SCCM / Configuration Manager 2007 / V4 Features

I) New Features
1. Desired configuration management The ability to define granular computer configurations within your organization and compare and report compliance or noncompliance among your managed computers
2. Network Access Protection (NAP) for Configuration Manager The ability to leverage Windows Server NAP to identify and remediate managed clients using Configuration Management features such as software updates
3. Wake On LAN (WOL) support The ability to send a wake-up request to a Configuration Manager client that is in a sleep state to allow the running of a mandatory software update, software distribution advertisement, or task sequence
4. Internet-based computer management The ability to manage Configuration Manager 2007 clients when they are not connected to your company network but have a standard Internet connection
II) Integrated Features
1. Operating system deployment
2. Mobile device management
3. Transfer Site Settings Wizard
4. Manage Site Accounts tool

Configuration Manager Site System:-- A Configuration Manager site system is a Windows server that performs one or more Configuration Manager roles for a Configuration Manager site. There are nine Configuration Manager site system roles:
1. Management point
2. Server locator point
3. Distribution point
4. Reporting point
5. State migration point
6. System Health Validator point
7. PXE Server point
8. Fallback status point
9. Software update point

The first four look familiar to an SMS 2003 administrator as these "points" were around for SMS 2003.


What's New in Configuration Manager 2007 SP1:

· Out of Band Management
· New catalog and license management capabilities from within the Configuration Manager console.
· Additional reports.
· Compatibility with Microsoft SoftGrid applications.
· Asset Intelligence catalog synchronization to child sites.
· Ability to import both Microsoft and non-Microsoft software licensing data.

What's New in Configuration Manager 2007 R2
· Application Virtualization
· Application Virtualization
· SQL Reporting Services Reporting. Allows you to report on Configuration Manager activity using SQL Reporting Services.
· Client Status Reporting. Provides a set of tools and Configuration Manager 2007 reports to assess the status of client computers, sometimes referred to as "client health." Clients that show a change in activity patterns might need administrative intervention.
· Operating System Deployment Enhancements. The following enhancements are included in Configuration Manager 2007 R2:
1. Unknown computer support—In Configuration Manager 2007 R2, you can deploy operating systems to computers using a PXE service point without first adding the computer to the Configuration Manager database
2. Multicast deployment—Previously, all operating system deployments used unicast. Multicast can make more efficient use of network bandwidth when deploying large images to several computers at the same time.
3. Running command lines in task sequences with credentials other than the local system account.