Systems Management, Security, and Identity Management

The next major wave of releases for the entire System Center line was planned for late 2011 but was delayed: the products will now be updated in the first half of 2012, and two new products will be added. All are now in release candidate stage. (See the sidebar “System Center Product Names“.) When released, System Center 2012 products will not be available separately but only as components of System Center licensing bundles.

For client management, updated versions of two tools and one new tool are included in the 2011 R2 version of the Desktop Optimization Pack. An update to Windows Intune, Microsoft’s online PC management product, was released in Oct. 2011.

The Forefront line of security products protects Windows PCs, servers, and the network edge from viruses, spyware, and other malware. Endpoint Protection 2010 and the first service pack for the Unified Access Gateway remote access product were released in Dec. 2010, and updates to two edge protection products appeared in Oct. 2011. Endpoint Protection 2012 will drop the Forefront branding and join System Center.