This was a session by Dustin Ingalls the SMS (SCCM) Product Manager and Bill Anderson the Lead Program Manager for SMS.  This is always a very popular session at MMS and it started by them coming on stage with a SMS 2.0 box and putting it to rest, both of them dressed in brown monk robes with the hoods covering their faces. 

They covered the fact that 2.0 went EOL in March, some of the enhancements in SP2, the “Take Control Campaign,” the Device Management Feature Pack Road Map, R2, and the eXtreme Team. 

Here are some of the highlights:

 Service Pack 2

New platforms supported

SQL 2005

Site Systems running in MS Virtual Server

Support FQDN to locate site systems

Other improvements

Security Groups discovery from AD

Required for SMS 2003 R2

Take Control Campaign

MSFT funds a three day POC for upgrading to 2003 for customers still on SMS 2.0

Device Management Roadmap

Update in May 2006

Support for Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC and Phone Ed.

Password application support and settings management

System Center Configuration Manager 2007 (SMS v4)

Smartphone 2003 and 2005

Internet facing devices

Fully integrated with SMS

Support for all new versions of CE/Windows Mobile as they come out

R2

New point release of SMS 2003

Release 2nd quarter of 2006

Tools:

Scan tool for vulnerability assessment

Uses MBSA 2.0 as a scan engine

Provides VA reporting for common software mis-configurations defined by MBSA 2.0

Inventory tool for custom updates - not limited to patches, can patch anything

Vendors create update definitions

In-house Line of Business applications can be patched/updated

Solution integrators will build catalogs to update apps

The eXtreme Team

Isolated, dedicated, team of developers to provide quicker value add on top of SMS

In the pipeline now

Client health improvements

Self-service software distribution

Non-windows platforms data gathering

Reporting enhancements

Advertisement tracking tool

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