The SCVMM management console looks different from consoles that you may be used
to, because System Center has moved away from the Microsoft Management Console
(MMC) standard in favor of a new workspace-based layout. This does not have an
official name, but I like System Center Console Framework. The SCVMM 2016
console can be installed on Windows 8, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, and above.
Figure 9.3 shows the console for SCVMM.
Figure 9.3 All elements of the SCVMM console change based on the current
workspace and selected element of the workspace.
The console is divided into five main elements (also known as panes):
Ribbon The ribbon has become a standard in most Microsoft applications. You
will quickly come to appreciate this dynamically changing ribbon, which shows the
actions available for the selected object and highlights the most popular actions
based on a lot of research by the SCVMM team.
Workspaces The entire console is workspace based, and in the Workspaces pane
you select the workspace in which you wish to work, which is reflected in all other
areas of the console. The Workspaces pane shows the five available standard
workspaces: VMs And Services, Fabric, Library, Jobs, and Settings. You will also
hear workspaces unofficially referred to as wunderbars. After the initial
configuration of SCVMM, you will not use Settings much, but you will use the
other workspaces as you enhance your environment.
Navigation This shows the areas of management available in the current
workspace.
Results Based on the current navigation node selected, this area shows all of the
results for that area. Note the Results pane is affected by elements selected in the
ribbon; these elements can control what is shown in the Results pane based on the
current workspace and Navigation pane.