Today I passed the "TS: Upgrading your MCSA from Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008" test (exam number 70-648).
The test is 55 questions (28 + 27) with a passing score on 700 out of 1000. My score was 1000 :-D.

This upgrade test gives me the following Windows Server 2008 exams:

• 70-640 TS: Configuring Windows Server 2008 Active Directory
• 70-642 TS: Configuring Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure.

Next: My focus is now at 70-649, and the test is scheduled to january 4th 2008.

International Client Packs (ICPs) contain international-language clients to use with System Center Configuration Manager (SC Config Mgr) 2007. ICP downloads contain only the Config Mgr client files, not the English-language SC Config Mgr 2007, which is required.

ICP1 contains the following languages:

• English
• French
• German
• Japanese
• Spanish

ICP2 contains all languages from ICP1 plus the following:

• Chinese (Simplified)
• Chinese (Traditional)
• Czech
• Danish
• Dutch
• Finnish
• Greek
• Hungarian
• Italian
• Korean
• Norwegian
• Polish
• Portuguese (Brazil)
• Russian
• Swedish
• Turkish

Download

Boot images have an option to enable a command shell while running in Windows PE. This is turned off by default for security reasons (since it would allow an end user to open a command shell during the re-imaging process) but can be enabled on the “Windows PE” property page.

1. Open the boot image’s properties dialog

2. On the Windows PE tab check the “Enable command support (testing only)” option

3. Update the boot image on the distribution points

4. Rebuild any media that uses the boot image (e.g. capture media, boot media, or stand-alone media)

When a task sequence is running in Windows PE you can open a command shell by pressing F8. As long as the command-shell is open the task sequence will not reboot the machine. This will give you a chance to verify network connectivity, diagnose driver issues, and view/copy the log files (see Client Log Files section below).

Go and get it while it's hot:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=8F22F69E-D1AF-49F0-8236-2B742B354919&displaylang=en

This is Windows Server 2008 RC1 with the Hyper-V Beta components. 

Lots of changes since the preview, huge improvements in performance, stability and compatibility as well as:

1. Support for installing Hyper-V on Windows Server core.
2. Support for clustering of Hyper-V.
3. Support for VSS backup of Hyper-V.
4. Integration Services are now part of Windows Server 2008 (which means that if you use the CD image of this beta to install Windows Server 2008 inside a virtual machine - Integration Services will automatically be there with no need for you to perform extra steps).

I will post detailed installation instructions soon - but two pointers to get you started:

1. There are no .MSUs anymore.  Just install Windows, select to install a new server role, and select 'Hyper-V'.
2. You need to install using 'English (United States)'.  If you install with any other language (or flavor of English) Hyper-V will not work.  However - you can change the local / keyboard preferences for your user after installation without any problems.

The festive season is around the corner and soon you will be getting ready for 2008.  Be sure to secure the dates for next year’s TechEd EMEA events in your new diaries:

• TechEd Developers: 03-07 November 2008
• TechEd IT Forum:    10-14 November 2008

The 2007 Microsoft Office suite Service Pack 1 delivers important customer-requested stability and performance improvements, while incorporating further enhancements to user security. This service pack also includes all of the updates released for the 2007 Office suite prior to December of 2007. You can get a more complete description of SP1, including a list of issues that were fixed, in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 936982: Description of the 2007 Microsoft Office suite Service Pack 1.

Service Pack 1 will install even if a publicly available update has already been installed on your computer.

SP1 also includes stability improvements developed as a result of user input from the Microsoft Online Crash Analysis and from Microsoft Product Support feedback.

Download

System Center Configuration Manager 2007 (SCCM) site servers installed prior to December 1, 2007 will fail to process advertisement status summary data, also referred to as offer status summary data. Status (.SVF) files will being to accumulate under the \inboxes\offersum.box folder on the site server. By default in a new installation this path will be \Program Files\Microsoft Configuration Manager\inboxes\OfferSum.Box. For Site Servers upgraded from SMS 2003, the path will likely be \SMS\Inboxes\offersum.box.

Site servers installed after December 1 may not process any status messages, as the offersum.box folder does not get created, which blocks the status message system.

This occurs with either the evaluation or licensed versions of the RTM product.

If you are using the International Client Packs (ICPs), please go to the English page to download the hotfix for these files.

Please refer to KB945898 for more information.

Download the Hotfix

Attached is a set of Visio stencils that Cameron Fuller put together based upon both the original SMS 2003 stencils and using the new OpsMgr look and feel. The following exist within the stencils:

Primary Site Server
Secondary Site Server
SQL Server
Configuration Manager Database
Management Point
Software Update Point
Device Management Point
Server Locator Point
State Migration Point
Software Update Point
Reporting Point
Protected Distribution Point
Branch Distribution Point
Distribution Point
System Health Validation Point
Proxy Management Point
PXE Service Point

An example of these stencils in use is shown here:

The Config Manager stencil is available for download at: http://systemcenterforum.org/wp-content/uploads/ConfigMgr2007Stencils.zip

This isn’t an official stencil of course, but is designed to provide a level of consistency with the Operations Manager stencils (a set of these are available for download at: http://www.mcalynn.com/?s=aem). 

A full set of the OpsMgr 2007 stencils are available on the CD of the upcoming Operations Manager 2007 Unleashed book (http://tinyurl.com/27mqnm). An example of the OpsMgr stencils is shown here:

Part 1 Today: http://www.myitforum.com/forums/calendar.asp?eventID=103&caldate=2007-12-03

Part 2 Tomorrow: http://www.myitforum.com/forums/calendar.asp?eventid=102&calDate=2007-12-04

Active Directory Certificate Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=48545

Active Directory Domain Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48547

Active Directory Federation Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48542

Active Directory Rights Management Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48554

Application Server
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48544

Availability and Scalability
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90922

DNS Server
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48548

File Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48550

Group Policy
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90923

Network Policy and Access Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48552

Performance and Reliability
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90924

Print Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48553

Security and Protection
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90925

Server Manager
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48541

Streaming Media Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48551

Terminal Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=48555

Web Server
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48558

Windows Deployment Services
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48559