), and ConfigMgr 2007 SP2 (Zero Touch).

I’m hoping and expecting the Softies to say more about the “System Center Cloud” strategy/offering that Microsoft Server and Tools President Bob Muglia mentioned during his keynote last fall at the Professional Developers Conference. If they end up doing so, then another Vegas sojourn is definitely in the cards for me….

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Topics

Mary Jo has covered the tech industry for more than 25 years for a variety of publications and Web sites, and is a frequent guest on radio, TV and podcasts, speaking about all things Microsoft-related. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008).

Disclosure

Mary-Jo Foley

Freelance journalist/blogger Mary Jo Foley has nothing to disclose. WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). I do not own Microsoft stock or stock in any of its partners or competitors. I have no business ventures that are sponsored by/funded by Microsoft or any of its partners or competitors.

Biography

Mary-Jo Foley

Mary Jo Foley has covered the tech industry for 25 years for a variety of publications, including ZDNet, eWeek and Baseline. She has kept close tabs on Microsoft strategy, products and technologies for the past 10 years. In the late 1990s, she penned the award-winning "At The Evil Empire" column for ZDNet, and more recently the Microsoft Watch blog for Ziff Davis.

Got a tip? Send her an email with your rants, rumors, tips and tattles. Confidentiality guaranteed.

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RE: Troubleshooting Windows 7 deployments: Maybe two trips to Vegas are in my future
jackson1984-24316069205748857739440257893812 10th Oct
Delighted nfl football jerseys i stubled onto this awesome web-site, might be selected to avoid wasting it so i can browse frequently.
0 Votes
+ -
... because Windows 8 will be better than Windows 7.

So it begs the question, why deploy Windows 7?

PS. To all IT managers, scrap your Vista deployment for Win 7.


^o^

0 Votes
+ -
Maybe you need better software?
NonZealot 2nd Feb 2010
because Windows 8 will be better than Windows
7.


Since it is clear from your statement that you use
software that gets worse with each version, may I
suggest you switch to a better vendor? Just a
helpful suggestion.
0 Votes
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It's just that IT directors are too damned LEERY of new technology and refuse to put anything into place until the 'first service pack'.... which for Windows 7, isn't necessary to wait for.
0 Votes
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Why deploy *anything* at all then?
Cylon Centurion 2nd Feb 2010
NT
0 Votes
+ -
The question could be expanded
NonZealot 2nd Feb 2010
It isn't limited to software deployment.

Why buy a 2010 car when the same model will
probably be better in 2011? And if the 2011
model is worse than the 2010 then you need to
switch car companies.

Why buy an iCore7 when the iCore8 will be
probably be better? And if the iCore8 is worse
than the iCore7 then you need to switch CPU
companies.

Ultimately, the answer is that you buy what you
need, when you need it and that is why you
might buy Windows 7 today even though Windows
8, when it is released in 2 years, will be
better.
0 Votes
+ -
Agreed. That statement
Cylon Centurion 2nd Feb 2010
Makes no sense. Upgrades are part of computing. Always will be.
0 Votes
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If you wait for technology to slow down then you will die waiting. It is just getting faster and faster. I mean I do not see any Linux or MacOS sponsored events on how to deploy their OSes.
0 Votes
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re: Heaven Forbit Technology Moves Forward ...
n0neXn0ne Updated - 2nd Feb 2010
... like Microsoft Windows® operating system still running NTFS file system in 2011 and the foreseeable future?

^o^

0 Votes
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There a problem with that?
Cylon Centurion 2nd Feb 2010
NT
0 Votes
+ -
Yes
NonZealot 2nd Feb 2010
New technology that is based on tried and true
technology from decades earlier is bad, BAD!!!
Oh... wait... unless we are talking about *nix.
Then it is a good thing.

Cue the double standards...
0 Votes
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Yes, Virus and fragmentation n/t
n0neXn0ne Updated - 2nd Feb 2010

I have neither this NTFS virus problem nor the
NTFS fragmentation problem. Could you guide me
through the steps I need to take in order to
experience these things?
0 Votes
+ -
I have neither of those problems
Cylon Centurion 2nd Feb 2010
Windows defrags every weekend.
0 Votes
+ -
Yes, but...
Muttz 3rd Feb 2010
Anywhere that I have ever worked is always behind in upgrades. Business is never chomping at the bit to upgrade. There are lots of costs beyond the software and hardware. Most companies take an "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach.

We're talking retraining, lost productivity, upgrading other software and possibly having custom software re-written. Not everyone embraces new technology. Most office workers like predictability. They're just not like us. They aren't excited to check out a new piece of software. In fact, most find it annoying. A small thing, like the ribbon in Office can throw a whole office for a loop for a couple of months.

An OS upgrade usually means new computers for everyone. It's a huge job.

That's why they are leery.
If you're in the business of actually doing something of value then each windows redeployment is nothing but a dangerous and costly distraction.

Why switch to Win 7 and make your life miserable?
0 Votes
+ -
...
Cylon Centurion 2nd Feb 2010
Why not switch to 7 and make your lives more productive happy


There I fixed it for you.
0 Votes
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Why switch to Linux then?
Lerianis10 2nd Feb 2010
Why not stay with the company who has been doing things RIGHT for years?

See how that statement can be turned around on you?

If anything, Windows 7 with it's security protections would make things SAFER for everyone, bar none!
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Troubleshooting Windows 7 deployments: Maybe two trips to Vegas are in my future
jackson1984-24316069205748857739440257893812 10th Oct
Delighted nfl football jerseys i stubled onto this awesome web-site, might be selected to avoid wasting it so i can browse frequently.

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