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 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:

• Twitter: http://twitter.com/hoorge
• About Me Page: http://about.me/harjitdhaliwal/
• Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/Harjit

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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.

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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.