in Chapter 6, namely, Data Protection Manager. As discussed previously, DPM is a
powerful solution for the backup and restore of not just Hyper-V but also key
Microsoft applications such as Exchange, SQL, and SharePoint. Although it has
limited Linux VM backup on Windows Server 2012 R2 Hyper-V, DPM is still very
much a Microsoft-focused protection solution.
The final component of System Center is Configuration Manager. SCCM provides
capabilities to deploy operating systems, applications, and OS/software updates to
servers and desktops. Detailed hardware and software inventory and asset intelligence
features are key aspects of SCCM, enabling great insight into the entire organization’s
IT infrastructure. SCCM 2012 introduced management of mobile devices such as iOS
and Android through ActiveSync integration with Exchange and a user-focused
management model. However, with System Center 2012 R2, Configuration Manager
shifted to manage mobile devices through integration with the Microsoft Intune cloud
management service, and this investment has continued to the 2016 version. In
Configuration Manager 2016, organizations also have the ability to manage mobile
devices directly without leveraging Intune for mobile devices that do not connect to
the Internet, such as devices on a shop floor. For most regular mobile devices, the
management should still be performed via Intune. Now, however, organizations have
a choice.
One key feature of SCCM for servers is settings management, which allows a desired
configuration to be defined, such as OS and application settings, and then applied to a
group of servers (or desktops). This can be useful for compliance requirements. The
challenge I face in recommending SCCM for servers today is that SCCM’s focus seems
to be shifting to the desktop. The benefits that SCCM can bring to servers, such as
patching, host deployment, and desired configuration, are better handled through
other mechanisms. For patch management, both SCVMM and Failover Clustering
one-click patching leverage WSUS and not SCCM. For host deployment, SCVMM has
the ability to deploy physical servers for Hyper-V and for file servers and automatically
manage cluster membership and more. Desired configuration is possible through
PowerShell v4’s Desired State Configuration feature. Therefore, if you are already
using SCCM, you can take advantage of some of those capabilities in your
environment. I would not implement SCCM for the sole purpose of server
management; there are better options, in my opinion, in the other components and
base operating systems. I also expect more and more features to be added to the cloud
Operations Management Suite (OMS), which will render Configuration Manager
redundant for server management tasks.