[OpsMgr 2012] Wait is over ! We can now download the new SCOM authoring tools

Here we are ! VMPD and VSAE tools are available ! Remember I had posted that documentation was accessible on the Technet but the tools were not released ! It's now done !

What a good new ! I'll test them as soos as possible !

The System Center 2012 Visio MP Designer—VMPD—is an add-in for Visio 2010 Premium that allows you to visually design a System Center Operations Manager Core Monitoring Management Pack.

Version:

1.0 CTP1

Date published:

6/28/2012

File name	Size
MPDesigner.Installer_x64.msi	4.6 MB	Download
MPDesigner.Installer_x86.msi	4.6 MB	Download

Overview

The System Center 2012 Visio MP Designer—VMPD—is an add-in for Visio 2010 Premium that allows you to visually design a System Center Operations Manager Core Monitoring Management Pack. VMPD generates a Management Pack that is compliant to the MP Authoring Best Practices by simply dragging and dropping Visio shapes to describe your application architecture and configuring them through the Shape Properties.

Feature Summary

• Visually describe your application architecture which generates classes and discoveries.
• Visually add monitoring to create monitors and rules.
• Start quickly from our pre-canned single server and multi-server patterns.  

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows 7, Windows 8 Release Preview, Windows Vista

• Other Software: Microsoft Visio Premium 2010

Instructions

1. Download the MSI that corresponds to the version of Microsoft Office you have. (Most customers have the 32-bit version of Office.
2. Ensure Microsoft Visio Premium 2010 is not running.
3. Execute the MSI to install.
4. Open Microsoft Visio Premium 2010. Click File --New -- then the Software and Database category -- then System Center Operations Manager Core Monitoring Management Pack.

The System Center 2012 Visual Studio Authoring Extensions—VSAE—is an add-in for Visual Studio 2010 Professional provides Lifecycle Management Tools to support Management Pack Authoring.

Version:

1.0

Date published:

6/28/2012

File name	Size
VisualStudioAuthoringConsole.msi	20.5 MB	Download

Overview

The System Center 2012 Visual Studio Authoring Extensions—VSAE—is an add-in for Visual Studio 2010 Professional provides Lifecycle Management Tools to support Management Pack Authoring.

Feature Summary

• VS Projects for Monitoring MPs, System Center 2012 MPs including Operations Manager and Service Manager.
• MP Item Templates for quick creation of MP Items.
• XML MP Item Templates (generates MP XML for editing).
• Template Group Item Templates (Abstract your intent from MP XML).
• Snippet Templates (generates MP XML from CSV)
• IntelliSense for MP XML for the following versions:
• System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2
• System Center 2012 Operations Manager
• System Center 2012 Service Manager
• Integrates into Visual Studio Project System with *.mpproj.
• Enables building within VS & MSBuild.
• Supports custom build tasks (simply edit *.mpproj or *.sln)
• Build multiple MPs (multiple *.mpproj) in a solution.
• Integrates into any VS supported Source Control systems.
• MP Navigation Features
• Management Pack Browser for browsing MP Items.
• Go to Definition
• Find All References
• ResKit Tools integrated
• Workflow Simulator
• Generate Visio Diagram
• MP Best Practice Analyzer
• MP Spell Checker
• MP Cookdown Analyzer

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows 7, Windows 8 Release Preview, Windows Vista

• Other Software: Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional or higher

Instructions

1. Download the MSI.
2. Ensure Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional is not running.
3. Execute the MSI to install.
4. Open Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional. Click File - New - Project - Management Pack.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2] Get member count of all SCOM groups and export result in txt file - Powershell script

Here is a new short script I had to provide this morning to be able to count members is all SCOM group in my management group.

1. $mg = (Get-ManagementGroupConnection).ManagementGroup
2. $groups = $mg.GetRootPartialMonitoringObjectGroups() | sort DisplayName
3. foreach($group in $groups) {
4.        $groupMembers = $group.GetRelatedPartialMonitoringObjects([Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Common.TraversalDepth]::OneLevel)
5.        $groupMembersCount = $groupMembers.count.ToString()
6.        $Msg = $group.DisplayName + "|" + $groupMembersCount
7.        #$Msg
8.        $Msg >> C:\SCOMGroupsMembersCountInProduction.txt
9.  }

Result will be stored in C:\SCOMGroupsMembersCountInProduction.txt text file and will look like :

agent group|3613
Agent Managed Computer Group|3613
Agentless Managed Computer Group|0
All Business Critical Windows Clients|0
All Computers in Management Pack Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007|340
All Computers in ManagementPack: Microsoft.IdentityIntegrationServer|14
All VmWare servers|1332
All Windows Computers|3631

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[System Center 2012] Technical Documentation Download for the CTP2 release of System Center 2012 Service Pack 1

Version:

1.0

Date published:

6/21/2012

Microsoft link

Files in this download

The links in this section correspond to files available for this download. Download the files appropriate for you.

File name	Size
SC2012SP1_AC_CTP2.docx	80 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_DPM_CTP2.docx	220 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_OM_CTP2.docx	1.7 MB	Download
SC2012SP1_Orch_CTP2.docx	68 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_SAV_CTP2.docx	125 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_SM_CTP2.docx	131 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_SPF_CTP2.docx	330 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_VMM_CTP2.docx	152 KB	Download
SC2012SP1_VMM_CTP2Cmdlets.doc	1.0 MB	Download

Overview

The downloadable files listed on this page contain the product documentation for the CTP2 release of System Center 2012 Service Pack 1. The available downloads include:

• App Controller in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Data Protection Manager in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Operations Manager in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Orchestrator in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Server Application Virtualization in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 – last updated June, 2012
• Service Manager in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Service Provider Foundation in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Virtual Machine Manager in System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012
• Virtual Machine Manager Cmdlet Reference for System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 - last updated June, 2012

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[System Center 2012] Microsoft Virtual Academy (MVA) new courses modules and labs

Microsoft has published some virtual labs and course module in the Microsoft Virtual Academy (MVA) :

• MVA : Configuring and deploying Microsoft's Private Cloud
• Microsoft Private Cloud Guided Labs : http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/hh913012.aspx?ocid=&wt.mc_id=TEC_112_1_33
• TechNet Virtual Lab: System Center Operations Manager 2012: Infrastructure and Application Performance Monitoring

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] How much more space will I need for using APM data in OpsMgr 2012 ?

Daniele Muscetta has just write a post on the technet blog to help you to answer the recurrent question :

“How much more space will I need for APM data?”

If you want to implement this functionality, I can only suggest you to read this article :  http://blogs.technet.com/b/momteam/archive/2012/06/18/event-to-alert-ratio-reviewing-problems-and-understanding-trends-for-apm-data-in-opsmgr-2012.aspx

Thanks you Daniele ! :)

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Microsoft Press] Free videos on Windows Server 2012 from the Jump Start series

If you missed the Jump Start last week, you can watch the archived video sessions.

• Designed for Microsoft Partners, early adopters, and experienced IT Pros/ITDMs familiar with Microsoft server technologies
• All twelve (12) modules are under an hour and packed with engaging discussion and real-world demos -- watch them all!

Links to Every Module from this Jump Start
The HD-quality video recordings of this course are published to TechNet Edge and are highly recommended. Windows Server 2012 is a game-changing release for so many reasons and this course will help experienced IT Pros truly understand why -- check it out!

• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (01): Core Hyper-V
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (02a): Virtualization Infrastructure, Part 1
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (02b): Virtualization Infrastructure, Part 2
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (03a): Storage Architecture, Part 1
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (03b): Storage Architecture, Part 2
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (04): Continuous Availability
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (05a): Multi-Server Management, Part 1
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (05b): Multi-Server Management, Part 2
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (06a): Security and Access, Part 1
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (06b): Security and Access, Part 2
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (07): Remote Connectivity and Networking
• Windows Server 2012 Jump Start (08): IIS, DHCP and IPAM

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] A New XML Connector for SCOM 2012

Orchestrator is the tool everyone should use to export/Import Alerts from Operations Manager 2012 SDK and of course there is a reason of why Microsoft does not deliver a connector as they did with 2007.

Read more on http://blog.coretech.dk/kra/a-new-xml-connector-for-scom-2012/

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] Agent Failover – Simple Powershell Script with Wildcards

I've found this post on http://www.teknoglot.se/ very interesting and also here is what they explain on it :

The scenario we are building this script for is that now and then you want to make sure that certain agents have fail-over management servers configured. You also want to make sure that all management servers that are not the primary management server of any selected agent will be in that list of fail-over servers. This would include any new management servers as well as exclude any removed ones. In short, make sure your agent fail-over settings are up-to-date with the current environment.

read more on http://www.teknoglot.se/code/powershell/opsmgr-2012-agent-failover-simple-script-with-wildcards-opsmgr-powershell/

The Copy/Paste Part

As usual, here’s the entire script for you to copy. Read it, try it, adapt it…

1. # Input SCOM Management Server to connect to in this session
2. [string]$inputScomMS = "scomms02.domain.local"
3. # Input an existing agent you want to modify
4. [string]$inputTargetAgent = "*.domain.local"
5.    
6. ### Connect to SCOM 2012 Management Group ###
7. # Check if OperationsManager module is loaded
8. If (Get-Module -Name "OperationsManager") {
9.  try {
10.  # Try to load the module
11.  Import-Module -Name "OperationsManager"
12.  } catch {
13.  # Did not work, exit the script
14.  echo "Could not load Operations Manager module"
15.  exit
16.  }
17. }
18. # Module is loaded, connect to Management Group/Server
19. New-SCOMManagementGroupConnection -ComputerName $inputScomMS
20. ### END ###
21.    
22. # Select matching remotely manageable agents
23. $scomAgents = Get-SCOMAgent -DNSHostName $inputTargetAgent | Where {$_.ManuallyInstalled -ne $true}
24. # Get all management servers
25. $scomManagementServers = Get-SCOMManagementServer
26. foreach ($scomAgent in $scomAgents) {
27.  # Get the primary management server for the agent
28.  $scomPrimaryMS = $scomManagementServers | where {$_.Name -eq $scomAgent.PrimaryManagementServerName}
29.  # Remove the primary MS from "all MS" array to use it for FailOver servers
30.  $scomFailOverMS = $scomManagementServers | Where-Object {$_.Name -ne $scomPrimaryMS.Name}
31.  # Set Primary Management Server
32.  Set-SCOMParentManagementServer -Agent $scomAgent -PrimaryServer $scomPrimaryMS
33.  # Set Fail-over Management Server
34.  Set-SCOMParentManagementServer -Agent $scomAgent -FailoverServer $scomFailOverMS
35. } 

   

 

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012 SP1] Global Service Monitor for System Center 2012 SP1

The component that was introduced to us last year under the codename Outside-In will be included in Service Pack 1 System Center 2012. It's new name is Global Service Monitor for System Center 2012 SP1.

From the begining, OpsMgr 2007 availability and performance of a WEB application was done from one or more "watcher" machine. Monitor overall service extends this system by providing services in the Azure Cloud which lets you monitor a Web application from the outside. Today, this service can be tested from 13 test points in the word (Soa Paulo, Sydney, Paris... and 10 ohers locations).

It seems that today, only applications that have public access can be monitored by Global Service Monitor due to the fact that it doesn't support the authentication for now.

Data are collected in System Center Operations Managers and Global Service Monitor allows the creation of dashboards to visualize application availability from the various test points.

If you already operations manager 2012, you can find on the blog System Center Technet a documentation to test Global Service Monitor.

Nothing has been raised about the prizing even if it should be done by URL monitored.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2][OpsMgr 2012] System Center Monitoring Pack for Server App-V

Version:

1.0

Date published:

6/8/2012

Microsoft link here

File name	Size
(CHS) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	342 KB	Download
(DEU) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	337 KB	Download
(ENU) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	335 KB	Download
(ESN) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	335 KB	Download
(FRA) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	337 KB	Download
(ITA) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	336 KB	Download
(JPN) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	342 KB	Download
(PTB) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	336 KB	Download
(RUS) System Center Monitoring Pack for Microsoft Server App-V.msi	338 KB	Download
SAV_MPGuide v2.doc	195 KB	Download

Overview

This management pack monitors a Server App-V v1.0 environment.

Feature Summary
This monitoring pack supports up to 3 events:

1. Monitor for the Server Application Virtualization Agent service health
2. Monitor for the Server Application Virtualization Agent virtual registry health
3. Monitor for virtual environment health

Release History

• 6/8/2012 - Original English release, version 1.0

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2

• Other Software: System Center Operations Manager 2007 SP1 or later

Instructions

Import the ​ServerAppV.MP file to monitor a Server App-V environment.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Tech Ed 2012] Continuous Availability Documentation

These documents supplement the Microsoft TechEd 2012 sessions related to continuous availability. They cover topics such as Scale-Out File Server, Cluster-Aware Updating, SMB 3.0, and NIC Teaming.

Version:

June 2012

Date published:

6/11/2012

Files in this download

The links in this section correspond to files available for this download. Download the files appropriate for you.

File name	Size
Continuously Available File Server – Under the Hood.docx	60 KB	Download
How to Increase SQL Availability and Performance by Using Window Server 2012 SMB 3.0 Solutions.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Hyper-V Over SMB Remote File Storage Support in Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Update Management in Windows Server 2012 Revealing Cluster-Aware Updating and the New Generation of WSUS.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Windows Server 2012 Cluster-in-a-Box, RDMA, and More.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Windows Server 2012 File and Storage Services Management.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Windows Server 2012 High-Performance, Highly-Available Storage Using SMB.docx	3.0 MB	Download
Windows Server 2012 NIC Teaming and Multichannel Solutions.docx	3.0 MB	Download

Overview

Windows Server 2012 contains a set of continuously available storage solutions that provide a cost effective alternative to an expensive storage area network (SAN) without sacrificing availability and performance. These solutions are targeted towards traditional information worker workloads and application workloads, and they span the scalability and price point needs for different market segments. Systems go from entry-level solutions to scale-out solutions with up to 400 drives. These solutions are based on software that is developed by several teams at Microsoft, hardware that is already in the market, and hardware that is being developed in cooperation with industry partners. These documents supplement the Microsoft TechEd 2012 sessions related to continuous availability. They introduce the new and enhanced features of Windows Server 2012 and cover topics such as Scale-Out File Server, Cluster-Aware Updating, SMB 3.0, and NIC Teaming.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Ebook] New and upcoming titles from Microsoft Press – through July 2012

Here is a list of New and upcoming titles from Microsoft Press – through July 2012. All can be pre-ordered on the site.

MOS Study Guide for Microsoft® Office 365

By John Pierce

June 2012

Understanding IPv6, 3rd Edition

By Joseph Davies

June 2012 (est.)

Training Kit Exam 70-462: Administering Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 Databases

By Orin Thomas, Peter Ward, boB Taylor

July 2012 (est.)

Visual Models for Software Requirements

By Joy Beatty, Anthony Chen

July 2012 (est.)

Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 T-SQL Fundamentals

By Itzik Ben-Gan

July 2012 (est.)

Building Web Applications with SVG

By David Dailey, Jon Frost, Domenico Strazzullo

July 2012 (est.)

Programming Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 (Rough Cuts Version)

By Leonard Lobel, Andrew Brust

July 2012 (est.)

Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 Analysis Services: The BISM Tabular Model

By Marco Russo, Alberto Ferrari, Chris Webb

July 2012 (est.)

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2][OpsMgr 2012] Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack

This management pack includes scripts and rules to effectively monitor Exchange 2010 and report on performance, availability, and reliability of its server roles.

Version:

14.3.38.2

Date published:

6/15/2012

Direct link to the Microsoft download page

Files in this download

The links in this section correspond to files available for this download. Download the files appropriate for you.

File name	Size
Exchange Server 2010 Management Pack Guide.doc	1.5 MB	Download
Exchange2010ManagementPackForOpsMgr2007-x64.msi	6.2 MB	Download
Exchange2010ManagementPackForOpsMgr2007-x86.msi	6.2 MB	Download

Overview

The Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 monitoring management pack is designed to be used for monitoring Exchange 2010 events, collecting Exchange component-specific performance counters in one central location, and for raising alerts for operator intervention as necessary. By detecting, sending alerts, and automatically correlating critical events, this management pack helps indicate, correct, and prevent possible service outages or configuration problems, allowing you to proactively manage Exchange servers and identify issues before they become critical. The management pack monitors and provides alerts for automatic notification of events indicating service outages, performance degradation, and health monitoring.

Feature Summary The Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack includes rules and scripts to monitor and report on performance, availability, and reliability of all Exchange 2010 server roles including.

• Mailbox Server Role
• Client Access Server Role
• Hub Transport Server Role
• Edge Transport Server Role
• Unified Messaging Server Role

Release History

• 6/15/2012 - Updated release, version 14.3.38.2
• 4/6/2011 - Updated release, version 14.02.0071.0
• 11/9/2009 - Original release of the English version and language packs, version 14.0.650.7.

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows Server 2003 x64 editions, Windows Server 2008

• Other Software: System Center Operations Manager 2007 or later.

Instructions

To use the English version of the Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack, you only need to download and install the English (EN) version of the Exchange Server 2010 SP1 Management Pack. The English version of the management pack includes the Exchange Server 2010 SP1 Management Pack application and the required files to use the management pack in English.

If you want to use a localized version of the management pack, you must first download and install the English version of the management pack. Then, you must download and install the language pack for your respective language. The English version of the management pack includes the Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 1 Management Pack application that is a prerequisite for all localized versions of the management pack.

For detailed information about installing and using this management pack, download and read the Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 1 Management Pack Guide. That guide is available for download on this Web page.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Orchestrator 2012] Importing Integration Packs via PowerShell

Here is a link to a post from Robert_Hearn that explain the different possibilities given by COM. They also expose how to import Integration Packs by using a PowerShell Script.

Around the office, we have more and more internal teams that are latching on to Orchestrator and wanting to use it for building all sorts of integrations and automations, but one of the things that comes up from time to time is how to get the ability to have some sort of complete installation process that doesn’t require a separate step for installing Integration Packs or runbooks. In this case, enabling the automatic registering and deployment of an Integration Pack would really enable a streamlined installation process.

Note from the legal dept: The process described here is not officially supported by Microsoft and are provided only as an example to the community. Neither I nor Microsoft, nor any other person, animal, vegetable or mineral assumes responsibility for the process demonstrated here. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Here are links to the previous parts of the “COM” series:

• Getting Deeper Information from Orchestrator via COM
• Getting Deeper Information from orchestrator via COM, part 2
• Getting Deeper Information from Orchestrator via COM, part 3

And here is the direct link to the post 

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] Unable to see any performance or availability details using System Center 2012 Operations Manager widgets

Article ID: 2711375 - Last Review: May 23, 2012 - Revision: 1.0

Direct link to KB2711375

 

When using performance widgets in System Center 2012 Operations Manager (OpsMgr), you may experience one or more of the following symptoms:

1. While creating Performance widgets, none of the performance objects/counters are shown in the wizard.
2. You are unable to retrieve availability details using OpsMgr state widgets. 
3. Network dashboard views are not showing any availability details or performance details.
4. The Reset Health State task fails with the exception below shown under the task status view:

A module reported an error 0x80070490 from a callback which was running as part of rule "System.Health.ResetState" running for instance    "<instance name>" with id:"{GUID}" in management group "<Management Group Name>".

Error Code: -2130771918 (Unknown error (0x80ff0032)).

Cause :

This can occur if the Management Group ID is different in the “MT_ManagementGroup” and “__MOMManagementGroupInfo__” tables. If you create the OperationsManager DB using “DBCreateWizard.exe”, the Management Group GUIDs will be different. We can safely change the Management Group ID in “__MOMManagementGroupInfo__” table.

NOTE This issue will only happen on upgraded environments from System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2.

Resolution :

To resolve this issue, complete the steps below.

1. Find the Management Group ID in “MT_ManagementGroup” and “__MOMManagementGroupInfo__” tables. To do this, run the following queries on the OperationsManager Database:

Select ManagementGroupId from __MOMManagementGroupInfo__

Select Id_6B1D1BE8_EBB4_B425_08DC_2385C5930B04 from MT_ManagementGroup

2. If the GUIDs are different, change the Management Group ID in the “__MOMManagementGroupInfo__” table. To do this, run the following query to update the “__MOMManagementGroupInfo__” table:

Update __MOMManagementGroupInfo__ SET ManagementGroupId = '<GUID>'

NOTE Change the “GUID” to match the ID from “MT_ManagementGroup” table.

3. Once the query is executed, restart the System Center Data Access Service, the System Center Management Configuration and the System Center Management services on the Management server.

4. Re-open the OpsMgr console using “clearcache” switch. For example, run the following command at a command prompt:

microsoft.mom.ui.console.exe /clearcache

More information :

Make sure that you have recent backups of the OperationsManager and OperationsManagerDW databases before updating the tables.

Note: This is a "FAST PUBLISH" article created directly from within the Microsoft support organization. The information contained herein is provided as-is in response to emerging issues. As a result of the speed in making it available, the materials may include typographical errors and may be revised at any time without notice. See Terms of Use (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=151500) for other considerations.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Orchestrator 2012] Exchange Management Integration Pack

This integration pack is an addition on the already available Exchange Mail and Exchange calendering integration packs. This IP will allow you to automate all (or at least most of them) Exchange (2010) related management tasks. For example:Adding and removing mailbox permissions

Download

20120518 - Exchange Management IP 1.0.zip

 

 

All activities are aware of your Exchange environment. There is no need to select a specific server. A server is automatically selected based on availability. There is also no need to install the Exchange Management Console or Powershell cmdlets. All activities use remote Powershell to connect to your Exchange environment.

 

 Here is the activities :

• Remove Mailbox Database
• Create Mailbox Database
• Get All Mailbox Databases
• Dismount Database
• Mount Database
• Get All Mailbox Servers
• Disable Mailbox
• Enable Mailbox
• Change Mailbox Quota
• Remove Mailbox Permissions
• Add Mailbox Permissions
• Get All CAS Servers
• Remove Accepted Domain
• Create Accepted Domain
• Get All Accepted Domains
• Remove Mail Contact
• Create Mail Contact
• Get All HUB Servers
• Remove Distribution Group
• Create Distribution Group
• Suspend Queue
• Resume Queue
• Get Queue
• Retry Queue
• Add IP to Connector
• Move Mailbox
• Get Mailbox
• Get Move Request
• Remove Move Request
• Update Address List
• Add Distribution Group Member
• Add DAG member
• Susped Database Copy
• Resume Database Copy
• Remove Mailbox Database
• Exchange Powershell

Documentation is included in the ZIP file which explains most of the features including input parameters and published data. Integration with Microsoft System Center 2012 Service Manager is possible.

Verified on the following platforms                                                                                          

Windows Server 8	No
Windows Server 2008 R2	Yes
Windows Server 2008	No
Windows Server 2003	No
Windows 8	No
Windows 7	Yes
Windows Vista	No
Windows XP	No
Windows 2000	No

 

This script is tested on these platforms by the author. It is likely to work on other platforms as well. If you try it and find that it works on another platform, please add a note to the script discussion to let others know.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2][OpsMgr 2012] Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack

This management pack includes scripts and rules to effectively monitor Exchange 2010 and report on performance, availability, and reliability of its server roles.

Direct link to Microsoft site 

Version:

14.02.0247.005

Date published:

6/15/2012

File name	Size
Exchange Server 2010 Management Pack Guide.doc	1.5 MB	Download
Exchange2010ManagementPackForOpsMgr2007-x64.msi	6.2 MB	Download
Exchange2010ManagementPackForOpsMgr2007-x86.msi	6.2 MB	Download

Overview

The Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 monitoring management pack is designed to be used for monitoring Exchange 2010 events, collecting Exchange component-specific performance counters in one central location, and for raising alerts for operator intervention as necessary. By detecting, sending alerts, and automatically correlating critical events, this management pack helps indicate, correct, and prevent possible service outages or configuration problems, allowing you to proactively manage Exchange servers and identify issues before they become critical. The management pack monitors and provides alerts for automatic notification of events indicating service outages, performance degradation, and health monitoring.

Feature Summary The Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack includes rules and scripts to monitor and report on performance, availability, and reliability of all Exchange 2010 server roles including.

• Mailbox Server Role
• Client Access Server Role
• Hub Transport Server Role
• Edge Transport Server Role
• Unified Messaging Server Role

Release History

• 6/15/2012 - Updated release, version 14.02.0247.005
• 4/6/2011 - Updated release, version 14.02.0071.0
• 11/9/2009 - Original release of the English version and language packs, version 14.0.650.7.

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows Server 2003 x64 editions, Windows Server 2008

• Other Software: System Center Operations Manager 2007 or later.

Instructions

To use the English version of the Exchange Server 2010 Monitoring Management Pack, you only need to download and install the English (EN) version of the Exchange Server 2010 SP1 Management Pack. The English version of the management pack includes the Exchange Server 2010 SP1 Management Pack application and the required files to use the management pack in English.

If you want to use a localized version of the management pack, you must first download and install the English version of the management pack. Then, you must download and install the language pack for your respective language. The English version of the management pack includes the Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 1 Management Pack application that is a prerequisite for all localized versions of the management pack.

For detailed information about installing and using this management pack, download and read the Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 1 Management Pack Guide. That guide is available for download on this Web page.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] 10 reasons NOT to use the Visual Studio Authoring Extensions VSAE

Amazing title given by Michel Kamp in his weelkly post ! Something that we all think that he shouldn't write this. Of courses, it was just to have your attention. Insteresting post to read - it gives some functionalities with screenshots !

Also here are the 10 reasons to use the VSAE tool for MP authoring  :

• SourceSafe integration
• MP object viewer
• Find references
• Simulating your workflows
• Jump to referenced MP objects.
• Intellisense
• Build and deploy
• Management objects templates
• Convert your ‘old’ OM07 MPs
• It just a must have.

He will continue to write about the tons of great features that are build in the VSAE.

Read more on the original post.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2012] Operations Manager Agent 2012 – Windows-Based Computers

In an upgrade scenario OpsMgr 2007R2 -> OpsMgr 2012 you need to upgrade *all* of your agents before upgrading your OpsMgr 2007R2 infrastructure.

According to the technet, 2012 agent is able report to a OpsMgr 2007R2 Root Management Server, but a SCOM 2007 agent cannot report to a 2012 MS server.

Here is also what you must check on servers before installing 2012 agent :

• Operating Systems: Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition SP2, Windows XP Professional SP3, or Windows Vista SP2, or Windows 7. 

/!\ Windows 2000 is no more supported !

• Processor Architectures: x64, x86, or IA64.
• Windows Installer version: at least Windows Installer 3.1.
• Microsoft Core XML Services (MSXML) version: Microsoft Core XML Services 6.0 is required for the Operations Manager agent.
• Windows PowerShell version: Windows PowerShell version 2.0 for agents that will be monitored by a management pack that uses PowerShell scripts.

You can read more on Upgrading from System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2 technet link.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Ebook] Get Online Access to 600 Microsoft Press books for $22.99

Microsoft rarely offer their Microsoft Press eReference Library on the blog.

Click here to access the Microsoft link

Get immediate, online access to a wealth of Microsoft Press books with a subscription to Microsoft eReference Library hosted by Safari Books Online, for as little as $22.99 for one month for the all-you-can-eat model (no long term contract).

The content is served up on an easy-to-use interface and comes with some cool features (such as notes, highlighting, bookmarking), and time-saving tools that make it easy for you to organize information and personalize your experience so that you can reach your training goals.

· Search and access more than 600 reference books from Microsoft Press, and read the full content online.

· Quickly find specific information within the entire library or within a single book.

· Cut and paste code.

· Read books on your computer or from any mobile device.

· Download up to five chapters per month with tokens.

Browse the books available or start your no risk subscription now (starting at $11.99 per month for a 10-slot bookshelf or $22.99 for the all-you-can-eat model).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Free ebook] Some Free ebooks offered by Microsoft

Here is a quick recap of the free ebooks offered by Microsoft. Books designed for the different ways you learn. And across the range of Microsoft technologies. Welcome!

Programming Windows 8 Apps with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (First Preview) New !
Introducing Windows Server 2012 New !
Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2012
Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2
Introducing Windows Server 2008 R2
Understanding Microsoft Virtualization Solutions (Second Edition)
Security and Privacy for Microsoft Office Users
Microsoft Office 365: Connect and Collaborate Virtually Anywhere, Anytime Understanding Microsoft Virtulization R2 solution
First look Microsoft Office 2010
Deploying Windows 7 Essential guidance from the Windows 7 Ressource Kit and the Technet Magazine
Introducing Windows Server 2008 R2
Welcome to Windows Seven
Moving to Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
Programming Windows Phone 7, by Charles Petzold
Own Your Future: Update Your Skills with Resources and Career Ideas from Microsoft

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[Orchestrator 2012] Tools to use for manipulating export file (ois_export files)

Ryan Andorfer has published a new tool  for manipulating export of Orchestrator Runbooks (ois_export file).

SanitizeExport.exe features : 

• Turn off / on Generic logging on all exported runbooks
• Turn off / on Object Specific logging on all exported runbooks
• Remove all non-referenced Global Variables, Configs, Computer Groups, Schedules and Counters

To download this tool, follow the link Download SanitizeExport

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2][OpsMgr 2012] How to fix EventID 21405 for any given monitored server

An interesting issue and it's resolution given by Marnix Wolf in this post

On one server, all (discovery) scripts were exiting so that no MP were working. In the Operations Managers event log on the server, you retrieve many times EventID 21405 containing message ‘The process started at x failed to create y, no errors detected in the output. The process exited with 1’.

A microsoft call has been openned and KBs found for this issue. Let's continue on the original post....

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.

[OpsMgr 2007R2][OpsMgr 2012] Windows Server Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

The Windows Server Operating System management pack provides the fundamental monitoring basics for computers running the Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003, 2003 R2, 2008 and 2008 R2 Operating System.

Direct link to Microsoft Site 

Version:

6.0.6972.0

Date published:

6/6/2012

Files in this download

The links in this section correspond to files available for this download. Download the files appropriate for you.

File name	Size
OM_MP_Guide_OM2007_MP_OS2008.docx	195 KB	Download
System Center Monitoring Pack-Windows Server Operating System.msi	1.5 MB	Download

Overview

The Windows Server Operating System management pack consists of the following five management packs: Microsoft Windows Server Library, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Discovery, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Monitoring, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, and Microsoft Windows 2000 Server. The Microsoft Windows Server management packs monitor the performance, health, and availability of Windows Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2003, 2003 R2 and Windows 2000 Server.

By detecting, alerting on, and automatically responding to critical events and performance indicators, these management packs reduce resolution times for issues and increase the overall availability and performance of your systems running the Windows Server operating systems, thereby helping to reduce the total cost of ownership.

Feature Summary

• Availability
• Key Operating System Services: Required services are checked for status (for example, running, not running, or paused)
• Storage: Logical hard drives are checked for availability, sufficient free space, and integrity of the NTFS partition.
• Network: Network adapters are checked for connection health, name and IP address conflicts.
• Performance
• Processor: System processor(s) performance is checked system-wide. Processors can optionally be monitored on a per processor basis.
• Memory: Memory consisting of physical memory and virtual memory (also known as page files) is monitored using the following performance indicators:
• Available memory (in MB)
• Pages per second
• Page file percent usage
• Disks and Partitions: Logical disks/partitions and physical disks are monitored, and performance data is collected for average disk seconds per read, disk seconds per write, and disk seconds per transfer. Monitoring is also provided for fragmentation of logical disks. Depending on which version of the operating system is being monitored, either logical or physical monitoring is enabled by default. Refer to the MP guide for more detail.
• Network Adapter: Network adapters are monitored for the number of bytes received per second, the number of bytes sent per second, and the total bytes per second. In addition, the health state of the network adapter is evaluated and is set to Healthy if connected and Critical if disconnected.

Management Pack Release History:

• 3/23/2007 - Initial Release, version 6.0.5000.0
• 9/28/2007 - Updated release, version 6.0.5000.25
• 10/23/2007 - Updated MP Guide - Software Version still 6.0.5000.25
• 11/8/2007 - Updated MP Guide - Software version still 6.0.5000.25
• 1/15/2008 - Updated MP Guide - same version
• 2/22/2008 - Updated release, version 6.0.6278.0, and released on SP1 media
• 5/27/2008 – Same version as released on SP1 media, version 6.0.6278.0, and released on Microsoft Download Center.
• 7/27/2008 - Updated version, 6.0.6278.22: Introduced support for the Windows Server 2008 Operating System and addressed some issues from the previous release. Refer to the MP guide for further details.
• 10/20/2008 – Updated release, version 6.0.6321.35. Refer to the MP guide for further details.
• 9/18/2009 - Updated release, version 6.0.6667.0, introduced support for the Windows Server 2008 R2 Operating System and made a series of updates. Refer to the MP guide for further details.
• 3/19/2010 - Updated release, version 6.0.6794.0, to resolve an issue with discoveries failing to query the Win32_PowerPlan WMI class.
• 9/30/2011 - Update release, version 6.0.6957.0
• 10/18/2011- Update release, version 6.0.6958.0
• 6/7/2012 - Update release, version 6.0.6972.0

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2

• Other Requirements: All management packs (MPs) included in this download are supported on System Center Operations Manager (OpsMgr) with Service Pack (SP) 1 and later.
  
  The following should be considered when importing the management packs into a management group which does not have OpsMgr SP1 installed:
  
  • The Library, Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 specific management packs can be imported into a management group that does not have OpsMgr 2007 SP1.
  • The Windows Server 2008 specific management packs are not supported, and will not import, into a management that does not have OpsMgr 2007 Service Pack 1 installed. This is due to the fact that monitoring of Windows Server 2008 is not supported without Service Pack 1.
  
  The Windows Server Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007 is designed to monitor the following versions of the base Operating System:
  
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2008
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2003
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
• NOTE:
• You need to install the English MP before you import localized language packs.
• o Note that the localized language packs are not updated with this release, and will not import on Operations Manager 2012. The language packs will be updated in an upcoming release.
• The Microsoft.Windows.Server.Reports Management Pack will only import on systems that use SQL Server 2008 as the Database and is not currently supported on SQL Server 2005.
All support is subject to Microsoft’s overall support lifecycle (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?Linkid=26134) and the Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Supported Configurations (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?Linkid=90676) document.

Instructions

Refer to the “System Requirements” section of this page and the MP guide which is installed as a part of this download for full instructions.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties.