Deploying and supporting Microsoft Systems Management Server 2.0

Module 1:Installing a Primary Site Server

Minimum

Setup options

Database name            SMS_LICDB_sitecode

Database device            LicData_sitecode

Log device                   LicLog_sitecode

The services installed by sms are:

SMS executive

SMS Site Component Manager

SMS SQL Monitor (on SQL server computer)

Windows Management

Shares Created

If Express Setup is Used (Enables Discovery)

Registry Entries

Module 2: Using SMS Diagnostics tools

Module 3: Setting Up Multiple Sites

Secondary sites are not upgraded when the parent site is upgraded. There is aWizard designed to allow you to upgrade secondary sites when you choose.

A Secondary site cannot be upgraded to a primary site. It must be reinstalled as a primary site.

To add the parent-Child Relationship

Firs add the address of the parent-site on the child site

Set parent site /report to a parent site

Add the child address in the parent site

Changes to secondary Site Server

Services Installed Secondary Site Server

Directories and Shares created

CAP_sitecode-            \CAP_sitecode

SMSLogon-                \SMSLogon

SMS_SITE                  \SMS\Inboxes\Despoolr.box\Receive

SMS_Sitecode-          \SMS

Module 5: Discovering and installing Clients

There are a variety of methods for installing clients:

Discovery methods

Module 7. Distributing software

An advertisement is the mechanism by which a program is presented and run on a client computer for specific user.

The general feature of software distribution can be divided into four  specific operations.

Software distribution is the process of moving package files to distribution points.

An advertisement is the mechanism by which a program is presented and run on a client computer or for specific user.

Note: The name for an advertisement object was changed from offer to advertisement during the product development. Internal names and files were not changed. For Example, Offer Manager is the advertisement manager.

Considerations:

Tracking package status

The status message viewer provides a separate container for all package related status messages

The system status container in the SMS administrator console separates package status messages so that you can easily see the status of a given package.

During program execution, Smsapm32.log track events related to scheduling the run time and connecting to the CAP.

Module 8.

Backing UP SMS files

There are several SMS files that are linked to the contents of the database and should be backed up at the same time to maintain system integrity.

SMS registry keys

Contain information for the site

Contains the site system network connection information for trhe site. Items such as the CAP list are stored in this Key.

Module 12 Securing a SMS Site

Questions

1. What are the differences between Express Setup and Custom Setup?

Express Setup is only available if there is no local SQL Server installation. It installs all features and enables them.

Custom Setup allows you to choose which features to install.

No features are enabled by default.

2. Where does SMS setup find SQL Server to install it?

SMS Setup prompts you for the appropriate SQL Server compact disc. You can also use a local or network path to specify the SQL server file location

3. You install a primary site using Custom Setup, but the Windows NT Logon Discovery Agent is not started and no SMSLOGON share is created on your site server. Why not?

Windows Networking Logon Discovery is not enabled by default. You need to enable it in order to have the share and service installed.

4. You install a primary site using Express Setup, but Windows NT Logon Discovery Agent is not started and no SMSLOGON share is created on your site server. Why not?

Windows Networking Logon Discovery is enabled by default, but site server is not a domain contoller.

5. One component is regulary set at Warning status due to a large number of informational messages being triggered unnecessarily?

Here are some possible methods:

1.      Reset the count of informational messages

2.      Increase the Warning threshold in the apropiate summarizer

3.      create a status filter rule to ignore certain common types of messages

4.      Configure status reporting to only report Error or Warning Milestone messages.

6. Your CPU is heavily utilized and Performance Monitor shows a high number of status messages being processed. What can you do to reduce the load?

Use the status message filters to ignore unnecessary status messages

7. An SMS operation is failing. The log for one of the components seems to contain related information, but you will need to show it some with more technical expertise. What should you do?

Save the log file to a different name so you don’t lose the entries if the log file continues to grow to its size limit.

8. You are translating certain Windows NT events to SNMP trap and want to pass these on to your parent site. What do you do?

SMS does not include a tool to forward SNMP traps beyond the local site.

9. How does a parent site receive information about resources at child site?

Discovery data is sent from the child to the parent site.

10.  Which site systems can be shared between SMS sites?

Site database servers, software metering database servers and logon points

11.  Which SMS component maintains the site control file in the database?

Hierarchy manager

12.  after the site control file has been updated, which SMS component completes the site configuration?

Various components carry out configuration changes. These components wake up when the sitectrl.ct0 file changes and check for new information. Site Control Manager simply updates the site control file. It does noty carry out any of the changes.

13.  You notice a domain controller that should be set up as a logon points is not set up. You have turned log files on you look at the NT Logon Installation Manager’s log file but do not see any pertinent messages. Why not?

You should be checking the log file for the NT Logon Server Manager. This is the component that actually installs logon points.

14.  You have added a NetWare logon point to your site, but it is failing to install. What could be the problem?

Some causes are:

1.      You need to install GSNW or IntranetWare Client (in the case of NDS).

2.      You specified a connection account, but did not create it. NetWare connection accounts was created but the permissions are not correct.

3.      An incorrect container or volume was specified

15.  What discovery methods are available for SMS 2.0?

Windows NT Server Discovery, NetWare Bindery Server Discovery, manual discovery, Windows Networking logon Discovery, Windows NT user Account Discovery, Windows NT User Group Discovery, NetWare NDS Logon Discovery, NetWare Bindery Server Logon Discovery, Heartbeat Discovery and Network Discovery.

16.  Which of those can discover the most resources?

Network Discovery

17.  How does a resource determine if it is assigned to a site?

By determining if it is on a subnet (or IPX network) listed in the assignment list on the logon point

18.  A user logs on the network and initiates client setup. After completing the discovery process the client is not installed. What could be the problem?

The client is not on a subnet listed in the assignment list.

19.  Hardware inventory collection is generating large amounts of network traffic. What can you do?

Modify the SMS_DEF.MOF file to remove the data classes that are not necessary and generate network traffic.

20.  You have installed clients and enabled hardware inventory to run, but inventory data is not appearing in Resource Explorer. Where should you check for possible problems?

Check the client’s inventory log files (Hinv.log or Sinv.log) to see if inventory was generated.

Check the copy Queue log file on the client to see if data was moved to the CAP.

Check Inbox Manager Assistant on the CAP (Inboxast.log) to see if data files were moved to the site server.

Check the site server logs (Invproc.log, Dataldr.log, Sinvproc.log) to see if data was processed on the site server.

21.  You have requested to collect a specific data file from each client during software inventory collection. In some cases, the data file is collected, but in other cases it is not. What could be the problem?

The data file on some clients is greater than the maximun size allowed per client for collected files has not changed since the last time it was collected.

22.  How does Distribution manager know when a new package is created?

SMS SQL Monitor Places a wake up file in Distribution Manager’s Inbox whenever a new package is created.

23.  You have added a new computer to the site. This computer meets the criteria of a collection that has available advertisements. How long will you have to wailt before the user at the new client will receive these advertisements?

This depends on the Collection Evaluator’s update schedule. You can force this by using Update Collection Membership

24.  Will an advertisement be copied to a CAP if there are not target clients that use that CAP?

Yes. Advertisements are copied to every CAP in the Site. The offer Data Providers on the client determine whether that client receives the advertisement.

25.  You assign a program to be run when the user logs off the client computer. You verify that the advertisement arrived at the client, but when the user logs off the program fails to run. Available Programs monitor on the client shows that the program failed. What could be the problem be?

The program was ser to run only when a client is logged on, but the assignament was run after the client logged off.

 PEP

The software inventory process produces network traffic when the inventory files that are created at the client computers are sent to the client access point (CAP) for the site and, if the CAP is not also the site server, from the CAP to the site server. There are several ways that you can reduce the amount of network traffic generated by software inventory. You can configure the Software inventory Client Agent for the site to collect files from client computers at  an SMS site is 1 mb. If you have configured the site’s Software Inventory Client Agent to allow a larger combined size, and network traffic has increased, then you should consider decreasing this value. You can also use the Maximum Data Collected Per Client option to limit the amount of data collected from each client. If possible, it is best to schedule software inventory to be taken at periods of low network activity, such as after business hours. If you have configured the Software Inventory Client Agent to Schedule frequent software inventory for your site, then you should consider decreasing the frequency in order to decrease network traffic. By default software inventory is taken once every seven days.

4. you administer an SMS 1.2 organization from a central site named ALPHA. You want all sites in the site hierarchy to be upgraded from SMS 1.2 to SMS 2.0. The site hierarchy currently consists of a central site, ALPHA, which has two primary child sites, Beta and GAMMA. BETA has three secondary child sites named DELTA, EPSILON and ZETA.

You upgraded ALPHA first, then ask the administrators at BETA and GAMMA to upgrade their sites. There are no administrators available at DELTA, EPSILON and ZETA with the least amount of effort?

The administrator of BETA should simultaneously upgrade DELTA, EPSILON and ZETA by using the SMS Administrator Console to run the upgrade Secondary Site Wizard one time

5. Martha has distributed a software application to 300 of her client computers. She has confirmed that it has arrived at all five of her Distribution Points. Martha now would like to view the status of the install for the clients.

How should Martha check for success or failure of the software installation?

GO to system Status – Advertisement status.