Microsoft System Center Essentials 2010 Beta Resources‏

Article
12/09/2009

Having signed up for the official Microsoft System Center Essentials 2010 Beta (yes, even some of us internals do this) I recently received an email from the product team with a bunch of really cool Essentials 2010 resources in it, and since I've been woefully negligent in covering Essentials type stuff I thought I'd post them here for your enjoyment. If you're using Essentials now and need info on upgrading, or if you're planning a new implementation of Essentials 2010, these resources should prove to be quite helpful.

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Upcoming Webcasts

We are presenting two webcasts that include information on Essentials 2010. Join the webcasts to find out more about Essentials 2010, and have a chance to ask questions. Both webcasts will feature Essentials 2010 and Data Protection Manager 2010.

Integrated Virtual and Physical IT Management for Midsize Businesses (Level 100)
Wednesday December 9th 11AM PST (7pm UTC)

As more midsize businesses start realizing the cost benefits of consolidating server workloads using virtualization technologies, Microsoft is developing two new product releases to help midsize businesses more easily manage your virtual and physical IT resources in an integrated way. In this webcast, we show you how Microsoft System Center Essentials 2010 and Microsoft System Center Data Protection Manager can help you easily consolidate server workloads, increase critical server availability, and reduce the risk of critical data loss.

Managing Windows Clients in a Midsize Business (Level 200)
Monday December 14th 11AM PST (7pm UTC)

In this webcast, we look at two upcoming Microsoft system management products, System Center Essentials 2010 and System Center Data Protection Manager 2010, that are designed with small to medium-sized businesses in mind. Discover how Essentials 2010 provides monitoring and management for client computers running Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7 operating systems, including patching and installation of new software without carrying DVDs to every workstation. Learn how DPM 2010 can now protect client systems running Windows while users are on the network or working from home or in a hotel.

On Demand Webcasts and Videos

If you didn’t get a chance to attend in person, you can now watch the following webcast on demand:

What's New with System Center Essentials 2010? (Level 300)

Attend this webcast for a first look at the beta version of System Center Essentials 2010, and discover how System Center Essentials 2010 is easy to deploy and maintain, while simplifying complex management tasks and providing expert diagnostic information for faster problem diagnosis and resolution.

Videos

Virtualization Features of Essentials 2010

Take a tour through the virtualization features in System Center Essentials 2010. In this demo, you will learn:

• The requirements for hosting Essentials 2010
• How to add a host and create a virtual machine
• How to convert a physical server to a virtual machine
• How to import Microsoft and VMware virtual machines
• How to take a snapshot of a virtual machine for backup
• How to save a virtual machine template

Essentials vs VMware: How do they compare?

Edwin Yuen discusses how Microsoft's newest virtualization products--namely System Center Essentials 2010 and Hyper-V--stack up against existing VMware offerings. He highlights how SCE and Hyper-V are great choices for the small-to-mid-sized company that wants a cost-effective, easy to deploy and manage yet full-featured virtual solution.

Getting Assistance and Giving Feedback

Encountered a problem using Essentials 2010? Let us know about it in the Essentials 2010 Beta Forum.
We value your opinion! Your feedback helps us continue to make System Center Essentials what you need it to be. Please take a moment and fill in our survey.

Additional Resources (Twitter, Blogs)

Are you looking for more frequent updates on System Center Essentials, and pointers to additional resources to evaluate the Beta? Would you like more insight into how Essentials fits with Microsoft’s other offerings for medium size businesses?

Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/SCessentials

Read our Blog