A new feature in technical preview 1607 is the connector to OMS to allow syncing of data such as collections from ConfigMgr to OMS.

ASSUMPTION: You have knowledge of Azure and OMS configuration outside of SCCM.

• In update 1607, you will see a new item called OMS Connector

  

1. Click OMS Connector and click on Create connection to Operations Management Suite from the toolbar

   

2. You will see the first dialog of the Connection to the Operations Management Suite Wizard. Click Next

   

    

3. Enter the Tenant, Client ID, and Client secret key in the next dialog. All this information can be gathered from the Azure Portal. You may need to create a new Application (Under the Directory -> Applications) for the Client ID and key (second screen shot below).

   Once entered, you will need to click Verify to continue.

    

   

   

    

4. Once the it’s properly verified, you will see the options to add your subscription, resource group, and Workspace name. Click Add to add the ConfigMgr collection(s) that OMS will collect the data from.

   

    

5. Final confirmation box will show your selections.

    

   

    

6. After few minutes, logon to the OMS portal (mms.microsoft.com). Do a Log Search for * Type=ComputerGroup.

    Now you will see all the computers in the selected Collection (in the above settings) display in OMS. You will see the GroupSource equal to SCCM for those machines. My OMS was configured only for this so other servers are not there yet in my lab.

If you have questions on how to create OMS Workspace, the Client ID, etc. Message me on Twitter https://twitter.com/jparekh_tech

In Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 1606 (Currently in Technical Preview), you can create device categories. These can be used to automatically place devices in device collections when you are using it with Microsoft Intune (Integrated/Hybrid mode). Users are then required to choose a device category when they enroll a device in Intune. You can additionally change the category of a device from the Configuration Manager console.

You can also assign a category on a non-Intune enrolled device such as a traditional domain joined PC.

Create a set of device categories

1. In the Assets and Compliance workspace of the Configuration Manager console, expand Overview, then click Device Collections.
2. Right Click on Device Collections and click Manage Device Categories.

1. In the Manage Device Categories dialog box, you can create, edit, or remove categories.

Change the category of a device

1. In the Assets and Compliance workspace of the Configuration Manager console, expand Overview, then click Devices.
2. Select a device from the Devices list and then, in the Home tab, in the Device group, click Change Category.

1. In the Edit Device Category dialog box, choose the category to apply to this device, then click OK.

Associate a collection with a device category

When you associate a collection with a device category, all devices in the category you specify will be added to that collection.

1. In the Properties dialog for a device collection, click Add Rule > Device Category Rule.
2. In the Create Device Category Membership Rule dialog box, select the category that will be applied to all devices in the collection.
3. Close the Create Device Category Membership Rule dialog box and the collection properties dialog box.

Now all devices in the chosen Category will be dynamically be part of this collection and its associated deployments

Configuration Manager Vulnerability Assessment allows to scan managed systems for common missing security updates and misconfigurations which might make client computers more vulnerable to attack.

Download here

This release includes

• The capability to scan’s for potential security issues that may exist because of misconfigurations on the following Microsoft Product versions
  • Windows 2008 and later versions
  • Windows Server 2008 and later versions
  • Internet Information Server 7.x and 8.x versions
  • Microsoft Office 2010 and later versions
  • Internet Explorer 9, 10 and 11 versions for supported operating systems.
  • PowerShell 3.0, 4.0 and 5.0 Versions

    Note: For current supported versions of the Windows and SQL Server products please review supported configuration of System Center 2012 Configuration Manager and System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch)

• New Vulnerability Assessment Overall Report will display
  • List of Security, Administrative and Compliance Vulnerabilities for a specific computer.
  • List of Windows Updates Vulnerabilities (if there are any)
  • List of Windows Server Vulnerabilities (if there are any)
  • List of IIS Vulnerabilities (if there are any)
  • List of SQL Vulnerabilities (if there are any)

Example checks are:

• Are unnecessary services installed and running?
• Do shared folders have appropriate permissions?
• Is Windows Firewall enabled?
• Are strong passwords enforced?
• Are unsecured guest accounts enabled?

After downloading the pack, you will need to install it which will extract the cab file into C:\Program Files (x86)\VACP (by default).

To import the Configuration Pack

• In the Configuration Manager console, navigate to Assets and Compliance / Compliance settings / Configuration Baselines.
  

  
  

• Right-click Configuration Items, Import Configuration Data to load the Import Configuration Data Wizard.
  

  
  

• Click Add, browse to C:\Program Files (x86)\VACP (unless you specified another path) and select the .cab file in the install location of the .msi, and then click Open.
  

  
  

• Summary of the 34 configuration Items will be shown. Click Next to continue.
  

  
  

• Follow the wizard instructions.
  
• There are three base lines created from the Configuration Items. The Vulnerability Assessment Configuration Pack.docx files associated highlights the details of each base line.
  
• Deploy the baselines to the proper collections as desired.