Microsoft Windows InTune is the new Cloud based systems management tool from Microsoft, formerly known as “System Center Online” and has been long awaited. The ability to manage multiple locations/organizations from one central, online point is attractive to a lot of people for a lot of reasons…so let’s take a look @ InTune.

There are at least 10 sections inside InTune so I’m going to cover them in a number of posts, we’ll start with – System Overview:

This is the first screen you see when you log in to the Windows InTune Admin Console and it immediately gives you a great overview of yours systems. It shows:

• If Machines are infected/unprotected
• If there are updates for your machines
• A number of other alerts

Malware Protection:

From here you can see which machines have Malware protection turned off completely and also if they have overdue scans or specific parts of the protection, such as USB device scanning, turned off.

1 click takes you to a list of machines, from where you can turn on protection.

Updates:

This, not surprisingly, gives you a list of all the updates that are available for you machines be they for the OS or applications.

One issue with this is that, as default, it shows you ALL possible updates:

however, these can easily be filtered:

Another problem I have noticed is that it wants to give my laptop updates for Office 2007, as well as Office 2010; oddly, this doesn’t happen with my other 2010 machines. I had a number of issues when upgrading Office versions and I’m inclined to believe that there are some Office 2007 remnants on the machine that are being picked up by Intune.

Should you choose to approve an update for a machine/machines, you then reach this screen:

Choose the groups on which you want to install the updates, click approve and job done!

I feel it would be a smoother experience and require less clicks, if you could see the machine names on the same screen as all the updates. Currently, you must:

• Select the update
• click on “x computers need this update”
• Check the groups/machines
• Go back to the previous screen
• Approve Update

Showing the machines names/groups on the initial screen would remove a lot of that.

You can also access the updates via the individual machine screen, I’ll cover that in a later post.

Alerts by Type:

This section, as well as the above, also includes other types of alerts…not just updates and malware. This is where InTune starts to differentiate itself from other products, for example:

If I click through, it tell me:

That is pretty cool, and something that is very useful for System Admins. I didn’t expect InTune to cover things like this, certainly not in the beta, so I’m pleasantly surprised However, you can’t initiate the defrag from InTune.

The 2 options on the right hand side “Create Computer Group” and “View a Report” will be covered in later posts.

Summary:

This is a brief look at just the first screen of Microsoft Windows InTune but I’m sure you will agree that it already looks very interesting. So stay tuned for the remaining posts in this series (at least 9!) and ask any questions you may have in the comments

Cheers

Rich

Included below are extracted from the Microsoft Product Use Rights and Product List for July 2010. Please refer to the original documentation. The information in this document is for information purposes only.

I have gone through the Product List and PUR and extracted some key areas that will have a licensing impact.

This has been taken straight from the documentation, so the wording is clear and concise, in particular what rights a customer will have exiting the Enterprise Agreement and Software Assurance, including and not restricted to,

1. Windows 7 Enterprise

2. Virtualization Rights and VDI

3. ECAL Step-Up SKU

4. Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP)

5. SQL Server Enterprise temporary virtualization rights (Unlimited to 4)

This is for general information purposes only, and as you can expect there is a lot of other resources to reference to explain the licensing. However I have highlighted areas of the Product List and PUR for emphasis.

Windows 7

Product List – Page 77 of 137 July 2010

Windows 7 Virtualization Use Rights

Volume Licensing customers have some flexibility in how they can deploy Windows 7 in their organizations. As a benefit of Software Assurance coverage for Windows desktops, customers may leverage virtualization use rights. This use right allows running the software in up to four local virtual machines. While a customer’s right to use Windows 7 Enterprise may survive the expiration of their Software Assurance coverage, the Virtualization Use Right does not. For further use right details, please refer to the Product Use Rights document.

The use rights formerly associated with VECD for SA are now available to Windows customers under their Windows Software Assurance coverage. Customers no longer need to acquire separate licenses to use Windows software in their datacenter. The use rights for Windows Virtual Desktop Access are published in the July 2010 Product Use Rights. Windows Virtual Desktop Access under Windows 7 virtualization use rights (formerly known as Windows Virtual Enterprise Centralized Desktop for Software Assurance) are intended to help medium and large size organizations deploy Windows using virtualization technology in a network-centralized deployment architecture. For more information about this benefit, please refer to the Product Use Rights document.

Product Use Rights – Page 5 of 136 July 2010

• Windows 7 Virtualization Rights and Windows Virtual Desktop Access (formerly VECD)
  As of July 1, 2010, Windows Software Assurance customers will no longer need to order a separate VECD for SA license in order to run and access Windows 7 software in their datacenter. Those rights will be available to users of Windows licensed devices under active Software Assurance coverage.
  

Product Use Rights – Page 7 of 136 July 2010

If you acquire “Software Assurance”, you have the right to use “Windows 7 Enterprise” on the device instead of Windows Professional.

This also permits you during the term of your Software Assurance coverage to run up to four additional copies or instances on the device

.

The Desktop Operating System section of the product use rights, as supplemented in the “Virtualization Rights for Windows Licensed Devices with Active Software Assurance Coverage” below, provides your license terms for the software. Your right to use the software, other than as described in the Virtualization Rights section, becomes perpetual when your right to use Windows 7 Professional becomes perpetual.

Product Use Rights – Page 30 of 136

A. General License Terms. You have the rights below for each license you acquire.
I) Installation and Use Rights. Before you use the software under a license, you must assign that license to one device (physical hardware system). That device is the ”licensed device.” You may not reassign that license to another device. A hardware partition or blade is considered to be a separate device.
Note – Software Assurance customers with a perpetual license for Windows 7 Professional, will have a perpetual right to use Windows 7 Enterprise on the SA covered device. (A customer can continue using Windows 7 Enterprise on this device, even after their SA coverage has expired for that device). Note that the customer does not have the right to reassign the right to use Windows 7 Enterprise to a device that is bought after Software Assurance expires.

 

Step-Up Licenses

Product List – Page 77 of 137 July 2010

Step-up License Availability*

Customers may migrate from a lower level edition to a higher level edition of certain products with a Step-Up License. Customers must have a license with active upgrade protection coverage (e.g., Software Assurance, Upgrade Advantage, or Enterprise Agreement) for the qualifying product in order to acquire a Step-Up License. The Step-Up License must be acquired, and is valid only when acquired, under the same Volume Licensing Program agreement and enrollment (if any), under which upgrade protection coverage for the qualifying product was originally acquired. The customer’s right to the use of software under a Step-Up license is conditioned on their having and retaining a License for the qualifying product. Customers cannot transfer the License for the qualifying product separately from the Step-Up license.

Product Use Rights Page 46 of 136 July 2010

Step-Up Licenses

Customers may migrate from the standard edition to a premium edition of certain products may do this with a Step-Up License. Customers must have a license with active upgrade protection coverage (e.g., Software Assurance, Upgrade Advantage, or Enterprise Agreement) for the qualifying product in order to acquire a Step-Up License. The Step-Up License must be acquired, and is valid only when acquired, under the same Volume Licensing Program agreement and enrollment (if any), under which upgrade protection coverage for the qualifying product was originally acquired. The customer’s right to the use of software under a Step-Up license is conditioned on their having and retaining a License for the qualifying product. Customers cannot transfer the License for the qualifying product separately from the Step-Up license.
Downgrade Rights

Product List – Page 97 of 137 July 2010

“Downgrade” right for Windows 7 Professional licenses

Volume licensing customers with a license for Windows 7 Professional or Windows Vista Business are eligible to use a prior version in place of the version they have licensed. Eligible Prior versions of Vista Business include Windows XP Professional Windows 2000 Professional, Windows NT Workstation 4.0 or 3.51.
Customers who are licensed to use Windows 7 Enterprise may use Windows Vista Enterprise in place of the version they have licensed.

 

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack

Product List – Page 77 of 137 July 2010

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack for Software Assurance

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack for Software Assurance (MDOP) is an optional purchase available only to those customers who have Software Assurance on their Windows Desktop. Therefore, customers must have Windows SA coverage for each desktop for which the subscription is licensed.

All customers with active Software Assurance Membership in any pool between July 1, 2007 and December 31, 2007 may use the latest version of the Microsoft System Center Desktop Error Monitor component of MDOP during the remaining term of their Software Assurance coverage. This component may be used only on desktops and servers covered with Software Assurance. Customers’ use of this component is subject to the product use rights for MDOP and the terms and conditions of their agreement.
To receive more information about this product please refer to the Product Notes in the systems pool section of this document.

Product Use Rights – Page 120 of 136 July 2010

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) for Software Assurance.
Active Windows Business or Professional Software Assurance coverage or an active Windows Virtual Desktop Access subscription license provides you with eligibility to acquire licenses for MDOP for Software Assurance. These licenses are an optional and separate purchase from Software Assurance. See the Product List for details. If you invoke this benefit, you have the rights below for each MDOP for Software Assurance license you acquire.

a) Installation and use rights. The “licensed device” is the device to which you have assigned your corresponding qualifying license and Windows Business or Professional Software Assurance coverage.
Licensed Device. You may install and use the software on the licensed device. Some functionality in the software is designed to manage software on the licensed device. You may use that functionality on other devices solely to manage software running on the licensed device. You may also use the following components to manage software on servers within your domain, so long as the desktops within that domain are licensed for MDOP:

• Advanced Group Policy Management
• Asset Inventory Service (AIS)
• Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset

  Use of the AIS on your licensed desktops is subject to the Additional Terms section of the Online Services section of these product use rights. See the online service’s privacy statement at https://sc.microsoft.com/Help/Privacy.htm for information about how we may collect and use your information.

b) Additional Licensing Requirements and/or Use Rights.

• Remote Access. You may access and use the MDOP for Software Assurance software running on the licensed device remotely from another device as described below.
• Primary user. The single primary user of that device may access and use the software remotely from any other device. No other person may use the software under the same license at the same time, except to provide support services.
• Non-primary users. Any user may access and use the software remotely from a separately licensed device.
• Remote assistance. You may allow other devices to access the software to provide you with support services. You do not need additional licenses for this access.
• Roaming Use Rights. Except as provided below, the single primary user of the licensed device may use the MDOP for Software Assurance software on a qualifying third party device[1] to support permitted use or remote access of your licensed software on that qualifying third party device.

A “qualifying third party device” is a device that is owned and/or controlled by an entity other than you or your affiliates.
When the primary user is on your or your affiliates’ premises, Roaming Use Rights are not applicable.

• These rights are granted subject to the limitation on the number of users in the “Primary User” section, and all use must be for work-related purposes.
• The primary user’s right to use the MDOP for Software Assurance software under these Roaming Use Rights terminates when either the corresponding rights on the licensed device expire or there is a change in the primary user status. At that time, you must ensure that that user is no longer using the MDOP for Software Assurance software under the Roaming Use Rights.

c) Term of License. You may not access or use the software after your corresponding Windows Software Assurance coverage expires.

 

SQL Server Enterprise – Virtualization Rights

Product List – Page 122 of 137 July 2010

SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise and Enterprise Processor License

[…]
Additional Use Rights for Customers with Active Software Assurance
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Product Use Rights for SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise customers who maintain active software assurance coverage on SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise licenses are granted the following temporary use rights under those qualifying licenses until the release of the version immediately after SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise:
When the software is licensed under the Server – CAL licensing model: Customers may run, at any one time, any number of instances of the server software in one physical and any number of virtual operating system environments on that servers to which they assign qualifying licenses.

When the software is licensed under the Per Processor licensing model: Customers may run, at any one time, any number of instances of the server software in one physical and any number of virtual operating system environments on that any of their servers to which they assign a number of qualifying licenses equal to the server’s number of physical processors without regard to the number of physical and virtual processors used.

Upon the availability of the next version of SQL Server, these use rights expire, and customers’ ongoing use of the software will be subject to the product use rights for SQL Server 2008 R2 Enterprise without these temporary rights.

VDI Suites

Product List – Page 116 of 137 July 2010

1. Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Standard Suite
2. Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Premium Suite

I) Definitions.
a) “Client OSE” is an operating system environment (“OSE”) running a client operating system.
b) “VDI licensed device” is a device to which you assign a VDI suite license and from which you access and remotely use virtual client OSEs.
c) “VDI host” is a device on which you host virtual client OSEs running software you access and remotely use from VDI licensed devices.
d) “VDI suite license” means the VDI Standard Suite license or the VDI Premium Suite license or both.
e) “VDI software” is the Microsoft software for which you are granted use, access or management rights under the “VDI suite license”).

II) Subscription license. VDI suite licenses are subscription licenses. The right to use software under a subscription license expires upon expiration or termination of the enrollment or agreement under which you acquired the license. Despite anything to the contrary in your volume license agreement, your right to use or access software or manage OSEs under a VDI suite license ends when that license expires.

III) Roaming Use Rights. Except as provided below, the single primary user of the VDI licensed device may remotely access the virtual client OSEs from any qualifying third party device1 without acquiring a separate VDI suite license for that device.

1 A “qualifying third party device” is a device that is owned and/or controlled by an entity other than you or your affiliates.

When the primary user is on your or your affiliates’ premises, Roaming Use Rights are not applicable.

• The limitations against accessing Windows Server software to host a graphical user interface (using RDS functionality or other technology) under the VDI Standard Suite apply if the Roaming Use Rights are invoked under the Standard Suite.
• You may not permit access to the virtual client OSEs from the VDI licensed device and a qualifying third party device at the same time.
• All access under the Roaming Use Rights must be for work-related purposes.
• The primary user’s right to access the virtual client OSEs under the Roaming Use Rights terminates when the corresponding rights on the VDI device expire, there is a change in the primary user status or when the primary user leaves your organization. At that time, you must ensure that that user is no longer accessing the virtual client OSEs under Roaming Use Rights.

IV) Applicable use rights. Your access and use of VDI software and management of virtual client OSEs accessed by your VDI licensed device are governed by the product use rights for VDI software, as modified by these license terms. You may assign VDI suite licenses only to devices. You may not assign VDI suite licenses to users.

a) Permitted separation of components. As described in these license terms, and despite anything to the contrary in your volume license agreement, each VDI suite license permits:
i. use and access of VDI software on or from your VDI licensed device and other devices running permitted instances of VDI software and

 

References

It is important you refer where possible to original documentation and your Microsoft representative.

Product Use Rights – July 2010 http://www.microsoftvolumelicensing.com/userights/DocumentSearch.aspx?Mode=3&DocumentTypeId=1 

Product List – July 2010 http://www.microsoftvolumelicensing.com/userights/DocumentSearch.aspx?Mode=3&DocumentTypeId=3

 

Disclaimer – The content of this article and blog is for general information purposes only and the content shall not be considered to supplement or amend the terms of any existing agreement with Microsoft UK or any Microsoft Group affiliate.

Microsoft Windows Intune is a new product aimed at managing pcs in a new way. My original post can be found here:

Read Windows Intune

The initial beta was restricted to the US, Canada, Mexico & Puerto Rico and 1000 participants. Microsoft have now opened that up to another 10,000 users in the following countries:

To be eligible you need to deploy it to at least 5 machines and start within 1 week.

If you’re interested, go and sign up here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsintune/windowsintune-experience.aspx

Pricing

The pricing of Windows InTune has now been confirmed for the States and it is:

$11 per user per month

That gets you:

• Cloud based Desktop Management service
• Anti Virus and Anti-Spyware
• Windows 7 Enterprise Desktop Upgrades

and, for an extra $1 per user per month, you can get the whole MDOP suite too. More MDOP info here:

Read Microsoft MDOP

Partner Features

Many partners will be looking to InTune to provide them with a new way of generating revenue, through the ability to remotely manage their customers machines. This will reduce the need to travel thus saving money on hotels and petrol and increasing profit margins. Microsoft have quickly, and cleverly, added in a new feature aimed at making this as easy as possible…the “Multi – Account Console”:

This will allow partners to quickly and easily see a top level view of all the customers they manage and, through filtering, spot those needing urgent assistance immediately.

Feedback:

There is already a lot of positive feedback on Windows InTune from the first beta, such as:

“I save about 40% of the time I used to spend managing PC updates, thanks to Windows Intune. It frees me up to focus on developing more custom applications—and bring on more customers”

“I think we could expand our customer base by at least 10-15 percent immediately”

“It accelerates their (customers) decision to make the move (to Windows 7)”

The Future:

Early 2011 will see the general availability of Windows Intune in the countries listed in the 1st screenshot above. It will then move to more European & Latin countries as well as “select” Asian locations.

I’ve signed up to the beta and will hopefully have some post following up on that experience soon.

The MS Blog post can be found here.

I am running a series of Microsoft webinars through the month of June which I think/hope will be of interest to a lot of people out there

The sessions and dates are:

June 15th	Windows 7 – Overview of Business Benefits	Click to register
June 17th	Overview of Microsoft Desktop Optimisation (MDOP)	Click to register
June 22nd	Office 2010 – Business Benefits and WebApps	Click to register
June 24th	SharePoint – Document Management, Business Connectivity Services and SharePoint Workspace	Click to register

First Event

The first webinar is tomorrow so it’s not much notice (sorry!) but the agenda is:

This session will cover the business benefits of deploying Windows 7, from both an administrator and user perspective covering things such as:

• Increasing user productivity
• Enhancing security
• Flexible working

and more. The session will also cover Windows 7 Enterprise, Software Assurance (SA) benefits & Windows Server 2008 R2.

As well as myself, our Account Manager from Microsoft will be hosting the event too so there will be a chance to ask questions/give feedback directly to MS…which is always nice

You can hit the “Click to Register” links above to email me or you can message me on twitter:

@richfrombechtle

We’ll be sending the registration info out around 16:00ish this afternoon so I’ll need to hear before then.

This is open to pretty much anyone so feel free to register

I don’t often mention Bechtle on my blog as I don’t use it as a sales platform at all, but I feel this is a good exception ot make…I hope you agree!

Multilingual User Interface packs for Windows Vista and Windows XP Professional are not as easy to come by as Microsoft partners and customers would expect. The general presumption seems to be that the MUI packs are available as separate downloads from the Redmond Company. This is not the case. Far from it in fact. The MUI packs are designed to provide support for multiple languages during the operating system’s installation. Microsoft has applauded that fact that its latest operating system will change the strategy associated with multiple languages. There is however a little detail that Microsoft failed to emphasize, the MUI packs are not available for all Windows Vista editions.

“We advise that the MUI for Vista is not available as a separate product and that this functionality is included in the Windows Vista Ultimate and Enterprise Editions. (more…)

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