Kurt Shintaku's Blog

We are pleased to announce that the latest version the Microsoft Security Compliance Manager (SCM) – Version 3.0 – is released and available for download!

In addition to key features from the previous version, SCM 3.0 offers new baselines for Windows Server 2012, Windows 8, and Internet Explorer 10! SCM enables you to quickly configure and manage computers and your private cloud using Group Policy and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager.

SCM 3.0 provides ready-to-deploy policies and DCM configuration packs based on Microsoft Security Guide recommendations and industry best practices, allowing you to easily manage configuration drift, and address compliance requirements for Windows operating systems and Microsoft applications.

• Download SCM 3.0 Now!
  http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=275201

Thank you for your continued interest in Security Compliance Manager. For more information on Security Compliance Manager and to be involved in discussions, please use the following resources:

• To learn more about the Security Compliance Manager: visit the TechNet Library.
• Go to our TechNet Wiki to:Get Started with SCM.
• Join in discussions on managing IT security and compliance at the: Security and Compliance Management Forum.
• Contact the Solution Accelerators security team with your feedback:secwish awt microsoft dawt com.

I found a bunch of miscellaneous stuff this week that I’m just gonna rattle off here because they don’t really require posts unto themselves:

• Why those "personal security images" some financial institutions are useless.
  http://www.worsethanuseless.com/post/42126289484/worse-than-useless-personal-security-images
• 70% of all detected security threats in the wild are encapsulated in these 37 vulnerabilities per the Kaspersky Labs Report. Find out what they are here.
  http://www.securelist.com/en/analysis/204792278/
  Kaspersky_Lab_report_Evaluating_the_threat_level_of_software_vulnerabilities
• Microsoft Research pushes out Blink rapid fire camera app for Windows Phone 8
  http://www.wpcentral.com/microsoft-research-blink-rapid-fire-camera-app-windows-phone-8
• New Microsoft web page just went up dedicated to managing Windows Phone 8 & Windows Phone enterprise features like server/cloud integration, etc.
  http://wmpoweruser.com/microsoft-launches-new-online-resource-for-managing-windows-phones-in-the-enterprise/
• Wanna record audio (not video) while you take notes on your Surface for Windows RT? Meet "SmartRecorder".
  http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/smartrecorder/af1d04b7-b2d0-4d62-9394-c703c1f078bb

There’s been a bit of confusion around the hardware return policy at the Microsoft Store recently.

Here’s the written policy as copied from the Terms & Conditions web page from the Microsoft Store:  (Emphasis is mine)

In Store Return Policy

We want you to be satisfied with your purchase and will accept returns subject to the conditions described below. Qualifying refunds for computers and computer hardware will be honored for fourteen (14) days from the date of purchase. Qualifying refunds for all other items will be honored for thirty (30) days from the date of purchase. Microsoft will not accept the following items for return: (i) items that have been personalized or customized; (ii) special order items, if not part of a Microsoft Store promotional retail sales offering; and (iii) items that have been opened or altered from their original state or show wear or damage. Open software or games may only be exchanged for the same product if the media doesn’t work. All returns must be accompanied by the original receipt or gift receipt, the original documentation, instruction manuals, registration, parts and components (including cables, controllers, and accessories) and the original packaging to qualify for a return. Failure to include such items may prevent or delay your refund. A restocking fee of ten percent (10%) will be deducted from the refund amount for non-defective computer, printer, Xbox and Zune returns. Refunds will be made in the same method as payment. Exceptions: For cash, check or debit refunds for amounts over $250, you may choose to receive either a Microsoft check by mail within ten (10) days of the date of refund or a Microsoft Store gift card in the amount of the refund. Microsoft is not responsible for any personal data included on returned or exchanged items. Please ensure that your personal data is removed from all items prior to return or exchange.

SOURCE:
http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/html/
pbPage.Help_Retail_Stores#ms_help_topics_at4

All the System Center products have released updated documentation for the Service Pack 1 releases. 

Here’s the documentation index for System Center Orchestrator for example.

The downloadable files listed on this page contain the product documentation for the Orchestrator component of System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 (SP1). The available downloads include:

• Complete Technical Documentation for System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Administering System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Service Provider Foundation Cmdlet Reference, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & doc)
• Deploying System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Getting Started with System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Operations Guide for System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Using the Orchestration Console in System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Runbook Activity Reference for System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Using the Orchestration Console in System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Runbook Activity Reference for System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Using Runbooks in System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)
• Upgrading System Center 2012 – Orchestrator to System Center 2012 SP1 – Orchestrator, last updated January 15, 2013 (pdf & docx)

Here’s the links to each of the of the technical documentation sets for each System Center component:

• System Center 2012 Configuration Manager
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29901
• System Center 2012 Operations Manager
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29256
• System Center 2012 Virtual Machine Manager 
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=6346
• System Center 2012 Service Manager
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27850
• System Center 2012 Data Protection Manager
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29698
• System Center 2012 App Controller
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29694
• System Center 2012 Orchestrator
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29258

AND SYSTEM CENTER 2012… ENDPOINT PROTECTION?
Yes, System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection is not listed here.  The closest I’ve found to downloadable documentation around System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection are the following resources:

• Test Lab Extension: System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30449
• System Center Security Monitoring Pack for Endpoint Protection
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=9754
• Microsoft IT Uses System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection for Unified Security and Management
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29997

TECHNICAL SCENARIOS FOR UPGRADING
There’s also some documentation specifically for the sequence of the upgrade that administrators should take depending on the scenario they’re in.

• DOWNLOAD: Technical Documentation Download for Technical Scenarios for System Center 2012 SP1
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29997

A pretty big day for Forefront Identity Manager 2010 R2.  The all-important Service Pack which provides support for all the 2012/2013 products has been released along with better integration for BHOLD Role-based Access Controls (RBAC) & Management.

We are pleased to announce that Service Pack 1 (SP1) for Forefront Identity Manager (FIM) 2010 R2 is now available for download.  FIM 2010 R2 SP1 provides a number of improvements as well as additional platform support for the latest Microsoft platforms.  These improvements and platform support updates are summarized below:

• The FIM client now supports Windows 8 and Outlook 2013
• Enhanced configuration options for customers with dynamic groups
• Updates to the Extensible Connectivity MA Framework
• FIM connectors have been updated to support Active Directory 2012, SQL Server 2012, Exchange 2013, Sun 7.x and Oracle 11
• FIM reporting now supports System Center Service Manager 2012
• The Microsoft BHOLD Suite has a simplified provisioning configuration

In SP1 the following additional platforms are now supported for the BHOLD, FIM Sync, FIM Service, FIM Portal and FIM Certificate Management components:

• Windows Server 2012
• SQL Server 2012
• SharePoint Foundation 2013
• Visual Studio 2012

…

Read more at the announcement post:

• RELEASE: Announcing Forefront Identity Manager 2010 R2 Service Pack 1
  http://blogs.technet.com/b/server-cloud/archive/2013/01/31/announcing-forefront-identity-manager-2010-r2-service-pack-1.aspx

Microsoft has a series of quarterly industry magazines that are published to discuss business & technology matters of that industry.  They are free and available digitally or for delivery.

• Speak Magazine
  Microsoft Technology In Retail, Consumer Industries, and Hospitality
  http://www.onwindows.com/Retail-and-Hospitality/PrintedMagazine.aspx
• Finance on Windows magazine
  Microsoft Technology in Banking, Cappital Markets and Insurance
  http://www.onwindows.com/Financial-Services/PrintedMagazine.aspx
• Prime Magazine
  Microsoft Technology in Discrete and Process Manufacturing
  http://www.onwindows.com/Manufacturing/PrintedMagazine.aspx
• Touch Magazine
  Microsoft Technology in Government, Healthcare, Education and Public Safety & National Security
  http://www.onwindows.com/Public-Sector/PrintedMagazine.aspx

On Wednesday January 30, 2013, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates was a guest on the Colbert Report.

In particular, he discussed eliminating Polio and being less ‘cool’ than Steve Jobs.

Watch it here:

• Colbert Report: Bill Gates
  Microsoft’s founder talks about polio eradication, information technology and the decline in childhood deaths worldwide.
  http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/423362/january-30-2013/bill-gates

Recently, a customer asked about Microsoft’s participation in building smart cities.  We have a fair amount of documentation around the Microsoft Environment folks that deal with this matter in tandem with Cisco & IBM.

• WHITEPAPER: The Smart City: Using IT to Make Cities More Livable (Microsoft Corporation)
  http://www.microsoft.com/global/sv-se/offentlig-sektor/PublishingImages/The%20Smart%20City_Using%20IT%20to%20Make%20Cities%20More%20Livable.pdf
• WHITEPAPER: The Central Role of Cloud Computing In Making Cities Energy-Smart (Microsoft Corporation)
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5960
• WHITEPAPER: Energy-Smart Buildings: Demonstrating how information technology can cut energy use and costs of real estate portfolios (Accenture for Microsoft Corporation)
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/4/8/8/4885BBB9-2675-42CB-9CF2-F11B69C3C2FB/energy-smart-buildings-whitepaper-1.pdf

—————————-

SITE: Microsoft Environment – How Microsoft reduces the impact of our operations and products and drives responsible environmental leadership.
http://www.microsoft.com/environment/

Windows Embedded 8 Industry is the trusted platform for building differentiated devices that are part of an Intelligent System.

It is a fixed platform solution based on Windows 8 that provides the capabilities devices in Retail, Financial Services and Hospitality Industries require.

What’s New in Windows Embedded 8 Industry

---

Rich Line of Business Experiences
Delight your customers with smooth, responsive, immersive experiences powered by Line of Business Applications, Multi-Touch, Internet Explorer 10 and more.

Connected and Efficient
Deliver a solution that utilizes the latest enhancements in power management and connectivity to stay up and running, and allow you to connect to the things that matter most inside and outside the four walls.

Trusted Platform
Deliver a targeted device experience with enhanced lockdown capabilities to meet the line of business needs and ensure the intended high-quality user experience of your customers.

Intelligent Systems Ready
Create a device that can be secured, managed and connect to IT systems to extend intelligence through the business process.

Secure
Utilize Windows 8 technologies to protect the device, data, and network to keep business running smoothly.

BETA: Windows Embedded 8 Industry – Release Preview
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsembedded/en-us/evaluate/windows-embedded-8-industry.aspx

This 25 page document goes through all the features of Windows Server Hyper-V and highlights what’s changed between 2008 R2 and 2012.

The following tables compare selected features of Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V and Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V.

The tables include comments about each version’s performance, as well as a notation about how well each feature is supported.

• WHITEPAPER: Feature Comparison- Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V and Windows
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/2/C/A/2CA38362-37ED-4112-86A8-FDF14D5D4C9B/WS%202012%20Feature%20Comparison_Hyper-V.pdf