Michael Griswold's SCCM Tips and Tricks
Things I have learned and want to share
What was old is new again
The time has come for me to change blog platforms. I have tried to clone over many of my more...
Date: 11/20/2018
Don't forget the provider!!!
I have seen across the internet where folks have been frustrated, unable to remove a site system...
Date: 10/19/2018
Where are those files going?
When working with System Center Configuration Manager (a.k.a. SCCM or ConfigMgr) you see a lot of...
Date: 05/15/2018
Time for a Tune-up
Back in the day when I went on site to help SCCM customers all the time I kept a compiled list of...
Date: 01/22/2018
Dropping some FSP
(My post title is a nod to a Blues Traveler Song) As much as I know about the System Center...
Date: 06/01/2017
Quick provider overview
Nothing new in this post per se but I wanted to get something up and I recently became aware that...
Date: 04/20/2017
WSUS in Azure
Recently I assisted in brining a new person into my team, Matt Garton. He comes from the world of...
Date: 04/06/2017
Me... in two places!
Hi all, Sorry this blog has been quiet lately. I was asked to help get blogging restarted in my new...
Date: 03/27/2017
Why are old AD records still being discovered
Sometimes SCCM can be sneaky. For those that have been using Configuration Manager for a while now...
Date: 09/26/2016
Closer to the action
This blog may be quiet for a little bit. For those who follow it you know I was a Premier Field...
Date: 07/21/2016
What release was that in?
In the past I have seen blogs on version numbers matching to ConfigMgr release names and such and...
Date: 06/06/2016
Content not lost
Several months back during some winter storm a power outage hit the building where I keep all my lab...
Date: 04/18/2016
Status message based collection
Long ago as part of a different post I provided a query to make collections based on status...
Date: 03/11/2016
A simple trick to make CMTrace even more handy
Part of why I enjoy my job is that working with new people and their different backgrounds and...
Date: 01/28/2016
So many site systems!
Here is another little trick that I recently became aware that many folks don't know. If you run...
Date: 12/10/2015
Pre-download content before application installation
This is one of those tricks that many of the experienced ConfigMgr/SCCM admins out there already...
Date: 10/01/2015
WQL to SQL
If you want to do any deep troubleshooting with System Center 2012 Configuration Manager...
Date: 08/26/2015
PowerShell failing in a task sequence
I recently worked on an issue with a customer that might affect more of you out there. They were...
Date: 07/27/2015
Marked for reinstallation, it will not be started at this time
A few weeks ago my customer hit a situation where their clients were failing to communicate with...
Date: 06/12/2015
ConfigMgr 2012 SP2 and R2SP1 - From here to there
With the recent announcement of the latest service pack release for the System Center 2012...
Date: 05/14/2015
Collection creation based on state messages
Back in my System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) 2007 days I wrote up a blog post about...
Date: 05/04/2015
Export that collection membership
Hi folks. Today's post is on the topic of one of those "so obvious it hurts" topics. I...
Date: 03/10/2015
Fallback DP = no DP
There is a point of confusion currently in the System Center 2012 Configuration Manager product, and...
Date: 01/27/2015
Search through everything!!!!!
With Configuration Manager 2012 came a new UI. It took some getting used to but I, for one, have...
Date: 12/16/2014
Get more from your queries
Every SCCM admin has figured out how to create a collection with a query rule to dynamically update...
Date: 10/17/2014
Disabling RBAC during custom report creation
A much anticipated feature of System Center Configuration Manager 2012 (SCCM) was RBA (Role Based...
Date: 09/17/2014
Which Prestart command will I get?
For those of you doing OS deployments with System Center Configuration Manager 2012 (I bet the same...
Date: 07/29/2014
How to manually clean your SCCM server roles off the box
Occasionally it becomes necessary to manually clean off a server of SCCM components. When that...
Date: 05/16/2014
How to get clients to avoid one of your management points
The other week I had a customer asking me how they could keep clients from using a Management Point,...
Date: 04/22/2014
Getting started with RBA in System Center Configuration Manager 2012
RBAC, or Role Based Administration, is new with the SCCM 2012 product. Many customers I encounter...
Date: 03/11/2014
Basic content deployment troubleshooting in SCCM 2012
I was recently asked to pull together a general starting point guideline on how to troubleshoot...
Date: 02/07/2014
The easy way to test SQL connectivity
While I can’t say I have to do it all that often, there are occasional times when I need to test...
Date: 01/06/2014
Are your new clients working?
I have setup many SCCM installations in my time and once I have all the server side pieces in place...
Date: 11/26/2013
System discovery of an untrusted forest fails with 0x8007052E
I got a question from one of my customers the other day that was an easy, but not obvious,...
Date: 10/11/2013
So you think you can be me (a.k.a Job opening in PFE)?
I have all kinds of quotes running through my head today. “To every season, turn, turn,...
Date: 09/10/2013
Testing software deployment for a Linux machine
I was recently working with a customer to setup management of their Mac and Linux machines with...
Date: 09/02/2013
Quick tips to improve the accuracy of your metrics for deployments
One of the topics that comes up with a lot of my SCCM customers is how their management is looking...
Date: 07/01/2013
Configuration Management for the non SCCM admin
DCM was a feature in SCCM 2007 that got renamed to Configuration Management in System Center 2012...
Date: 05/29/2013
SCCM, Intune, and you
With System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Service pack 1 came new ways to manage new OS types....
Date: 05/03/2013
KB2775511 deployment for the SCCM Admin
This week Microsoft rolled out a BIG hotfix (90 hotfixes) rollup for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows...
Date: 03/13/2013
The best group is a DP group!
There are all kinds of new features in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager (SCCM 2012) and you...
Date: 03/08/2013
“Dial Me In Baby” and the other magical files of Configuration Manager
10/22/14 update - Added archive_reports.sms section Back in the SMS 2.0 days I was doing phone...
Date: 02/06/2013
Manual removal of the SCCM client
As much as I love it, it may occasionally be necessary to remove the System Center Configuration...
Date: 01/02/2013
Permissions to Create a collection
I had a customer doing some custom permission setting in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager...
Date: 11/19/2012
DP converts, but content fails
I hit an odd issue with a customer recently that was not easy to figure out or troubleshoot so I...
Date: 10/23/2012
404 for Driver packages, can’t find content.
Driver management has never been a fun aspect of Configuration Manager. It is one of those...
Date: 09/19/2012
An easier way to create packages and programs
Today’s tip is one which many folks already know, but surprisingly many folks, even those who have...
Date: 09/06/2012
Fast policy evaluation only for new machines
10/13/14 - updated to add restart info Many of my customers are in similar situations where they do...
Date: 08/02/2012