WEBINAR – Simplify your Windows 10 servicing with Upgrade Readiness

Accelerate upgrades to new releases

Windows Analytics Upgrade Readiness is a free Windows Analytics service (included with Windows 10 Pro and above) that helps you upgrade to and service Windows 10, end to end. With powerful, data-driven insights and guided workflows, it allows you to adopt new releases more quickly and easily.

Join this webinar to:

• Get a detailed walk-through and see demos of how Upgrade Readiness works.
• Find out how Upgrade Readiness offers insight into update progress, driver issues, and feedback from end users.
• Learn how you can use this tool to export data to commonly-used software deployment tools, including System Center Configuration Manager.

Link to view the on-demand version of the webinar for your future reference: Click here to join the webinar >

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Microsoft Ignite – Configuration Manager What’s Next?

System Center Configuration Manager Overview and Roadmap

Learn about the latest developments in System Center Configuration Manager (ConfigMgr), watch demos, and understand what is coming next.

Windows has evolved. Simplify Windows 10 management and lower the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) with the Microsoft Cloud. See how Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) and Windows 10 can be used together to ease procurement, simplify provisioning and lower TCO through modern management & security, and deliver cloud-based updates without the need for an on-premises infrastructure.

Identity-Driven UEM with Microsoft EMS

This webinar illustrates how Microsoft Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) provides an identity-driven unified endpoint management solution that can help you manage and secure user identities, devices, apps, and data across all of your iOS, macOS, Android, and Windows devices.

https://resources.office.com/ww-thankyou-M365PD-Identity-Driven-UEM-with-EMS-Video.html?LCID=EN-US

Microsoft 365 Enterprise Tech Series – Enterprise Deployment & Management Technical Workshop L300

Microsoft 365 Enterprise Tech Series – Enterprise Deployment & Management Technical Workshop L300

November 30-December 1, 2017 | Auckland, New Zealand

A 2-day Training on the Complete, Intelligent, Secure Solution that Empowers Employees

What is Microsoft 365 Enterprise Tech Series?

Microsoft 365 is a complete, intelligent solution, including Office 365, Windows 10, and Enterprise Mobility + Security, that empowers everyone to be creative and work together, securely. The Enterprise Tech Series will help empower your team, safeguard your business, and simplify IT management with a single solution, purpose-built for your business

What to Expect from Training:

Understand the Microsoft 365 Vision
Dive into Modern IT Deployment
Learn about Traditional IT Transformation
Feel equipped to fully manage Microsoft 365 environments

Windows 10 – Switch from BIOS-to-UEFI Webinar

If you’re planning your Windows 10 migration, the switch from BIOS-to-UEFI is a hugely important piece of the puzzle.

Unless all your Windows machines are configured to UEFI, your organization cannot take advantage of the special Windows 10 security features. Microsoft’s ‘MBR2GPT’ tool still only gets you part of the way there.

This webinar was hosted live from Redmond by Microsoft MVP Jörgen Nilsson and Jim Bezdan, will ensure you know how to complete the BIOS-to-UEFI process fully, securely and automatically.

The full webinar recording can be viewed here: https://www.1e.com/on-demand-webinar/automate-bios-to-uefi-2018-edition/

Windows AutoPilot Deployment

Microsoft has announced that Windows AutoPilot Deployment – a new cloud service that enables IT professionals and partners to customize the Windows 10 out of box setup experience. It used cloud configuration, delivering a self-service deployment experience with new Windows 10 Pro devices. It is now available through CSP.https://blogs.windows.com/business/2017/06/29/delivering-modern-promise-windows-10/#7Y0FQE61FUq42yKb.97

For Windows AutoPilot Deployment feature overviews and demos please see below:

• Windows for IT Pros blog “Modernizing Windows deployment with Windows AutoPilot”
  https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/windowsitpro/2017/06/29/modernizing-windows-deployment-with-windows-autopilot/
• Windows AutoPilot Deployment animated overview and demo
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrEU84KK2lQ&feature=youtu.be
• To participate in a live online question-and-answer event hosted by the Windows 10 engineering and product teams there will be an “Ask Microsoft Anything” on July 25, 2017 where Windows AutoPilot Deployment will be a covered topic.
  https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/Windows-10-management/bd-p/Windows10Management

Add Updates to Windows 10 Images

Due to the issues with the Windows 10 1607 build and WSUS updates, I have added the April 2017 Cumulative update into my Windows 10 image (install.wim).

Here are the steps that I completed:

1. md C:\mount\Windows
   Dism /Mount-Image /ImageFile:"C:\Servicing\Images\install.wim" /Index:1 /MountDir:C:\Servicing\mount\Windows
   Dism /Add-Package /Servicing/Image:C:\Servicing\mount\Windows /PackagePath:C:\Servicing\MSU\windows10.0-kb4016635-x64_2b1b48aa6ec51c019187f15059b768b1638a21ab.msu /LogPath C:\Servicing\AddPackage.log
   Dism /Unmount-Image /MountDir:C:\Servicing\mount\Windows /Commit

Once completed the Windows 10 WIM image will have the latest cumulative update installed.

Microsoft Premier Workshop – EMS + S Technical Workshop

Microsoft Premier Workshop – EMS + S Technical Workshop

The four-day EMS + S Technical Workshop for Spark will provide members of the Spark technical support and delivery team the skills required to understand and successfully configure and support Spark’s EMS customer solution.

The topics included within this Workshop include

• EMS Introduction
• Managing client access
• Defining and managing security & rights management
• Implementing & applying user templates
• Working with customer self-service options

In this Workshop, students will learn the tools used in EMS to help define and manage individual customer requirements within Sparks shared customer environment.  This Workshop contains Level 300 content.

Key Features and Benefits 

Each module is designed to provide participants with in-depth expertise, tools and experience in configuring and managing various EMS scenarios.  As an exclusive Spark event students, will be able to deep dive on the Spark solution to define specific customer requirements.  A series of User Scenarios will provide participants with the practical application of the features and functions they learn about.

Technical Highlights 

This Workshop will include the following topics

EMS Pre-Requisites 

• The Solution
• Connecting a customer

Intune

• Mobile device management
• Controlling conditional access – device and applications
• Managing compliance rules
• Applying exemptions
• Mobile application rules

Rights Management (RMS)

• Activating RMS
• Invoking and managing file protection
• Configuring templates
• Applying templates
• User experience

Azure Active Directory Premium (AADP)

• Identity and access management – Single Sign-On to access cloud apps from Windows, iOS and Android devices
• Data protection
• Self-service for employees – password and group management
• Password resets
• Group management

• Customized MyApps portal
• Integration with On-premises

User Scenarios – practical experience in applying the learning of the Workshop

Office 365 Activation Sign In Prompt Freezes

I came across this issue at a customers site. We were deploying Office 365 Business as part of an MDT task sequence. Once deployed, the end user would activate the suite using their business email address.

Issue: Unfortunately the Sign In dialog box would freeze. The option to push Next would not function. Additionally the text in the box would not automatically disappear.

I logged a ticket trough the Office 365 Portal. After a couple of options we found the solution.

Solution: Reset Internet Explorer 11. Turns out the Sign In dialog box is a HTA. Give IE a reset and then we are good to go. A big thank you to the Office 365 team.

Oh dear: Non-zero return code from catalog utility, rc = -532462766

When the deadline is near last thing to need to see is this error.

I am trying to edit the unattend.xml with MDT 2013.

The error arrives, looks like it is time to reinstall the ADK.

Unhandled Exception: System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly ‘Microsoft.ComponentStudio.ComponentPlatformInterface, Version=6.2.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35’ or one of its dependencies. A strongly-named assembly is required. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131044) —> System.IO.FileLoadException: A strongly-named assembly is required. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131044)
   — End of inner exception stack trace —
   at Microsoft.BDD.Catalog.Program.DoCatalog()
   at Microsoft.BDD.Catalog.Program.Main(String[] args)

Non-zero return code from catalog utility, rc = -532462766