Category Archives: Geek

Harjit Joins Microsoft!

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The time has come to let the ?‍? out of the bag and make the formal announcement. On May 21, 2021, I wrote a blog post where I mentioned that I left my 18 year career in Higher-Ed as a Senior Systems Administrator at the University of Vermont.

I am excited to announce that as of today, June 7, 2021, I have joined Microsoft as a Customer Engineer for Microsoft 365. My role covers a variety of solutions under the Microsoft 365 umbrella including Modern Management which I’m very passionate and super excited about. I can finally say that I’m now a “Blue Badge” and my dream of joining Microsoft has come true!

There is so much that I want to mention and perhaps, I’ll start with my family. My wife Jenny and my daughters Sabrina and Hannah have been my rock, strength, motivation, strong supporters for what I do, and they highly encouraged me to pursue my dreams and passion. Thank you!

I’ve been privileged and honored to be a Microsoft MVP since January 2017, and I have grown and learned so much since then, as well as had many amazing opportunities, from guest blogging, consulting work, product reviews, NDA opportunities with Microsoft, Subject Matter Expert (SME) on various webinars and technical user groups, speaking engagements with several conferences including Microsoft Ignite in Orlando, Microsoft Ignite The Tours in Milan, Johannesburg, and Dubai (unfortunately COVID-19 cancelled my speaking gigs in Zurich, Mumbai, Bangalore, Tel-Aviv, and Chicago), TechMentor, IT/Dev Connections, and the one close to my heart and my favorite MMS aka MMSMOA, to name a few. During this journey, I developed strong bonds, positive reputation, respect, and trust among Microsoft product groups, MVP Program leadership, fellow Microsoft MVPs, vendors, event organizers, IT Professional community, mentees, my wonderful followers, and close friends. Thank you to all of you for your support, guidance, encouragement, and friendships.

Today also marks the end of the road for my Microsoft MVP award, which is something one has to give up upon joining Microsoft as an employee. I will continue to be a valuable resource not only to the MVP Program, the leadership, but to the IT Pro community as well, and will continue to empower everyone and help improve what I can. Thank you Betsy Weber, Rochelle Sonnenberg, and Christian Talavera for allowing me to do what I do, and most importantly for all the amazing opportunities as well as for my inclusivity as one of the trusted leaders within the MVP program. Also, Thank you Cathy Moya for the same and so much more. It’s amazing that we are all colleagues now. ??‍???

There are a few people who I would like to mention and recognize, who have been instrumental for my next career phase with Microsoft. The offline chats, references, internal recommendations, referring to open positions, keeping me in check, pushing me harder, motivations, encouraging me to stay positive, mentorship, discreet conversations, trust, friendships, and so much more, meant a lot to me and I’m forever appreciative and grateful. I know I am going to miss mentioning someone or another, and for that I apologize in advance and please forgive me. In no particular order, Thank you very much Noel Fairclough, Rod Trent, John Deardurff, Art Hogarth, Cathy Moya, Heather Poulsen, Kerim Hanif, Kris Loranger, Joe Lurie, and last but not least Julie Andreacola.

Thank you to Prayer Solanky who I consider my brother, and has been there for me in good times, during challenging moments of my life, provides tons of valuable advice, keeps me grounded and humble always, and who I trusted with my journey to Microsoft.
Also, Thank you to my wonderful friends Mick Pletcher, Anoop Nair, Richard Hay, John Yoakum, Jen Sheerin, Ben Dumke, Mary Jo Foley, Scott Ladewig, Ben Whitmore, James Petty, Jitesh Kumar, Octavio Rodriguez, Damien Van Robaeys, Nick Pilon, Benoit Lecours, Brian Mason, Greg Ramsey, Mirko Colemberg, Johan Arwidmark, Anne Baker, Peter De Tender, Adnan Hendricks, Team MMS, The Krewe, Team Devops Collective, Team SCDudes, and so many more. Last but not least, my close “Ignitable” friends (Pat, Dean, Brandon, Kenji, Stu, Henrik, Stuart, Joe, Travis, and Jin.

As I celebrate this happy occasion, I’m also reminded of my brother Amarjit who passed away on this very day (June 7th) in 2015. I miss him very much, but I know he is proud of me and is watching over me from heaven. ???

With all that said, it’s time to kick start my new adventures with the company and people I love, embrace the unique opportunities, advocate and evangelize modern technologies, support the IT Pro community, and I’m ready to “empower every person and every organization to achieve more”! ?‍??‍??‍??‍???✔

End of An Era

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Today, Friday May 21, 2021 was my last working day as a Senior Systems Administrator at The University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont. I hung my hat after almost 18 years of my dedication as an IT Professional at this institution of higher learning.

I have a lot to be Thankful, for the last 18 years here, including the experiences I have gained, the relationships I had built and cherish, the beautiful friendships, the wonderful opportunities for my professional development, the highly technical work I did, the ability to advocate and implement enterprise level technical solutions, the numerous kudos for the assistance I provided to other IT colleagues as well as the people who used the technologies, solving challenging problems, and much more. I have seen medical students become doctors and surgeons, students become engineers, teachers, lawmakers, and technologist to name a few. It’s thrilling to know that somehow big or small, I had some part in their positive education experiences leading to their successful careers.

I won’t deny that while I liked and enjoyed working at the university, there are several things that I wasn’t fond of and I definitely will not miss. However, working this long at one given place, it becomes part of who you are, it’s the identity that forms you, it’s the livelihood that provided for your family and so on. Therefore, it is bitter sweet to leave what I have known and accustomed to, the people who I worked with and also those who I supported, the higher education culture, and the beautiful campus which is the icon of the city of Burlington, Vermont. However, I have an amazing and wonderful opportunity to work at an amazing huge firm where I will be able to take my career to the next phase, be empowered to do amazing things, advocate for the top of the line technical solutions, have lots of growth and learning opportunities, and much much more. I’m super excited.

Where is Harjit headed to next? What’s he going to do? Well, I will officially announce the news of my next adventure in the next 2 weeks, so please be patient. 🙂 If you are one of a few people who has been privy to this knowledge, I kindly request for your trust and confidentiality, and allow me do the honors when I feel it’s the right time to do so. Thank you!

Stay tuned and more to come soon! Cheers!

Harjit has left the building………

Learning To Love The Social Spotlight (For IT Pros) – MJFChat

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I was so thrilled when Mary-Jo Foley contacted me sometime around June 2019 and invite me to join her as a guest on her MJFChat podcast series on Petri.com. I have known Mary-Jo aka MJ for a few years and have had the pleasure of doing some community focused work with her and her counterpart, Paul Thurrot during Microsoft Ignite 2017 and 2018 in Orlando. I definitely could not say no, and jumped on the opportunity to do a fun and informative podcast with her.

Mary-Jo is a well respected technology journalist and known to everyone in the tech industry. Here’s her short bio:

Mary Jo Foley has covered the tech industry for 30 years for a variety of publications, including ZDNet, Redmond Magazine and more. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008). She also is the co-host of the “Windows Weekly” podcast on the TWiT network.

Check out the podcast which is focused on community engagements, personal branding, making connections, and much more. The transcript of the interview is available here.

MMSMOA 2018 – What To Pack

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So, you’re headed to the Midwest Management Summit aka MMSMOA in Minneapolis, Minnesota from May 14-17, 2018 and with just a few days to go, now comes the dilemma of what to pack. Here are some suggestions from a conference veteran like me to help you with the task of packing.

What to Pack:

#1: Shoes – Comfortable shoes to wear during the conference is always a good thing to have. The nice thing about MMSMOA is that everything from sessions to expo hall is located in one general area which is in the Raddison Blu Hotel at The Mall of America. You have a very short walk from your hotel room, down the elevator and then just a few feet to get to all the session rooms. Most of your walking time will involve getting lunch or dinner, and to do some shopping at the massive Mall of America.

#2: Tech – Start collecting all the cables and charges you’ll need to keep your devices up and running at the conference. I recommend that you pack a portable battery charger for your smartphone(s), especially helpful when you are on-the-go and the power outlets are not easily accessible. It’s also advisable to pack a small power strip as power outlets can be scarce and you’ll make friends by sharing an outlet with others. This is also handy to use in your hotel room where the power outlets could be inaccessible due to their location (behind the bed, behind the entertainment system, etc). As for the portable battery chargers, I’m a big fan of the Anker brand for their ruggedness, quality, capacity, and great customer service when I need them.

#3: Clothes – The setting for the conference including the social events is casual. Pack comfortable clothes, but don’t pack too much since the conference is 4 days long. A few vendors will hand out free t-shirts, plus if you’re in a bind, the mall is conveniently located where you can quickly shop for something that you may need. You’ll definitely want to pack the essential items such as socks, underwear, a hoodie or sweatshirt for the cold conference rooms, a pair of jeans or casual pants, a few shirts, and whatever else you think is essential. Don’t forget your toiletries too.
** If you’re a dude, please for God sake leave the “manpris” at home! **

#4: Bottle / Mug – A traveling coffee mug if you’re a coffee drinker. Makes it easier to fill up on coffee and to travel from session to session without spilling. Plus, you’re helping safe the planet without using the disposable cups. You could also bring a water bottle as you should re-hydrate often.

#5: Cards – Bring along some business cards for networking purposes as well as to enter some cool contests organized by several vendors. I generally get my cards ordered in advance from Moo as I prefer the mini-card format and the high quality. You can also order some inexpensive business cards from VistaPrint but since it’s late in the game now to get some cards ordered in time for the conference, either make some at home with your personal printer or order some in-store at places like Staples.

#6: Social Media – Networking is one of the most important aspects of attending a conference such as MMSMOA. By now you have connected with several attendees and speakers via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and/or Slack. If you haven’t, then it’s time you get on the social media band wagon to collaborate with others, make some new friends, help to enhance your career, don’t feel left out at the conference, and etc. One tip for helping with the process on location and to make the social media connections as smooth as possible is to print QR Codes of your favorite social media medium such as Twitter or Facebook. This way, you can easily whip out your QR Code when you meet someone that you’d like to connect and they can easily scan the code with their smartphone which will pull up your information with ease. Keep in mind, Twitter is preferred and encouraged to use at MMSMOA. Don’t forget to follow @MMSMOA on Twitter and use the hashtag #MMSMOA for all your tweets! You can follow me as well: @Hoorge.

#7: Luggage – You should be good with your main suitcase or bag that you will pack with your clothes and the above items. Abundance of swag is not something you will collect at this conference, other than a few small trinkets and a couple of t-shirts. If you are planning to do some crazy shopping at the Mall of America, then an extra bag will come in handy.

#8: Laptop / Tablet – I generally travel with two laptops, one in case I need to jump in to handle some work issues back at the office, and the other as a personal device for daily use. Another reason for traveling with more than one laptop is in case one of them crashes for whatever reason and I still have something to manage my personal and work life. As far as note taking goes at the conference, I tend to use my iPhone as my primary device along with OneNote and Twitter apps. If you have been my follower on Twitter, you’ll know how much I use that medium for note taking, as I do that quite efficiently with unique hashtags for each session and other matters related to the conference. So, if you’re not following me, do so now. You’ll find me as @Hoorge on Twitter.

#9: Medical – If you take any prescription medication, make sure you bring those and preferably in their original packaging, and this is to avoid any issues with TSA at the airport. I travel with my CPAP machine for my sleep apnea, so I always make sure that I have the power cord, hose, mask, and other fun stuff that goes with the machine packed as a priority item the morning that I’m leaving for the airport. If you use spectacles and have an extra pair, bring that with you incase you encounter an unfortunate accident and break your main “four eyes”.

#10: Smartphone – I think it goes without saying that you won’t be traveling to the conference without your smartphone. To make your life a little easier, make sure you have enough free space to capture photos and videos during the week. Also, if you haven’t already done so, install apps such as OneNote for note taking; Twitter and Facebook for social media; OneDrive or Dropbox for uploading photos and videos to free up space on your device and for backup purposes; Microsoft Office Lens for capturing whiteboards, slide decks, business cards, and more; WhatsApp, Messenger and Slack for communication; and last but not least Untappd if you’re a beer lover.

#11: Camera – There are always some wonderful opportunities for capturing some great photos of the conference, so bring a camera with you. I would avoid bringing a large professional DSLR type camera with lenses and speedlights such as the Nikon D700 camera and the 24-70mm f/2.8 lens I often use for my freelance photojournalism work and event photography as it’ll be cumbersome to travel with and juggle during the conference. I tend to rely on my nifty iPhone for all of my photography and videography captures, and sometimes I bring along my Samsung NX300 camera for good measure. I’ll leave the selfie stick at your discretion.

#12: Fitness Trackers – No doubt there’s going to be some amount of walking during MMSMOA between the hotel and the mall, so don’t forget to pack your fitness tracker units like Fitbit, smart watches and their respective charging units to see if you break any step records. Find a few friends and do a step challenge for the week.

#13: Credit Cards / Cash – At this conference, you are on your own for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so plan your finances accordingly. I would carry a small amount of cash for incidentals and tips or when you need to split a bill with others. Credit Cards is the way to go for everything else but beware and pay attention to your statements as fraudulent charges have been reported by attendees from past conferences such as Microsoft Ignite, sometimes even 6 months after the fact. If you want some peace of mind and avoid the hassle of compromised credit cards, get a couple of prepaid credit cards with limited amounts on them to use in restaurants, bars, and other establishments.

#14: Snacks – Each day at the conference can be long, tough, and super busy as you move from session to session and network with fellow attendees. Sometimes, it can be a challenge to spare some time for breakfast or lunch, so food items such as granola bars, health bars, nuts, and pop tarts can be extremely helpful. There is a Cariboo Coffee store just steps away from all the action in case you need to pickup some food and drinks.

#15: Sriracha and Beer – It goes without saying, I travel with my favorite hot sauce to spice up my conference center meals. How so you ask? Well, I often travel with the Sriracha2Go keychain container or the Sriracha2Go packets and they are so handy to have if you like to spice up your food on the go. As for beer, it’s a great way to network and try out some craft beer from all over the country and even abroad. Pack some of your local craft beer in your suitcase and enjoy them with some old and new friends. Don’t forget to double ziplock bag them and wrap them with your clothing to avoid breakage.

#16: Trinkets / Souvenirs – It’s never a bad idea to bring a few little trinkets from your local town / city / state / country such as keychains, stickers, fridge magnets, candy, etc to hand out or exchange with a fellow attendees. They become conversational items and everyone loves a little gift.

Hope this list will help you to pack for the conference and is helpful for things you may not have thought about. Good luck and see you soon in Minneapolis!

Follow (@Hoorge) on Twitter and join Tech Konnect on Facebook and Twitter (@TechKonnect) to stay current on technology related matters.

#2 Week 3 – Top 1000 Tech Bloggers

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On January 23, 2018, I received an email from Rise Social Media with the weekly listing of social media influencers and their respective rankings among 1000 Tech bloggers. Typically, I quickly scan the email and delete it, but this time in the week 3 newsletter, something caught my eye and it was this message:

Well done to this week’s top three Antonio Grasso, Harjit Dhaliwal, and Dave Winer ?

I did a double take and clicked on the week 3 link and confirmed that I had moved up to the number 2 spot from way down the list. I was super excited and couldn’t wait to share the news with my friends and followers on social media, which is the source of my influence. I remember being just as excited when I made it to the 14th spot on week 43 in 2017 (see image below).

I was first introduced to Rise Global by my friend Richard Hay, who is well respected in the technology industry where he covers valuable news, reviews, and many other tech related matters as a tech journalist. Rich has taught me how to use several useful tools, helped me with some automation techniques, as well as shared some insightful strategies which in turn has made me successful with my social media work. We also had the opportunity to work together as the official social media journalists for the IT/Dev Connections Conference held in San Francisco in October 2017. We are looking forward to do the same at IT/Dev Connection 2018 in Dallas.

And then we have my friends Christian Buckley and Vlad Catrinescu, who are great contributors in the tech community and powerhouse Microsoft MVPs. These guys make Rise Global status ranking fun and exciting to take part in. We have a running joke and a friendly competition between us, which often involves some fun teasing to keep things challenging. We are rooting for each other to get to the top spot, and then we can call it a collective success. It will happen sooner than later!

As an IT Professional, I enjoy social media quite a bit and have a knack for it. I have developed some strong skills in this respect which has allowed me to contribute to the community in various ways from helping IT Professionals with valuable information and resources to keeping commuters safe during their daily travels. My social media activities have provided many wonderful opportunities which include travel, representation at large conferences, member of various committees, access to privileged groups, speaking engagements, contributions to technical newsletters, reviewer for products, books, and software, and some consulting work to name a few. I am humbled and grateful for these opportunities and to everyone who has helped me and continue to support me. Thank you, Thank you!

Well, I’m not naive to know that my reign on Rise Global will not last for long but I did get my five minutes of fame for what it’s worth. If you have somehow come across this blog post, please feel free to follow my social media channels, subscribe to my blog, YouTube channels, and podcasts. You’ll enjoy the information I share. Thanks.

About Me: Harjit Dhaliwal
Blog: www.harjit.us
Twitter: @Hoorge
Twitter: @TechKonnect
Facebook: TechKonnect
LinkedIn: Me
YouTube: Harjit
YouTube: Harjit & Prayer Show
Podcast: PowerShell News
Instagram: Me
Microsoft: MVP
Microsoft Ignite: Speaker
Microsoft: TechCommunity

IT Dev Connections Community Engagement Expert

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I’m thrilled and honored to be invited by IT/Dev Connections to help manage their social and community engagements at the conference in San Francisco from October 23-26, 2017. IT/Dev conference is a deep dive highly technical conference for developers and IT Professionals and the speakers are top notch world experts. Here’s the announcement of my engagement on their blog.

Follow me on Twitter and IT/Dev Connections for updates, news, info, and announcements from the conference and more!

#ITDevConnections

Recap – Microsoft Ignite 2016 By Harjit

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photo-sep-30-10-17-09-am

– Ignite 2016 by Harjit –

*** This is my first pass on the recap. There is a lot more information which I would like to share and I’ll do so by adding on to this post or in a separate post ***

Microsoft Ignite Conference was held in Atlanta last week – One of my favorite conferences that I enjoy attending for learning and networking

23,000 attendees plus a few hundred vendors in a massive convention center. Sounds crazy but it was less chaotic as we experienced in Chicago last year

Over 1400 sessions from 20-minute theater sessions to 75-minute breakout sessions

Lots of great networking opportunities with peers, product teams, and speakers. One of the best values from this conference

Cloud, Cloud, Cloud = Azure, O365, Sharepoint, etc are hot stuff and the future (and the present)

Security was a big focus too with Windows 10, Windows Server 2016, Azure, and other online offerings

Azure is becoming the first AI supercomputer. Microsoft has some impressive datacenters across the world

The afternoon Innovation Keynote by Satya Nadella was cool and exciting. The morning Keynote was less than desirable but they served fresh donuts and other treats

Closing Celebration was held on Thursday at Centennial Park and it was a “camping” style theme, which had lots of games, activities, food, treats, and beer. Lots of fun!

Highlights:

  • Beam Robots were introduced at Ignite and were quite popular. People signed up from all over the world to drive them around the convention center and interact with attendees, product teams, and vendors to name a few. They were a lot of fun
  • Spark 360 Photo Booth – Had a cool 360 photo taken and my image turned into a window cling and displayed on a large window in the convention center along with several others. It was more of a pixelated style image
  • Had some casual chats with my tech idols Wally Mead, Jason Helmick, Sami Laiho, Paula Januszkiewicz, and a few others
  • Got to meet the wonderful and friendly Ignite planning team, i.e. marketing, social media, and the folks behind the new Microsoft Tech Community (which apparently will replace TechNet in the near future)
  • Everyone was friendly, courteous, and nice which made the experience much pleasant and enjoyable
  • Reconnecting with fellow IT peers who I see yearly at these conferences and made some new connections as well
  • Having friends with privileges set me up with lounge access at Harstfield-Jackson Airport (helped to kill time comfortably before my flight home)
  • Got to check out some Atlanta venues such as CNN, Coca Cola, Centennial Park, Philips Arena, and off course the massive Georgia World Convention Center
  • Feeling energized, motivated, and enthusiastic for future IT and my career
  • Two thumbs up!

Cons:

  • I got sick!
  • Missing my IT friends!
  • Conference ended!

I attended many sessions, spent time in the expo hall talking with vendors and checked out the demos of their products, talked with Microsoft product teams and developers, attended mini theater sessions such as Edge, Cortana, OneNote, Windows 10, ConfigMgr, Office, PowerShell, etc; had some “hallway” sessions with fellow attendees to learn about their IT issues and how they do things at their organizations, looked at some of their home grown tools, and asked for some technical tips and suggestions; spent some time in the Hands-On-Labs (HOLs) area to try and “play” with some products; attended some after-hour social events, and took advantage of a lot of networking opportunities. I was sad to discover that my new friend from Australia had her bag stolen from an evening social event which contained her laptop, passport, wallet, and phone to name a few. It was a big setback for her but she eventually made it home with some emergency documents from her embassy.

There was a lot of information covered and things I learned at Ignite, however it was a busy week and a lot to capture in one go, so going back to some of the sessions (recorded) which I attended and others that I missed (which I had wanted to check out) in the upcoming days and weeks as time permits will be a good refresher and valuable to me. At the conference, I focused mostly on Windows 10, Windows Server 2016, ConfigMgr, and deployments to name a few. Below are some of my notes from a few different areas in no particular order. Sorry for the long post.

==================================================================

Windows 10

Windows 10 Deployments: What’s new?

  • Deploy Windows 10 to Windows 7,8, 8.1 with In-Place Upgrade or Traditional Deployment
  • New devices – Deploy with Provisioning or Traditional Deployments
  • Existing Windows 10 (Stay Current) – In-Place Upgrade

When not to use In-Place Upgrade:

  1. Changing from x86 to x64
  2. Changing from Legacy BIOS to UEFI
  3. Dual boot and multi boot systems
  4. Using certain 3rd party disk encryption products
  5. Can’t use custom image for in-place upgrade. Must use install.wim that comes with the original media, which lays down the clean OS and then merges the apps, data, and settings

Upgrade Process: Drivers

  1. Some classes of driver are not migrated forward – Display and Bluetooth drivers are left behind and any driver considered incompatible. New in-box drivers are used for those devices

Upgrade Process: Dynamic Update

  1. Grabs latest servicing update to inject into media
  2. Gets needed drivers that aren’t in the media
  3. Manually inject Cummulative Updates into install.wim

Upgrade Process: Size

  1. Each feature update is 3.5GB per PC (whether from Windows 7/8.1 or from Windows 10 to a later feature upgrade)
  2. Each monthly quality update is now up to 1GB per PC (when using ConfigMgr or 3rd party patching tools)
  3. Recommended to use peer-to-peer distribution
  4. Use of Express update with WSUS, reduces monthly traffic to 50-100MB as only the new components are pulled down
  5. Microsoft is investigating changes to ConfigMgr (Current Branch) for Windows 10 help
  6. Use BranchCache in ConfigMgr

Upgrade Process: In-Box Apps

  1. Can remove in-box apps but each feature update puts them back
    https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/mniehaus/2015/11/11/removing-windows-10-in-box-apps-during-a-task-sequence/
    Workaround: Remove them again post-upgrade with task sequence step, scheduled task, or SetupComplete.cmd file that runs a script

Upgrade Process: Settings Migration

  1. The upgrade process should migrate all settings (default applications, file associations, user, systems, and app settings
  2. Some settings may not be migrated properly and these should be considered as bugs (submit feedback, contact TAM, open a case)

Upgrade Process: Preflight

  1. Preflight to determine ahead of time if upgrade will succeed
    Use exe /Auto Upgrade /Compat ScanOnly /Quiet
  2. Runs an upgrade process without actually running a production upgrade
  3. Provides return code and XML reports to identify issues
    https://blogs.technet.com/b/mniehaus/archive/2015/08/23/windows-10-pre-upgrade-validation-using-setup-exe.aspx

Other:

  1. Feature updates can be deferred for 1-180 days
  2. Quality updates can be deferred for 1-30 days

Quality Updates:

  1. Single cumulative update each month
  2. Security fixes, reliability fixes, bug fixes, etc
  3. Supersedes the previous month’s updates
  4. No new features

Feature Updates:

  1. Targeting twice per year with new capabilities
  2. Reliable with built-in rollback capabilities
  3. Deployment using in-place upgrade, driven by existing tools

Provisioning:

  1. Designed for new PCs out-of-the-box to transform for business use with little or no user interaction
  2. Create provisioning packages using Windows Imaging and Configuration Designer tool (available with Windows ADK)
  3. Provisioning packages are small (< 10K) and can be deployed by email, file server, or USB
  4. Can change OS SKU from Professional to Enterprise (slmgr.vbs /ipk)
  5. Can apply policies, settings, install apps and updates, enroll device for management
  6. This could be a better method to use by the Depot to prepare Windows 10 PCs for the organization instead of imaging them

MDT 2013 Update 2 is still the current release

  1. Fully supports Windows 10 1607 and most bugs fixed

Sysprep Changes

  1. Previous Sysprep did not support upgraded OSes, for example upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 10, then trying to Sysprep and capture would always fail
  2. With Windows 10 1607, Sysprep is now supported on upgraded OSes

Taskbar Configuration

  1. With Windows 10 1607, can now configure the task bar
  2. Add or remove icons or replace entire layout
  3. Driven by Group Policy (same Start screen control policy used for the Start menu) or via LayoutModification.xml file
  4. Place file in c:\users\default\appdata\local\microsoft\windows\shell

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/itpro/windows/manage/windows-10-start-layout-options-and-policies

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/itpro/windows/manage/configure-windows-10-taskbar

Windows Upgrade Analytic Service (free service via OMS with a subscription)

  1. Free tool that leverages telemetry
  2. Tells you what issues you may encounter with upgrades
  3. Shows you what PCs are in your environment, what applications are running, and what drivers are on them
  4. Shows known incompatibility issues

Windows 10 Deployment: Tips & tricks

  • Handling device drivers in deployment process, common deployment issues, workarounds, parsing logs, WinPE and PXE troubleshooting, UEFI deployments
  • Use MDT and ConfigMgr for deployments

Patching

  • Starting October 2016 Patch Tuesday cycle, Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 will follow the Windows 10 Cummulative Update framework, where monthly patches will be delivered in one CU rather than split up into many individual patches, which means individual patches cannot be removed post CU install. Heard some rumors that Microsoft may be coming up with a tool to allow IT Pros to remove problematic updates, since that is a big concern for many especially when older LOB applications have compatibility issues.

==================================================================

ConfigMgr

New Current Branch servicing model

  1. New features added with 3 releases per year
  2. 12 month support lifecycle for each release
  3. N-1 support for Windows 10 deployments and management – ConfigMgr 1602 or 1607 are required to support Windows 10 1607

Two mechanisms for Windows 10 feature updates

  1. Windows 10 Servicing feature, for automated servicing plans
  2. Task Sequences – when needing to do pre or post processing steps using customized media
  • ConfigMgr 1606 Tech Preview deprecates OSDPreserveDriveLetter (Task Sequence variable) – No more D: drive or E: drive issue for system OS

ConfigMgr sessions were catered around OSD, Intune, managing mobile devices and apps, deploying O365 clients, and Windows 10 deployments.

  • Over 40 million clients managed by ConfigMgr worldwide
  • New ConfigMgr CB release is called 1610 and offers cloud-based management and peer caching content
  • Microsoft Intune portal is moving from Silverlight to Azure – New Intune portal expected in Q1 2017
  • “When you need to go fast with Windows 10, you need to go fast with ConfigMgr too”
  • New MDT toolkit releasing later this year and will simply be called MDT instead of MDT 2016
  • Nested task sequences are coming soon in ConfigMgr

==================================================================

Cortana

  • With the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, Sticky Notes got a link-enabled update with support for Cortana insights which lets you set reminders, call written phone numbers, send email messages, view web links, map directions, etc
  • Cortana is gathering data and learning daily

=================================================================

Windows Server 2016

Introduce Windows Server 2016 Into Your Environment (*Watch this sessions*):
https://youtu.be/ximW1iMaUwE

– Configuration Levels

  1. Windows Server with Desktop Experience (Graphical Shell, Management Tools, Desktop, Core OS)
  2. Windows Server Core (more for application services)
  3. Nano Server

Windows Server with Desktop Experience and Windows Server Core follows the Long Term Servicing Branch (LTSB) – New version every 2 to 3 years and supported with 5 years support and 5 years extended (5 + 5).

Nano Server follows the Current Branch for Business model – a new version every 6 months.

Nano Server:

  • Smallest footprint (approximately 500 MBs)
  • Very fast deployment and reboots
  • Focus on two key scenarios – Born-in-the-cloud applications and Cloud platform (Hyper-V and Scale-Out File Servers)
  • Not installed in the traditional manner. Use Nano Server Image Builder or PowerShell cmdlets
  • Sysinternals tools ported to run on Nano Server https://download.sysinternals.com/files/SysinternalsSuite-Nano.zip

Windows Server 2016 utilizes Cummulative Updates like Windows 10.
Only need the latest CU to bring the server to the latest patch version.
Security Updates will be delivered on an as needed basis.

Containers:

  • Most people struggle to deploy custom applications to production environment. Containers solves this by enabling applications and libraries to run in their own containers which have dependencies
  • Fast deployment and high density
  • Share an OS instance with user mode isolation (sandbox)
  • Can be managed with DockerCLI or PowerShell (uses Docker REST API). Docker is the management engine for Containers
  • Each container cannot see other containers from a user mode level

Storage:

  • Storage Spaces Direct – Aggregates internal disks or connected via external storage
  • Storage Replica – Block-level replication between stand-alone or clustered servers. Replication via SMB 3
  • Some features in Datacenter SKUs only
  • ReFS got some improvements in performance

Networking:

  • Major changes with Network Virtualization – Software defined networking v2
  • Manageable via PowerShell, Azure Stack, or SCVMM

Remote Desktop Services:

  • OpenGL 4.4 and OpenCL 1.1 RemoteFX support. RemoteFX support in Windows Server 2016 guest
  • Personal session desktops, i.e. specific RDSH per user
  • Pen remoting support (pen acting as pen instead of mouse)
  • Remote Credential Guard – Credentials are not stored on the remote server when /RemoteGuard switch is used with mstsc

Active Directory:

  • Privileged Identity Management (PIM) to mitigate credential theft using a bastion forest, utilizes Microsoft Identity Manager (MIM)
  • New workflows for administrative privilege access
  • Time-bound memberships – Kerberos ticket lifetimes restricted to time of lowest time-bound membership

Manage and Troubleshoot Your Windows Server Environment Remotely

  • Free Azure management tools for on-prem Windows Server 2016. Securely manage on-prem servers remotely from anywhere
  • Need to setup a proxy to allow communication between on-prem servers and Azure
  • Can start a free trial for Azure and when it expires, you can still keep using the remote server management tools for free
  • Web-based remote Server Management Tools (SMT) – Free Azure service with a subscription https://azure.microsoft.com
  • Includes replacements for local only tools, such as Task Manager, Device Manager, Sconfig, Registry Editor, Firewall rules, Certificate Manager, Local Administrators, Network Settings, PowerShell Console, Services, Storage, Windows Updates, Event Viewer, etc
  • Alternative to Remote Desktop
  • Based on WMI and PowerShell
  • Manages Nano Server, Server Core, Server with Desktop Experience
  • Supports Windows Server 2016, Server 2012 R2, Server 2012

Deployments of SMT (https://portal.azure.com):

  • UX hosted within Azure portal connected via a gateway service deployed in your infrastructure
  • Agentless model, gateway service connects to the internet via port 443
  • Gateway deployed via MSI on a server designated as the gateway service
  • Gateway resource provisioned in Azure Resource Group
  • Scale gateways for resiliency and performance
  • Gateway only reaches out using https – no special firewall rules required
  • Gateway Group Policy – AllowGateway (lock down environment by default, only allow SMT gateways on authorized servers)
  • Gateway Group Policy – RequireMFA (require MFA for Azure to send the required header)

SMT page http://aka.ms/smt-create
Blog page http://aka.ms/servermanagement

Remote Server Management Tools (RSAT)

  • An updated RSAT package for Windows 10 will be available in the Windows Server 2016 GA timeframe
  • Will support Windows Server 2016, Nano Server, Windows Server 2012 R2 and 2012

PowerShell

==================================================================

Security

Understanding Credential Security: Important things you need to know about storing your identity
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAmgmibNVys

Paula Januszkiewicz

  • Attended her session because she is a great speaker and super smart. Check it out via the YouTube link above
  • Talks about the unexpected places your passwords reside, how password attacks are performed, and typical paths where credentials can be leaked
  • Demos include how she hacks cached credentials, KeePass, Remote Desktop Manager, IIS, etc
  • Kerberos pre-authorization token which allowed access without the smart card even when that was the only authentication method

Sami Laiho (awesome speaker)

Learn Why You Need To Ditch Admin Rights – Session not yet available online
Learn About Windows 10 Secure Kernel – https://youtu.be/7eMmR7B-xFk
Discover Windows 10 Internals – https://youtu.be/Qz2bRdwS4O4

  • Another brilliant speaker on Windows security
  • Sessions were demo filled, so videos will provide much details
  • Talks about ditching admin rights, how admins can impersonate others, shows how to login to systems as a normal user with admin rights, etc

Microsoft Advanced Threat Analytics (ATA)

  • Can detect advanced threats in your network
  • ATA leverages unique machine learning algorithms, together with the latest security researches in order to detect suspicious activities such as Pass-The-Hash, Pass-The-Ticket, and more
  • ATA helps identify breaches and threats using behavioral analysis

==================================================================

Office 365

  • New UI
  • Office 365 growing rapidly
  • Office 365 App Launcher – https://blogs.office.com/2016/09/27/introducing-the-new-office-365-app-launcher/
  • Office 365 Administration – New Admin Center is now GA (easier, faster, more insights, more functionality)
  • New usage reporting dashboard
  • Improved search
  • Monitor DirSync status (easy access from admin dashboard, quickly identify issues)
  • Message Center – Stay on top of upcoming O365 changes, take required action, and prevent problems
  • Office 365 Admin App – Manage on the go – http://aka.ms/office365adminmobile
  • Retirement of old Admin Center in Q4 2016

Office 365 Roadmap http://roadmap.office.comOffice
Office Blog https://blogs.office.com

==================================================================

Windows Hello

  • Microsoft announced that Android and iOS devices will get Windows Hello authentication support

==================================================================

OneDrive

  • OneDrive getting more integrated with Sharepoint Online, plus new capabilities when used on web browser or mobile device
  • Built-in more features to secure and manage OneDrive content
  • The sync client for OneDrive (consumer) and Onedrive for Business now gets a Sharepoint sync as well
  • Delivers unified sync experience with ability to sync Sharepoint Online document libraries and OneDrive folders shared with users
  • New activity center to show recent changes to files
  • On web, OneDrive able to display rich previews for commonly used business file types such as Adobe, Photoshop, etc
  • New features to OneDrive app for iOS and Android
    • Push notifications when files are shared with you
    • Scan feature to combine multiple photos into a single pdf file
    • Discover how many team members have viewed the files
  • New IT capabilities – OneDrive user management in O365
    • Set storage quota
    • External sharing permissions for specific user

==================================================================

Microsoft SQL Server 2016

Here are some SQL 2016 sessions to check out

Upgrade to Microsoft SQL Server 2016 – https://youtu.be/WboD21kxIRM
Learn How SQL Server 2016 on Windows Server 2016 are better together – https://youtu.be/bEABd2zOV9k

==================================================================

That’s all folks!

Follow (@Hoorge) on Twitter and join Tech Konnect on Facebook and Twitter (@TechKonnect) to stay current on technology related matters.

 

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Social Media High Five

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My good friend Nick Lagalante of Thycotic surprised me with this awesome recognition for my continued social media engagement with the IT community. Thanks Nick!

You can catch up with me at:

Recap – Advice from Alumni sharing their TechEd Schedule: Harjit Dhaliwal

Posted on by

Just catching up on some old info for documentation purposes.

On April 16, 2014, my friends at Microsoft TechEd shared my tentative conference schedule and the reasons for my selection.  Below is a direct copy of what is posted on the Channel 9 blog.

================================================================

In honor of TechEd being less than a month away, we here at the TechEd team decided to ask some friends and TechEd Alumni if they would be willing to share their schedules and selection methodologies with the rest of the world. We’ve got three posts lined up with some possible IDEAS that you can use to help pre-populate your schedule. If you haven’t yet started – get over to the Content Catalogue, sign in with your ID you used to register for TechEd and start scheduling!

First up is Harjit Dhaliwal, Systems Administrator at University of Vermont

Harjit

Harjit is an awesome photographer and has a preference for Client focused sessions. You can catch up with Harjit online at one of the following properties:

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TechEd 2014 Session Builder

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Monday, May 12, 2014

8:30-10:30AM

KEY01 TechEd Keynote

  • New Microsoft technologies, product updates, and breaking news is announced here. Good pep talks to motivate and to get a running start for a great week filled with technology learning and knowledge.

11:00-12:00PM

FDN03 Enabling Enterprise Mobility with Windows and Microsoft Office 365

  • Mobile devices are actively used and more prevalent in the Enterprise environment. More and more users want the ability to connect to Enterprise resources with their mobile devices in order to be productive, engaged, and connected. IT needs to embrace this new era of mobile devices and learn to make them work efficiently and securely to protect Enterprise data and resources.

1:15-2:30PM

OFC-B210 Microsoft SharePoint Overview

  • A good start to get some SharePoint knowledge.

DCIM-B318 Windows PowerShell Unplugged with Jeffrey Snover

  • PowerShell is the way of life these days, so any training, info, or guidance will be beneficial for my IT career.

3:00-4:15PM

WIN-B316 Managing Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 Using Mobile Device Management

  • Michael Niehaus mentions, “Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 include a new mobile device management (MDM) capability that provides functionality for deploying apps, managing settings, configuring VPN and wireless, deploying certs and more.” – I would like to learn how this works.

PCIT-B312 What’s New in Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager Infrastructure

  • As the CM Administrator at my organization, I’m interested to know what is new or if there are any hidden tricks to make my IT life more efficient.

4:45-6:00PM

PCIT-B410 Microsoft System Center 2012 Configuration Manager: MVP Experts Panel

  • This is a great opportunity to learn, discuss, and collaborate with the world’s leading ConfigMgr experts.

DCIM-B329 Building Highly Effective Dashboards in Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Operations Manager

  • Mildly curious on how Dashboards could be effective in SCOM 2012.

6:30PM

Tech Expo Welcome Reception

  • Great time to meet vendors and ask questions, and hang out with some fellow geeks.

==============================================================

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

8:30-9:45AM

DCIM-B328 TWC: CSI: Windows – Techniques for Finding the Cause of the Unexpected System Takeovers

  • Interesting session for troubleshooting.

WIN-B320 Internet Explorer App Compat

  • Internet Explorer application compatibility is a daily challenge for IT Professionals to assist end users who need to run older applications in the organization.

10:15-11:30AM

DBI-B214 Introduction to SQL Server Management for the Non-DBA

  • For someone like me who is not too familiar with SQL Server and how to manage it, this would be a good session to get the lowdown.

PCIT-IL306 Implementing Endpoint Protection in Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager

  • Interested to learn about SCEP reporting and malware detection.

WIN-B323 Deploying Windows 8.1 in the Enterprise

  • As a Systems Administrator who manages computer imaging, I’m interested to know how to leverage ConfigMgr 2012 for this task.

1:30-2:45PM

PCIT-IL307 Managing Microsoft Software Updates in Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager

  • Software Updates deployment is my responsibility at my organization. There are several ways of deploying Software Updates with ConfigMgr 2012, however, I’m interested to learn some best practices.

WIN-B328 Group Policy: Notes from the Field – Tips, Tricks, and Troubleshooting

  • We use Group Policies extensively at my organization and I sometimes have to troubleshoot why some Group Policies have issues or don’t work as intended. This session would help me learn some tips and tricks as well as some troubleshooting techniques.

3:15-4:30PM

WIN-B330 Everything You Need to Know for a Successful Microsoft Office 2013 App-V Deployment

  • Application delivery and deployment to the end users has become a little more challenging. Leveraging App-V for large applications such as Microsoft Office 2013 could be highly effective.

DCIM-B341 TWC: Live Demonstration: Hacker Tools You Should Know and Worry about in 2014

  • A fun session to learn how the “bad guys” do bad stuff and to help protect systems from this knowledge.

5:00-6:15PM

PCIT-IL305 Basic Software Distribution with Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager

  • Software Updates deployment is my responsibility at my organization. There are several ways of deploying Software Updates with ConfigMgr 2012, however, I’m interested to learn some best practices.

PCIT-B320 Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager Community Jewels

  • ConfigMgr 2012 is a complex management tool which if used well, it can be very effective in managing systems. There are many third party tools and scripts used to enhance the ConfigMgr 2012 experience, and therefore I’m interested to know what they are and how to use them.

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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

8:30-9:45AM

WIN-IL200-R Creating a Windows 8.1 Reference Image

  • To learn Windows 8.1 Image management.

PCIT-B323 Application Management with Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager and Windows Intune

  • To further learn how to manage applications with ConfigMgr.

10:15-11:30AM

WIN-B351 Hacker Tools for Ethical Hackers to Protect Windows Clients

  • A fun session to learn how the “bad guys” do bad stuff and to help protect systems from this knowledge.

WIN-B413 Windows Performance Deep Dive Troubleshooting

  • Interested to learn how to troubleshoot Windows performance issues to enhance end user experience.

PCIT-B322 Deploying and Managing Work Folders

  • More and more users are bringing their own devices to the workplace and want to use Enterprise resources. This session may provide info on managing network home folder sync for BYOD users.

1:30-2:45PM

WIN-B342 Windows To Go: Deployment, Support for BYOD, and What IT Pros Need to Know

  • Information packed session for learning about Windows To Go and how to support BYOD users.

3:15-4:30PM

WIN-B345 Windows 8.1: Black Belt Troubleshooting

  • Great Windows 8.1 troubleshooting session.

DCIM-B418 Windows PowerShell Best Practices and Patterns: Time to Get Serious

  • PowerShell is the way of life for IT Professionals and it’s never enough to learn more of this important tool.

5:00-6:15PM

WIN-B338 Top OS Deployment Issues with Answers from Experts

  • Good session to learn the pain points of OS deployments and how to work around them.

PCIT-B340 Deploying and Managing Windows 8 and 8.1 with Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2013 and System Center Configuration Manager

  • This session covers an important part of my daily Systems Administrator role at my organization.

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Thursday, May 15, 2014

8:30-9:45AM

DCIM-B366 TWC: Hacker’s Perspective on Your Windows Infrastructure: Mandatory Check List

  • Any info to help secure my Windows environment is a plus.

WIN-B356 Modern Applications for IT Pros

  • Interested to learn more about applications with Windows 8.1 and sideloading.

10:15-11:30AM

WIN-B362 Project Virtual Reality Check: Microsoft App-V 5 Performance, Tuning, and Optimization (App-V PTO)

  • This session may give me a good start in implementing App-V in my organization which we are looking to do very soon.

DCIM-B368 TWC: Malware Hunting with Mark Russinovich and the Sysinternals Tools

  • Attending a Mark Russinovich session is a must. He does a great session on how to use the Sysinternals tools which he helped develop.

1:00-2:15PM

WIN-B354 Case of the Unexplained: Troubleshooting with Mark Russinovich

  • Attending a Mark Russinovich session is a must. Great to see how Mark troubleshoot computer issues.

WIN-B355 The Circle of Life for an App-V 5.0 Package: From Sequence to Termination

  • Learning how App-V applications come together will be helpful in understand how they work and where to troubleshoot if there are any issues with their performance.

2:45-4:00PM

WIN-B410 Advanced Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2013 Customizations: Dueling MDT Enhancements

  • Advanced Windows 8.1 deployment for the Enterprise.

WIN-B359 2014 Edition: How Many Coffees Can You Drink While Your PC Starts?

  • Good session to learn how to troubleshoot Windows startup issues.

WIN-B360 Sizing App-V 5: Planning and Designing a Highly Available, Scalable, and Resilient Management and Delivery System

  • May be a handy session to help implement App-V in my organization.

7:30PM

Closing Party

  • Can’t miss it. A good way to celebrate with friends and to end a good knowledge filled week. Thank you TechEd.