Gary BlokMarch 4, 2020
Recast’s Endpoint Management Recap – Feb 2020
Welcome to the Recast Endpoint Management Recap, February 2020
Episode four of a monthly edition of recent updates, news and helpful resources for the ConfigMgr community. Highlights from the last month include:
- Events / Conference News
- Microsoft Product Announcements
- Hardware Vendor Updates (Tools / Security / Features)
- Community Tools / News
- Recast Updates
That’s the idea, a high level overview of things going on that you’ll want to be aware of and you can dig into them further on your own.
Events & Conferences
Upcoming Events and User Group info.
- Ignite the Tour – Chicago – April 15-16, 2020
- Ignite 2020 – September 21–25, 2020 – New Orleans, LA
- GeekWeek – Truesec – March 23-27, 2020, Chicago or March 2-6, 2020, Stockholm
There are a lot of user groups, not every group meets every month, but there are a lot of ways to get plugged in, meet peers, make connections, and know you’re not alone in this MEMCM journey. Reach out to @RecastSoftware if you’re interested and unsure where to start, and we’ll try to help you connect with your local group.
Microsoft Product Announcements
Microsoft Edge Browser (Based on Chromium Engine): LANDING PAGE
What do we like about the new Edge? It’s secure, it’s fast, it’s easy to patch, it’s managed, has “IE Mode” for legacy support based on your Enterprise Site List, use profiles for separation, huge extension library (since you can use Chrome extensions), and it’s just sweet.
Intune What’s New Landing Page
ConfigMgr What’s New Landing Page
- 2020.02.18 – Update Rollup for Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager current branch, version 1910
- Several bug fixes
- Includes the 4 previous hotfixes
- Request Client Update
ConfigMgr Tech Preview Landing Page
- TP 2001.2 released
- Improvements to Orchestration Groups
- New cmdlets for phased deployments
- Improvements to task sequence as a deployment type
- Improvements to Microsoft Edge Management dashboard
- Additional improvement to task sequence progress
- TP 2002
- Evaluate software updates after a servicing stack update
- Improvements to Orchestration Groups
- Improvements to Microsoft Edge management
- Improvements to BitLocker management
- Additional improvements to task sequence progress
Hardware Vendor Updates
HP [New Feb Updates]
- [Enterprise Tools Landing Page] [Community / Blog Site]
- HP Client Management Script Library – Updated 2020.02 – Version 1.4 – Now also leveraging Powershell Gallery
- [Blog Post] HP Secure Platform Management with the HP Client Management Script Library
- [Blog Post] Scripting the Download and use of HP DriverPacks in SCCM/SECM
- HP Image Assistant – 4.5.4.1 – Updated 2020.02.12.
- Adds support for Offline Mode repositories created using Client Management Script Library version 1.4
- Adds support for a non-interactive mode which displays HPIA actions in a progress bar when run from the command line on a client.
- HP Manageability Integration Kit – Latest Release from 2019.11
- HP BIOS Configuration Utility (BCU) – Updated Version 4.0.30.1 SP100599 – User Guide (PDF) – Latest Release from 2019.12
- (NEW) Tip from HP – Extend Hardware Inventory to gather info about Docks, to easier support and report on them. Check out this PDF (Page 11)
- (NEW) New Released Docs which explain their new Software Wrapper: The HP Software Wrapper is a Microsoft Windows-based application that provides a unified interface to install or extract software, HP Driver Packs, or HP BIOS Packages onto end-user computers. – If you package / Deploy HP drivers, software, firmware, you’ll want to read this.
Dell [No Feb Updates]
- [Enterprise Tools Landing Page]
- Dell Command Monitor – Last Update 2019.12 – Support for determining the status of the Warranty – [User Guide] [Reference Guide]
- Dell Command Configure (CCTK) – Last Update 2019.09
- Dell Command Update – Last Update 2019.11 – Command-line interface support & more in 3.1
- Dell Command PowerShell Provider – Last Update 2019.04
Lenovo [New Feb Updates]
- [Enterprise Tools Landing Page][Blog Site]
- System Update 5.07.0093 – Updated 2020-02 – Minor Enhancements. [Release Notes]
- Thin Installer 1.3.0018 – Updated 2019-12-19 – Several command line enhancements. [Release Notes]
- Vantage for Enterprise – Version 20.1908.3.0 – Not much info available on this, large download with lots of parts.
- [Blog Post] – System Update Suite and MEM: Part 1 Deploying the Apps
- [Blog Post] – Deploying Lenovo System Update with automatic updates disabled
Microsoft [Surface]
- Surface Support: Drivers – Constant Updates, you’ll have to do some drill-downs to find if a specific product to see if there are updates
- Surface Tools for IT: – Updated 2019.11.08
Community Tools Blogs
Check out some of our favorite tools for ConfigMgr, along with several blog posts covering a wide range of areas and ideas to all help with Endpoint Management.
This month we’ll give a call out to some great resources, these sites have several contributors, and get posted to frequently, all worth a bookmark.
One more note, I do my best to provide Twitter accounts with the blog posts, both to provide credit where credit is due, and so you can then follow them yourselves to stay in the loop as things are coming out and ideas are being discussed on twitter.
- Systems Management Squad “Our goal is to foster community driven IT knowledge sharing through mentor-supported blogging and public speaking.”
- MC2MC – Microsoft Cloud and Client Management Community
- System Center Dudes – Reference Guides Page
- SCConfigMgr – Great Community Tools & Bloggers
PodCasts / Blog Series / Video Blogs
- [Video Tutorial] BitLocker integration in Configuration Manager current branch (@Steve Rachui)
- [Youtube Channel] Episode 28 & 29 – Sets in Microsoft Intune / Bitlocker Troubleshooting [@OnPremCloudGuy & @AdamGrossTX]
- [Blog Series] Keep it Simple with Intune – #13 Uninstalling Microsoft Edge Beta (Paul Winstanley [MVP] – @SCCMentor)
- [Blog Series] Learn about Bitlocker Management in MEMCM 1910 – part 9 Group Policy (Niall C. Brady – @ncbrady)
Blog Posts
Cloud Tech
- [Blog Post – Intune] Windows 10 WMI Explorer Details for Configuration Manager|Intune (Anoop C Nair @anoopmannur)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Install Visual C++ Redistributables for Microsoft Intune managed devices (SCConfigMgr – @SCConfigMgr)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Configure the Enterprise Mode Site List with Microsoft Intune (Peter Klapwijk – @inthecloud_247)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Microsoft Endpoint Manager Documentation and Export tool (Matt Benninge – @matbg)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Managed browser extensions on Edge with Intune (Per Larsen – @PerLarsen1975)
- [Blog Post – Intune] How to set UI language on Edge with Intune (Per Larsen – @PerLarsen1975)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Create a Work Profile for Personal Devices in Intune (Prajwal Desai [MVP] – @PrajwalDesai)
- [Blog Post – Intune] How To Configure Delivery Optimization With Intune (@JLefebvreGloben)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Windows 10 enrollment methods (Peter van der Woude – @pvanderwoude)
- [Blog Post – Intune] Resolving Wifi display connection issues when deploying MDM baselines within Intune (Leon Ashton-Leatherland- (@LeonAshtonL1983)
- [Blog Post – Azure] Customise MyApps using Workspaces in Azure AD (Jake Stoker – @TripleSixSeven)
- [Blog Post – Azure] Azure AD Password Protection – the needle in the haystack that you’ve been looking for! (Peter Cashen – @petercashen)
ConfigMgr Task Sequence / OSD / WaaS
- [Blog Post] Manage multiple languages and keyboard layouts using UI++ in a 1910 task sequence using a custom answer file (Sean Bulger – @managed_blog)
- [Blog Post] Managing localization settings in a Microsoft Endpoint Manager CM Task Sequence with native functionality (Sean Bulger – @managed_blog)
- [Blog Post] Task Sequence PIN Protect – Protect your TS witha PIN code (Damien Van Robaeys [MVP] – @syst_and_deploy)
- [Blog Post] Finding a Continue on Error in a Task Sequence (Peter Egerton – @PeterEgerton)
- [Blog Post] Using OSD Builder to Create a Multi-Language Windows 10 Image (Johan Arwidmark – @jarwidmark)
- [Blog Post] A Good ISO File is a Quiet ISO File (Johan Arwidmark – @jarwidmark)
- [Blog Post] Windows as a Service: Detecting AlwaysOn VPN and LTE connectivity with Powershell and PSADT (Martin Bengtsson [MVP] – @mwbengtsson)
- [Blog Post] BIOS Management – Example Task Sequences (Jon Anderson – @ConfigJon)
- [Blog Post] Windows 10 search broken after in place upgrade (Gerry Hampson – @GerryHampson)
- [Blog Post] Toast Notification Script Update: Run Task Sequences directly from the action button (Martin Bengtsson [MVP] – @mwbengtsson)
- [Blog Post] setupconfig.ini: Customizing the installation of Windows 10 feature updates (Wolfgang Sommergut)
- [Blog Post] Full disk encryption (in ConfigMgr 1910) – a closer look on real hardware (Niall C. Brady – @ncbrady)
General ConfigMgr
- [Blog Post] Speed Up Driver Package Downloads for ConfigMgrOSD (Johan Arwidmark – @jarwidmark)
- [Blog Post] Configuring Wake-On-LAN for DELL machines with ConfigMgr (Johan Arwidmark – @jarwidmark)
- [Blog Post] How to detect Office bitness with MEMCM globalcondition (@JLefebvreGloben)
- [Blog Post] Back to basics: Deploying applications with Custom Global Conditions in Configuration Manager (Martin Bengtsson [MVP] – @mwbengtsson)
- [Blog Post] CM Pivot Revisited (Ryan Ephgrave [MVP] – @EphingPosh)
- [Blog Post] Dell Bios Management (Jon Anderson – @ConfigJon)
- [Blog Post / White Paper] SQL Recommendations for ConfigMgr
- [Video Post] What’s New In ConfigMgr Orchestration Group (Anoop C Nair – @anoopmannur)
- [Blog Post] Build a ConfigrMgr lab with AutomatedLab, quick and simple! (Adam Cook – @codaamok)
Other SysAdmin Goodies
- [Blog Post] Windows 10 v1909 and language packs (Gerry Hampson – @GerryHampson)
- [Free Poster] PowerShell Tips Poster (systemfrontier.com)
- [Blog Post] PS1 to EXE Generator: Create an EXE for your PS1 scripts (Damien Van Robaeys [MVP] – @syst_and_deploy)
- [Blog Post] A step by step installation of a basic ConfigMgrLAB environment built on a Intel NUC device (Sune Thomsen – @SuneThomsenDK)
- [Blog Post] Configuring IP routing for Windows 10 Always On VPN clients (Richard Hicks – @richardhicks)
- [Blog Post] PowerShell functions for working with MSIs,EXEs, and Registry Keys. Useful for packaging apps (Jon Anderson – @ConfigJon)
Tools / Newsletters / Docs
- [Tool] WIMWitch Update(s): 1.4.1 [Donna Ryan] – Adds support for LP, LXP, and FOD with the save and load functions. Works with GUI and CLI
- [Blog Post] Injecting language packs in a WIM file using WimWitch (Sean Bulger – @managed_blog)
- [Tool] OSDeploy [David Segura] – Several enhancements this month: 20.2.20 (2020 February 20) Gary Blok Edition
- [Tool] Driver Automation Tool Updated to 6.4.4 on 2020.02. Several new enhancements.
- [Tool] Configmgr Prerequisites Tool – Help get a new Windows Server installed with all the Features, ADK, settings with the click of a button.
- [Tool] The PSADT GUI has been updated to version 1.4.Lots of bugfixes and functionality added. It will now also generate IntuneWin32 packages from your PSADT package
- [Tool] CMMap – Maps our VM infrastructure in Visio -it’s Old but Garth Jones (@GarthMJ) tested with CB & Visio 2016, still good to go!
- [Script] Create Operational ConfigMgr Collections updated 2020.01.13 [Benoit Lecours] – Creates a bunch of useful collections
- [Script] Fully Automate Software Update Maintenance in Configuration Manager [Bryan Dam – @bdam555]
- [Script] Dell, HP, and Lenovo BIOS password scripts (Jon Anderson – @ConfigJon)
- [Script /Tool] CMPackager – Added GUI for Setup (Andrew Jimenez – @AndrewJimenez_)
- [Reports] SSRS Dashboards – Twitter Post w/ Images – (Ioan Popovici @IoanPopovici)
- [Newsletter] Enhansoft (Several Posts)- [Enhansoft]
- [Newsletter] CTGlobal (@TeamCTGlobal)
- [Document] Windows Defense in Depth Document compilation by: (Tech Girl – @TechGrlTweeter)
- [Document] Microsoft 365 Licensing Diagrams (Aaron Dinnage – @AaronDinnage)
Recast Updates
Right Click Tools 4.1 was released with several new tools and features added. A new Remote Software Center can be run remotely from the administrator machine and at scale on numerous devices or device collections. The Hardware Audit Dashboard provides a visual of the hardware of the endpoints in an environment. And, several improvements were made to the ReLAPS Dashboard and LAPS tools. Click here to read more about what’s new, watch an on-demand webinar and download the new version today.
Thanks for checking out the post, and look forward to more monthly updates of what’s going on. If you think we missed something, or want any other news added, find us on Twitter: @RecastSoftware
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