Best of MMS 2012: Belgium Edition
MMS 2012 is already in the rearview mirror but we are looking back one more time during our traditional “Best of MMS” event on the 7the of June in Mechelen.
This year SCUGBE will again provide you with all the new System Center info received and viewed at the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas.
The list of sessions which are given by scugbe members will be online shortly.
Registration has opened for this event: https://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032513205&Culture=en-US
Reserve your seat quickly as seats are limited.
See you the 7th of June!
SCOM 2012: CU1 available for download
SCOM 2012 is just generally available and the first CU1 has already arrived.
You can download it here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29697
For a full list of the improvements check the official KB: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2686249/en-us
For the install experience check this blog post of Kevin Greene: http://kevingreeneitblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/scom-2012-deploying-cumulative-update.html
My personal experience with the install will follow shortly.
Don’t you just like the constant improvement of the System Center products?
SCOM: One million dollar question: Should I upgrade?
On the 8th of May I’ll be hosting a LiveMeeting that will hopefully give you some answers to some of the most heard questions buzzing around at MMS2012:
Should I upgrade to SCOM2012?
Join me to give you strong arguments to do so!
The abstract of the livemeeting:
After all the work you’ve put in your Scom2007 environment to get it state of the art is it worth upgrading to scom2012?
Will I risk my Scom2007 environment while upgrading to Scom2012?
Will I really benefit from upgrading in my environment?
If you ask yourself one of the questions above make sure to join this session to get some answers to get you going!
Register here check out the LiveMeeting to find out some answers to all these questions!
https://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032510700&culture=nl-BE
MMS 2012: All packed and ready to go
This is it. The waiting is almost over.
I’m about to leave and head over to MMS for my third time already. A week packed with sessions, people to meet, have drinks with friends and just learn the ins and outs of the new System Center 2012 products line first hand.
I’ll be mostly attending SCOM related sessions and will even co present a session on Friday with fellow SCOM addict and multiple year MVP Maarten Goet:
AM-B312 Operations Manager Tuning War: No Management Pack Left Behind
Friday, April 20 10:00 AM – 11:15 AM Venetian Ballroom G
Speaker(s): Dieter Wijckmans, Maarten Goet
Track(s): Application Management
Session Type: Breakout Session
Products: Operations Manager
So you installed Microsoft System Center Operations Manager, deployed your first agent and started importing management packs. Now, a hundred or more alerts start appearing. Was this really the best approach? How do I tune my management packs anyway? How do I get things sorted again? Come to this session led by five-year System Center MVP Maarten Goet, who draws from multiple years of field experience to show you how to successfully tackle this. No Operations Manager administrator should miss out on this session!
So you’ll definitely find me there.
I’ve included my session schedule so there’s a big chance you’ll see me at most of the sessions mentioned in it.
Download my schedule: here
Watch the blog in the next week for MMS related content (mostly targeted to SCOM and SCSM).
If you would like to meet up in person you can always drop me a line on twitter: @dieterWijckmans
So all that’s left to do is pack my things, charge my gizmo’s and head for the sin city.
MMS 2012: Travel Guide Part 4: Join the Twitter army
This blog post is part of a series. The other parts can be found here: How to survive MMS 2012.
So you are at MMS and feel the buzz but how do you meet with your peers and get the latest updates and scoops about sessions.
Well by tapping into the never sleeping social media communication channel.
MyITForum is putting together again the MMS twitter army.
This is basically a dedicated twitter fanatics group of attendees who keep track of the event and send out all info to the world. There’s no need to subscribe or register just check the twitter army info session in the Venetian Ballroom 1 on monday at 9:30AM to 10:30AM to join in.
All the different hash tags will be explained as also the prize draw (yep there’s even a prize for twitter folks in there).
Apart from the prizes everyone receives the twitter army badge and becomes a real twitter soldier.
Check out the official MMS2012 twitter guide: http://myitforum.com/myitforumwp/wp-content/uploads/group-documents/11/1321406228-MMS2011TwitterGuide.pdf
Apart from this nice initiative of MyITForum the organisation itself is also connecting in to the social media connections. Consult the guide above for all the details.
Just make sure to follow the following hash tags:
- #mms2012: The official hashtag of the event
- @mmsteam: The official account of the mms organization team
- To tweet about a session use: #mms + the 4 digit code of the session.
Hint: For people from outside of US the roaming costs can get pretty high (=personal experience). There’s however wireless in the entire convention center which is free to use for attendees. So make sure to switch off roaming on your data connection and use wireless while you’re in the conference center.
For people who want to join me on Twitter: @DieterWijckmans
MMS 2012: Travel Guide: Hints
On this post I’ll keep track of all the hints I gave in the different posts. This can be handy to get all the hints in a glance or even print them for your reference:
Post 1: MMS 2012 Travel Guide Part 1: Getting settled in Vegas
- Check your travel docs. Make sure you have a passport which is valid for at least 6 months after your stay and if your are from outside of states make sure to fill in your ESTA. More info here: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/
- Don’t forget your travel adapter power socket. Buy it upfront of your trip. They tend to overcharge for it at airports. Pack also an extension cord with multiple sockets of your home plug. You only have one adapter but want to charge your phone, laptop, tablet, camera overnight to hit the next day of the MMS madness well prepared
- The Venetian Conference center is hosting the event but the Venetian Hotel and Palazzo Hotel are forming 1 complex so really check where the restaurants are.
Check here to view the map of the 2 hotels: http://www.venetian.com/Company-Information/Map/
- Always check whether you can pay with credit or strictly cash. Just to not get any surprises when the bill is presented. It’s indicate on the side of the cabs whether you can pay with credit card. Always ask for a receipt of the journey while paying and don’t forget the tip!If you are with a group it’s always a good idea to check whether a limo is available because they are in general cheaper for groups but negotiate the price in advance.
Post 2: MMS 2012: Travel Guide Part 2: The session types
- If by any chance you miss the keynotes (couldn’t get out of bed because of the time difference
) you can always review them on YouTube and the post conference dvd. - All the Instructor Led Labs are available in the Commnet area to do them over again or take them at your own pace.
- Make sure to get in line at the correct Instructor Led Lab in time otherwise your seat will be assigned to someone in the standby queue. If you did not register for this lab upfront but want to attend just get to the session and wait in the standby queue. There’s always a percentage of no-shows so chances are you will still get in.
Post 3: MMS 2012- Travel Guide Part 3- Scheduling your MMS agenda
- Do not to check on speaker, topic whatsoever but book by slot. If you select the timeslot you’ll get a nice overview of the different sessions in that timeslot.
- Always keep a printed copy of your agenda with you. You’ll never know when you run out of juice on your mobile device.
- Some sessions are repeated through out the event so if you have conflicting sessions double check whether the session is given at another time.
Post 4: MMS 2012- Travel Guide Part 4 – Join the Twitter army
- For people from outside of US the roaming costs can get pretty high (=personal experience). There’s however wireless in the entire convention center which is free to use for attendees. So make sure to switch off roaming on your data connection and use wireless while you’re in the conference center.
MMS 2012: Travel Guide Part 3: Scheduling your MMS agenda
This blog post is part of a series. The other parts can be found here: How to survive MMS 2012.
In the previous post I’ve highlighted all the different types of sessions and what to expect from them.
Now I’m going to give you some tips and tricks to book your week at MMS.
First of all head over to the official page of mms at http://www.mms2012.com and select the login button on the top right of the page and login.
Note: Make sure you have your login and password combination ready when you’re at MMS. More info on this subject later on.
So you’ve successfully logged on and are now on the splash page of the MMS site:
Select the tab Sessions & Labs in the top bar to access the MMS Schedule Builder:
TIP: My approach is not to check on speaker, topic whatsoever but book by slot. If you select the timeslot you’ll get a nice overview of the different sessions in that timeslot.
In this case I’m preparing myself for timeslot “Wednesday, April 18 10:15 1M – 11:30 AM. Hit the search button.
I mark all the session I’m interested in by selecting the square icon on the front of the session.
TIP: Don’t waste your time here by choosing really one session per slot. Just browse through the sessions and check what you find interesting. Some slots will be double booked some slots will have some less interesting session for you.
The print screen below show all the different sessions I’ve selected for this timeslot.
When you’ve completely build your calendar you can print the list or save it to outlook or any other system which supports ICS format. Last year there was a tool for windows 7 phones which easily transferred your calendar to your handheld device but there’s no official word whether the app will return this year.
TIP: Always keep a printed copy with you. You’ll never know when you run out of juice on your device.
However if you loose your schedule it’s not a complete disaster because in the hallway there are tons of pc’s supplied which are freely accessible for attendees to check the mms 2012 website to quickly check your agenda in between sessions.
TIP: Some sessions are repeated through out the event so if you have conflicting sessions double check whether the session is given at another time.
MMS 2012: Travel Guide Part 2: The session types
This blog post is part of a series. The other parts can be found here: How to survive MMS 2012.
So you are heading to Vegas for the System Center event of the year: Microsoft Management Summit!
But what can you expect and how are you going to get the most out of the event. This blog post in the series will guide you through the different types of sessions and how to effectively plan your days at MMS.
There’s a huge spectrum of different sessions provided, opportunities to meet with peers, check the latest solutions of partners (and get some gadgets along the way),…
So let’s get started to give you some hints on the “official” part of MMS: the keynotes + session.
The different sessions:
Instructor Lead Labs: 
These sessions are basically big classrooms where you can get hands experience with the new software in predefined scenarios. It’s instructor led but also has a manual for each attendee to get you started. You’re working on your workstation in a VM which is specifically designed for this class room. The frequency of these labs tend to go a little fast so if you fall behind just continue at your own pace through the exercise.
TIP: All the Instructor Led Labs are available in the Commnet area to do them over again or take them at your own pace.
TIP: Make sure to get in line at the correct Instructor Led Lab in time otherwise your seat will be assigned to someone in the standby queue. If you did not register for this lab upfront but want to attend just get to the session and wait in the standby queue. There’s always a percentage of no-shows so chances are you will still get in.
Breakout sessions:
This is the majority of the sessions and are listed in the session listing. These sessions have a predefined subject and are delivered by product team members, System Center MVP’s and community members. These are the places where you have to really gather the info you are looking for at MMS. These sessions are recorded and the decks will be available afterwards for download and/or on the conference DVD.
Bird of the feather (BOF) sessions:
These sessions are basically slots in the evening which are available for community members to present some specific topics to a group of attendees. The topics of these sessions are proposed and chosen by you… the attendees. Make sure to check out the list of BOF sessions for some very interesting topics with a great opportunity to get first hand info from some leading experts. There’s a lot of room for interaction in these sessions
Apart from the sessions there are 2 major things you need to check at MMS:
The keynotes.
On Tuesday and Wednesday morning there’s the keynote of Brad Anderson which is highlighting some of the accomplishments of the last year and generally gives you a great sneak preview on the roadmap of the System Center suite. Generally there are also some scoops in these keynotes.
TIP: If by any chance you miss these keynotes (couldn’t get out of bed because of the time difference 
) you can always review them on YouTube and the post conference dvd.
The Expo:
The expo is definitely something you need to visit. All the different partners have a booth which are generally filled with people who would love to attract you to their product with gadgets, price draws, demo’s, free giveaways,… In the center of the expo is also the Microsoft area where normally there a premier consultants + product team members available to answer your questions.
So now we have all the different session explained. The only thing left to do is see how we can cram this all in a week… Well simply by creating your own schedule with the schedule builder explained in the next chapter of this blogging series.
Speaking at MMS2012
MMS2012 just got a little bit more interested for me (can it?).
I will get the chance to speak at this major System Center event together with System Center Operations Manager guru and colleague Maarten Goet.
We’ll be presenting the following session:
AM-B312 Operations Manager Tuning War: No Management Pack Left Behind
Friday, April 20 10:00 AM – 11:15 AM Venetian Ballroom G
Speaker(s): Dieter Wijckmans, Maarten Goet
Track(s): Application Management
Session Type: Breakout Session
Products: Operations Manager
So you installed Microsoft System Center Operations Manager, deployed your first agent and started importing management packs. Now, a hundred or more alerts start appearing. Was this really the best approach? How do I tune my management packs anyway? How do I get things sorted again? Come to this session led by five-year System Center MVP Maarten Goet, who draws from multiple years of field experience to show you how to successfully tackle this. No Operations Manager administrator should miss out on this session!
Make sure to join us to get an in depth view into management packs and how to get you started in tuning yours.
Additional resources:
- Do you already want to start with looking into different management packs check this major list of community management packs at systemcentercentral.com: http://www.systemcentercentral.com/BlogDetails/tabid/143/IndexID/60342/Default.aspx
- And make sure to check the “authoring Friday” group on twitter: #authoringfriday #tgiaf
Hope to see you there!
MMS 2012 Travel Guide Part 1: Getting settled in Vegas
This blog post is part of a series. The other parts can be found here: How to survive MMS 2012.
So you’re heading to MMS 2012 this year! Good for you! It’s the top notch event for all System Center enthusiasts!
It will be my 3th summit and I’m not pretending to be a vet but can give you some nice tips I’ve learned in the past.
First of all I’m not going to bore you on how to survive the plane trip to Vegas because let’s face it. Plane trips are boring. Some like them… I think they are just plain boring but ok you have to get there one way or another (remembering the story of the ash cloud 2 years ago ) Read about it here
TIP: Check your travel docs. Make sure you have a passport which is valid for at least 6 months after your stay and if your are from outside of states make sure to fill in your ESTA. More info here: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/
Packing for Vegas
If I compare my luggage over the couple of years I notice that I travel lighter and lighter. Vegas is in the middle of the desert. When the weather is good (which is most of the time) temperatures can sour very high. Inside the hotels and convention centers the airco is always on. This means you will be in need of some sort of sweater to keep you from chilling inside the hotel. Pack easy wear. Especially shoes. You want to get as comfy shoes as possible as the conf center is a good 5 minutes walk if you are staying in the Venetian, even if you go through the casino area. Don’t forget to take something casual smart as well. You’ll never know which party you’ll get in. Don’t worry if you forgot something. There are shops all over the place to complete your wardrobe.
TIP: Don’t forget your travel adapter power socket. Buy it upfront of your trip. They tend to overcharge for it at airports. Pack also an extension cord with multiple sockets of your home plug. You only have one adapter but want to charge your phone, laptop, tablet, camera overnight to hit the next day of the MMS madness well prepared
Arriving in Vegas
So you touch down in Vegas after admiring the Vegas skyline during approach:
This never gets boring believe me
Collected your luggage and good to go. You’re entering Vegas through the airport. Not quite. Vegas is still a 10 mile trip to the Venetian hotel (if that’s where you’re staying). If you are with a group of at least 4 it’s better to head to the Limo stand and get a limo to enter Vegas in style. Depending on the company this will cost you between 40$ – 60$ which is cheaper than taking 2 cabs. Make sure you negotiate the price before entering the car. Let’s face it: there’s always something nice in pulling up at the hotel in style. Make sure to tip the driver. The percentage is between 10% and 15% but they always like a nice tip.
Next thing to do is check in. This is a straight forward process as the check in is open 24h a day. Make sure to have your passport + credit card ready.
Browsing the Hotel
After you’ve checked in in your room and enjoyed the view you could start by browsing the hotel. We arrived always in the evening and to beat the jetlag headed out to get dinner/breakfast/lunch (damn those time zones!). I’m staying at the Venetian this year as part of the hotel + conference package deal of Microsoft.
Some nice places to have a nice bite to eat are listed here:
http://www.venetian.com/Las-Vegas-Restaurants/
My personal favorites:
- Sushi Samba for some of the best sushi in the world
- Dal toro for some very nice light Italian kitchen
- Le bouchon for a nice breakfast outside
TIP: The Venetian Conference center is hosting the event but the Venetian Hotel and Palazzo Hotel are forming 1 complex so really check where the restaurants are.
Check here to view the map of the 2 hotels: http://www.venetian.com/Company-Information/Map/
It’s well hidden on their site but SO convenient to have it with you on the first couple of days because everything looks a like in Vegas: slot machines all over the place.
Shopping in Vegas
Ok. I must admit. I hate shopping… but not in Vegas There’s a wide variety of shops in the vicinity of the hotel. We always arrive a day earlier and fill that day with some shopping.
Some great malls are in the center of Vegas and all hotels features some really impressive shops.
Right across the Venetian is the Fashion mall located (see photo above). Nice to do a quick browse with some nice stores there but for the real bargains you need to relocate to one of the malls on the outskirts of Vegas.
There are basically 2 which we frequently end up:
- The Las Vegas Premium Outlet North: Nice atmosphere, nice selection of stores to keep you busy for a couple of hours, outside, bargains.
- The Las Vegas Premium Outlet South: Less atmosphere (but it’s remodeled last year so who knows), similar selection of stores but somewhat smaller, completely indoor, extreme bargains because a lot of factory outlet stores (Nike, Adidas, Calvin Klein, Reebok,…)
More info and directions: http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=61
Taxi’s in Vegas
There are taxi’s all over the place, at any given moment approx. 2000! The easiest way to get a cab is just run up to a hotel entrance and get one there. On the strip itself it can be a wait because the most taxi’s are driving from one hotel to another.
TIP: Always check whether you can pay with credit or strictly cash. Just to not get any surprises when the bill is presented. It’s indicate on the side of the cabs whether you can pay with credit card. Always ask for a receipt of the journey while paying and don’t forget the tip!If you are with a group it’s always a good idea to check whether a limo is available because they are in general cheaper for groups but negotiate the price in advance.
Preparing for MMS itself
The tips above will get you started on surviving the first moments in Vegas but will not prepare you for the MMS event itself.
Stay tuned for the next blogs in this series which will cover the preparation for the event itself, taking part in the community and benefiting from it,…