Windows 8.1 Preview in Windows 8 Client Hyper-V

Yesterday at the Microsoft TechEd Europe in Madrid, Microsoft announced the official release of Windows 8.1 preview. The download is also available on the Microsoft website and for the people in Madrid on the TechEd are getting an USB stick with the ISO files!! Back in the hotel, the first thing I’ve done is installing a new VM with…YES, Windows 8.1 preview!! What a great, great, great product it is! 🙂 The looks, the new features, the possibilities, everything is there what you expect from an enterprise product!!

Now it is only running as a VM within Hyper-V on my laptop, but the Surface RT and the Surface Pro are on there way to the Netherlands!! So that is even a better experience. Next week I will post the results on my new Surface devices.

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The Ictivity duck is also love the new Microsoft Surface Pro! 🙂

Error “Cannot edit the object, which is in use by Site P01” in SCCM 2012

Today I want to edit an task sequence within SCCM 2012 and I received the following error message: “Cannot edit the object, which is in use by site P01”. Mmmm….that’s strange!! I’m the only Sysadmin with an ConfigMgr 2012 Management Console. To unlock this object, I’ve used an query within SQL.

1.) Open the SQL Management Console and navigate to the ConfigMgr database
2.) Open a new query
3.) To view all the locked objects, type the following query:
select * from SEDO_LockState
Execute the query and watch te results
4.) We see one object that is locked
5.) Note the ID of this specific object
6.) To unlock this object, type the following query:
delete from SEDO_LockState where ID=’ID of the object’
Execute the query and watch the results
7.) Now the object is succesfully unlocked and you’re able to edit the task sequence

Locked_01    Locked_02    Locked_03

Locked_04    Locked_05    Locked_06

Locked_07

Upgraded my homelab!!

Finally my new home lab environment is up and running. After building a copple of hours, my new monster was ready to rock!! I’ve installed Windows Server 2012 with the Hyper-V server role….and WOW, it really rocks!! The next few moths I’m going to build a big environment, with System Center 2012, Exchange 2013, Windows Server 2012 and many, many, many more cool products!! 🙂

* AMD A8 3870K 3.00GHz 4MB FM1 Box
* Asus F1A75-V PRO AMD A75, SATA600 RAID, HDMI
* Corsair 32GB PC3-14900 DDR3 SDRAM Vengeance (4x 8GB, 1866MHz)

IMG_3306    IMG_3307

Passed the 70-246 and 70-247 exams. Now officially MCSE 2012 Private Cloud

Yesterday and today I passed the 70-246 and 70-247 exams! Right now I’m officially Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert 2012 Private Cloud (MSCE 2012). After a couple of months preperation, reading books, reading blogpost and building, building and again building some lab environments, the big day was there!! After two hours, I hit the the final button….YES, passed the first exam! Today I also passed the second exam!

With the upcoming TechEd Europe 2013 event in Madrid, it’s a great timing to have the MSCE 2012 Private Cloud status in the pocket. Do you know where I’m going to dream about this night….right, my own private cloud!! 😉

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Ictivity Training – In the spotlights…

This week Ictivity Training has started with the new Microsoft SCCM 2012 training!

In the Spotlight: Administering System Center 2012 Configuration Manager (70-243)

Description:

This five-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to configure and manage a System Center 2012 Configuration Manager site and its associated site systems in the role of Configuration Manager administrators.

Target Audience:

This course is intended for Configuration Manager Administrators who are responsible for configuring and managing one or more System Center 2012 Configuration Manager sites and all supporting systems. They have one to three years of experience supporting multiple desktop and server computers running the Windows Server operating system in medium to large enterprise organizations. Administrators may have previous Configuration Manager experience, or be new to the product. Individuals who are interested in taking exam 70-243 TS: Microsoft System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, Configuring can also attend this course. Both Configuration Manager courses will be necessary to prepare for the exam.

Duration:

5 days

Pre-Requisites:

Before attending this course, students must have system administrator–level working knowledge of:

  • Networking fundamentals, including TCP/IP and Domain Name System (DNS)
  • Active Directory principles and management
  • Windows Server management including Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Microsoft Windows client fundamentals
  • Deployment, configuration, and troubleshooting for Windows-based personal computers
  • Microsoft SQL Server 2008 including Reporting Services
  • Basic Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) concepts
  • Desired: Have a base-level understanding of System Center Configuration Manager 2007

Objectives:

  • Overview of System Center 2012 Configuration Manager
    • Introduction to System Center 2012 Configuration Manager
    • Overview of the System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Architecture
    • Overview of the Configuration Manager Console
    • Tools for Monitoring a Configuration Manager Site
  • Discovering and Organizing Resources
    • Configuring Resource Discovery
    • Configuring Boundaries and Boundary Groups
    • Configuring User and Device Collections
    • Configuring Role-Based Administration
  • Managing the Configuration Manager Client
    • Overview of the Configuration Manager Client
    • Deploying the Configuration Manager Client
    • Managing Client Agent Settings
    • Configuring and Monitoring Client Status
  • Managing Inventory and Software Metering
    • Overview of Inventory Collection
    • Configuring Hardware Inventory
    • Configuring Software Inventory
    • Managing Inventory Collection
    • Configuring Asset Intelligence
    • Configuring Software Metering
  • Querying and Reporting Data
    • Introduction to Queries
    • Managing Queries
    • Configuring SQL Server Reporting Services
  • Managing Software Deployments by Using Packages and Programs
    • Configuring Software Distribution
    • Distributing Content to Distribution Points
    • Configuring Packages and Programs
    • Deploying Programs to Configuration Manager Clients
  • Creating and Deploying Applications
    • Application Management in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager
      Creating Applications
    • Deploying Applications
    • Configuring the Application Catalog
  • Managing Application Deployment
    • Configuring Application Deployment Requirements and Dependencies
    • Configuring Application Supersedence and Un-installations
    • Configuring Multiple Deployment Types and User Device Affinity
  • Deploying and Managing Software Updates
    • Overview of Software Updates
    • Preparing the Configuration Manager Site for Software Updates
    • Managing Software Updates
    • Configuring Automatic Deployment Rules
    • Monitoring and Troubleshooting Software Updates
  • Implementing System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection
    • Overview of System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection
    • Deploying System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection
  • Managing Operating System Deployment
    • Overview of Operating System Deployment
    • Preparing the Site for Operating System Deployment
    • Capturing an Operating System Image
    • Deploying an Operating System
  • Managing Compliance Settings
    • Introduction to Compliance Settings
    • Configuring Compliance Settings
    • Viewing Compliance Results
  • Managing Mobile Devices
    • Configuring Mobile Device Management
    • Depth Management of Mobile Devices
    • Deploying Applications to Mobile Devices
  • Configuring Wake On LAN, Power Management, and Remote Control
    • Configuring Wake On LAN
    • Configuring Out of Band Management
    • Configuring Power Management Settings
    • Configuring Remote Control

Continuation: