Module 1: Installing Essentials 2010
This module describes the architecture of System Center Essentials 2010. It goes on to discuss hardware and software requirements, as well as the Essentials 2010 installation process.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in Essentials 2010
Discuss the underlying architecture leveraged by Essentials
Describe the prerequisites required for installing Essentials
Explain upgrade options and identify unsupported configurations
Demonstrate how to install System Center Essentials 2010
Module 2: Configuring Essentials
This module explains how to perform the initial configuration tasks after installing System Center Essentials 21010.
After completing this module, students will be able to: Identify the tasks that must be performed after installing Essentials 2010
Understand the available options in the Essentials configuration wizards
Understand the global settings that can be configured
Different methods to discover and install the Essentials Monitoring Agent on computers targeted for management
Configure virtualization hosts for management in Essentials
Import Management Packs
Configure Notification
Module 3: Managing Computers
This module explains how to prepare, add and group computers for management with Essentials 2010. It goes on to demonstrate how to retrieve settings and inventory of managed computers.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in the Computer space
Explain options for creating computer group
Demonstrate how to retrieve hardware and software inventory
Discuss the virtualization management functions available from the Computers space
Describe reports accessible directly from the Computers space
Module 4: Managing Updates
The module explains how to approve and deploy updates with System Center Essentials 2010. It includes information on how to automate the update management process if desired.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in the Updates space
Explain options for viewing and approving updates
Demonstrate how to automate approval and deployment of updates
Demonstrate how to verify the progress of update deployment
Module 5: Deploying Software
This module explains how to install, update and uninstall software to managed computers with System Center Essentials 2010.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain Essentials software deployment features and functionality
Explain how to deploy software packages
Discuss options for customizing package installation
Upgrading and Uninstalling Software Packages
Describe how to monitor deployment results
Demonstrate how to troubleshoot software deployment
Module 6: Monitoring Concepts
This module explains how to configure, administer and optimize the monitoring functionality in Essentials to monitor Windows computers and network devices.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Discuss the architecture and components of management packs in Essentials
Describe how to use overrides to tune management packs
Explain best practices for targeting monitoring and overrides in Essentials
Demonstrate how to obtain new management packs and related documentation
Describe network and client monitoring functionality in Essentials
Module 7: Reporting
The module describes the architecture and functionality of the reporting feature in System Center Essentials 2010. It goes on to describe the data retention and grooming settings in the reporting feature.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain the features included in reporting System Center Essentials 2010
Understand how to create a variety of reports offered in System Center Essentials 2010
Explain the differences between reporting in System Center Essentials and the enterprise Operations and Systems Management products offered by Microsoft
Understand the limitations of Essentials reporting and how to identify when transition to MS enterprise products may be appropriate.
Describe the grooming and data retention for Essentials reporting data.
Module 8: Virtualization Management
The module describes the architecture and functionality of the virtualization management feature in System Center Essentials 2010.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Demonstrate how to add a virtualization host to Essentials for management
Describe supported virtualization platforms and scenarios
Recount the common management tasks available in the Essentials console
Discuss the importance and function Integration Services in virtualization management
Explain the function of Performance and Resource Optimization (PRO)
Module 9: Virtual Machine Templates and Provisioning
This module describes how to create virtual machine templates to streamline the provisioning process. It goes on to explain the process for converting an existing VMware virtual machine to the Hyper-V platform.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain how virtual machine templates streamline the migration process
Demonstrate how to create, modify and delete virtual machine templates
Describe how to sysprep a virtual machine for use as a template
Demonstrate how to perform a virtual-to-virtual migration
Demonstrate how to find physical servers that are candidates for virtualization
Discuss how to convert a physical server to a Hyper-V guest
Module 10: Advanced Monitoring and Management Pack Authoring
This module describes the advanced monitoring functionality available in System Center Essentials 2010. You will also learn important management pack authoring concepts for creating custom management packs for your line-of-business applications.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the advanced monitoring functionality in Essentials, such as self-tuning threshold monitors, synthetic transaction monitoring and distributed application monitoring
Explain concepts related to management pack design, such as service and health models and their components.
Discuss the requirements for implementing health rollup in a management pack
Demonstrate how to create custom monitoring in the Essentials console
Module 11: Advanced Troubleshooting and Log Analysis
This module covers the log files, tools and techniques to troubleshoot System Centers Essentials 2010 issues in depth. The troubleshooting processes for common scenarios related to Essentials features are described in detail.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Discuss common issues encountered when deploying and using Essentials
Describe which logs are of interest in troubleshooting a specific issue
Explain how to analyze a specific log to identify source cause of a problem
Demonstrate how to verify communication and configuration between Essentials and virtual machine hosts
Determine the source of inventory and deployment issues to managed computers
Demonstrate how to collect data for detailed analysis by Microsoft Support
Describe the grooming and data retention for Essentials reporting data.
Module 12: Essentials Internals
This module presents information on Essentials core functions and integration with its foundational technologies (WSUS, SCVMM 2008 R2 and OpsMgr R2) in greater detail. It examines internal functions such as group synchronization behavior between Essentials and WSUS, WSUS certificates and how they are leveraged in Essentials, deployment and inventory functions.
After completing this module, students will be able to: .
Discuss Essentials integration with foundational technologies and related key internal processes
Explain how scheduled agent deployment automates the computer discover and agent configuration process
Describe how software and hardware inventory are collected, and what data sources are included in inventory collection.
Describe data that must be backed up in order to recover an Essentials installation after server failureDiscuss how Category Overrides are implemented to limit the amount of rules and monitors that are enabled in Essentials by default.
Module 1: Installing Essentials 2010
This module describes the architecture of System Center Essentials 2010. It goes on to discuss hardware and software requirements, as well as the Essentials 2010 installation process.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in Essentials 2010
Discuss the underlying architecture leveraged by Essentials
Describe the prerequisites required for installing Essentials
Explain upgrade options and identify unsupported configurations
Demonstrate how to install System Center Essentials 2010
Module 2: Configuring Essentials
This module explains how to perform the initial configuration tasks after installing System Center Essentials 21010.
After completing this module, students will be able to: Identify the tasks that must be performed after installing Essentials 2010
Understand the available options in the Essentials configuration wizards
Understand the global settings that can be configured
Different methods to discover and install the Essentials Monitoring Agent on computers targeted for management
Configure virtualization hosts for management in Essentials
Import Management Packs
Configure Notification
Module 3: Managing Computers
This module explains how to prepare, add and group computers for management with Essentials 2010. It goes on to demonstrate how to retrieve settings and inventory of managed computers.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in the Computer space
Explain options for creating computer group
Demonstrate how to retrieve hardware and software inventory
Discuss the virtualization management functions available from the Computers space
Describe reports accessible directly from the Computers space
Module 4: Managing Updates
The module explains how to approve and deploy updates with System Center Essentials 2010. It includes information on how to automate the update management process if desired.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the features and functionality available in the Updates space
Explain options for viewing and approving updates
Demonstrate how to automate approval and deployment of updates
Demonstrate how to verify the progress of update deployment
Module 5: Deploying Software
This module explains how to install, update and uninstall software to managed computers with System Center Essentials 2010.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain Essentials software deployment features and functionality
Explain how to deploy software packages
Discuss options for customizing package installation
Upgrading and Uninstalling Software Packages
Describe how to monitor deployment results
Demonstrate how to troubleshoot software deployment
Module 6: Monitoring Concepts
This module explains how to configure, administer and optimize the monitoring functionality in Essentials to monitor Windows computers and network devices.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Discuss the architecture and components of management packs in Essentials
Describe how to use overrides to tune management packs
Explain best practices for targeting monitoring and overrides in Essentials
Demonstrate how to obtain new management packs and related documentation
Describe network and client monitoring functionality in Essentials
Module 7: Reporting
The module describes the architecture and functionality of the reporting feature in System Center Essentials 2010. It goes on to describe the data retention and grooming settings in the reporting feature.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain the features included in reporting System Center Essentials 2010
Understand how to create a variety of reports offered in System Center Essentials 2010
Explain the differences between reporting in System Center Essentials and the enterprise Operations and Systems Management products offered by Microsoft
Understand the limitations of Essentials reporting and how to identify when transition to MS enterprise products may be appropriate.
Describe the grooming and data retention for Essentials reporting data.
Module 8: Virtualization Management
The module describes the architecture and functionality of the virtualization management feature in System Center Essentials 2010.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Demonstrate how to add a virtualization host to Essentials for management
Describe supported virtualization platforms and scenarios
Recount the common management tasks available in the Essentials console
Discuss the importance and function Integration Services in virtualization management
Explain the function of Performance and Resource Optimization (PRO)
Module 9: Virtual Machine Templates and Provisioning
This module describes how to create virtual machine templates to streamline the provisioning process. It goes on to explain the process for converting an existing VMware virtual machine to the Hyper-V platform.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Explain how virtual machine templates streamline the migration process
Demonstrate how to create, modify and delete virtual machine templates
Describe how to sysprep a virtual machine for use as a template
Demonstrate how to perform a virtual-to-virtual migration
Demonstrate how to find physical servers that are candidates for virtualization
Discuss how to convert a physical server to a Hyper-V guest
Module 10: Advanced Monitoring and Management Pack Authoring
This module describes the advanced monitoring functionality available in System Center Essentials 2010. You will also learn important management pack authoring concepts for creating custom management packs for your line-of-business applications.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Describe the advanced monitoring functionality in Essentials, such as self-tuning threshold monitors, synthetic transaction monitoring and distributed application monitoring
Explain concepts related to management pack design, such as service and health models and their components.
Discuss the requirements for implementing health rollup in a management pack
Demonstrate how to create custom monitoring in the Essentials console
Module 11: Advanced Troubleshooting and Log Analysis
This module covers the log files, tools and techniques to troubleshoot System Centers Essentials 2010 issues in depth. The troubleshooting processes for common scenarios related to Essentials features are described in detail.
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Discuss common issues encountered when deploying and using Essentials
Describe which logs are of interest in troubleshooting a specific issue
Explain how to analyze a specific log to identify source cause of a problem
Demonstrate how to verify communication and configuration between Essentials and virtual machine hosts
Determine the source of inventory and deployment issues to managed computers
Demonstrate how to collect data for detailed analysis by Microsoft Support
Describe the grooming and data retention for Essentials reporting data.
Module 12: Essentials Internals
This module presents information on Essentials core functions and integration with its foundational technologies (WSUS, SCVMM 2008 R2 and OpsMgr R2) in greater detail. It examines internal functions such as group synchronization behavior between Essentials and WSUS, WSUS certificates and how they are leveraged in Essentials, deployment and inventory functions.
After completing this module, students will be able to: .
Discuss Essentials integration with foundational technologies and related key internal processes
Explain how scheduled agent deployment automates the computer discover and agent configuration process
Describe how software and hardware inventory are collected, and what data sources are included in inventory collection.
Describe data that must be backed up in order to recover an Essentials installation after server failureDiscuss how Category Overrides are implemented to limit the amount of rules and monitors that are enabled in Essentials by default.