Systems Management Server Roadmap

In an unusual step, Microsoft has released public betas of the next two releases of Systems Management Server (SMS) at the same time. ISVs and corporate IT departments wanting to allow their software to be patched using SMS should consider evaluating SMS 2003 Release 2 (R2), a minor release slated for mid-2006, that adds the ability to patch non-Microsoft software. However, the next release, code-named SMS v4 and slated for the first half of 2007, introduces many more new or improved capabilities. (For a timeline of upcoming SMS releases, see the illustration “SMS Roadmap Timeline“.)

SMS 2003 is Microsoft’s current product for inventorying Windows-based hardware and software assets, distributing software, applying patches, tracking licenses, and diagnosing and fixing problems on remote systems. Both beta releases follow closely on the heels of SMS 2003 SP2, which introduced several new features (see the sidebar “SMS 2003 SP2“.)

SMS 2003 Release 2

The unspecified SMS 2003 update announced at the Apr. 2005 Microsoft Management Summit is now officially SMS 2003 R2. This means that current SMS 2003 customers without Software Assurance (SA) will have to pay to get the upgrade, and they will need new SMS Client Access Licenses (CALs) as well. An open beta version of SMS 2003 R2 was released in Feb. 2006 and the product is slated for release before summer 2006.