Windows Intune Upgraded for Windows 8.1

Windows Intune, the online subscription service for managing clients, will be upgraded for Windows 8.1 support and improved control of policy settings. In addition, a special promotion beginning Oct. 1, 2013 will cut 30% off the subscription price, but only for some enterprise customers, and the promotion is tied to Office 365 subscriptions. For existing customers, there will be a 10-hour downtime with reduced functionality while the upgrade process executes; upgrades start Sept. 23, 2013.

What’s New

The new version (code-named Wave F because it is the sixth version of Intune) includes support for Windows 8.1 devices, can be used with System Center 2012 R2, and will be available to new customers on Oct. 18, 2013, the same date that Windows 8.1 reaches general availability (GA). (See “System Center, Intune Updates to Arrive in October“.) The upgrade adds the ability for Intune administrators to adjust some policy settings and includes the following:

Windows 8.1 clients can enroll in the service via the Windows Intune client software as well as the Open Mobile Alliance Device Management (OMA-DM) protocol, an open-source standard management interface that Intune and other client-management services use. This means that Intune can manage Windows 8.1 devices as soon as they become available, which is especially important for “bring your own device” (BYOD) scenarios.