The system requirements for System Center components are all not consistent I don’t know in what...

System Center 2012 SP1 Supportability Simplification and Upgrade

Carmen SummersSenior Program Manager

SD-B203

Session Objectives And Takeaways

• Session Objective(s):

• How to think about System Center the product and evolution of the product• What is Service Pack 1 and how to plan for it• Understand how System Center has streamlined and centralized system requirements for SP1• Understand the why and how of System Center upgrade order sequence• Know what System Center components and databases can and can’t co-exist• Learn how the new System Center 2012 SP1 Configuration Analyzer can help you.

System Center–Roadmap to moving simplification forward

MICROSOFT CONFIDENTIAL – INTERNAL ONLY

• Service Pack 1 represents a major change in functionality in the product• Traditional service pack thinking may not apply • Should approach the deployment as a migration/upgrade vs simple patching

• Requirements include changes to the infrastructure• E.g. – VMM requires an operating system upgrade• Service pack application retains data but not product in some cases

• Requires specific sequence for update• Integrated installations require specific order to retain functionality

Service Pack 1

• The system requirements for System Center components are all not consistent

• I don’t know in what order I should upgrade System Center components

• What components can and can’t co-exist on same installation of OS?

• What System Center databases can and can’t co-exist in the

• Understanding SQL collation is a nightmare

Common Customer Complaints Addressed in System Center 2012 SP1

System Center SP1 System Requirements Simplified

Problem Statement: The support matrix for System Center 2012 is complex and not unified. Customers have to go to 6 different TechNet libraries to figure out requirements. Documentation patterns on TechNet, per component, for system requirements are not consistent.

What we are doing about it:

Improvement: System Center 2012 SP1 Support Matrix Simplification

Goal : The goal of the System Center 2012 SP1 support matrix is to reduce complexity for customers, provide specific system requirements in a centralized document, and ensure alignment across System Center Components.

System Center 2012 SP1Majority now have System Requirement Alignment for:• Server Side OS• SQL• Client OS for consoles• System Center Agents• PowerShell• .Net• Web Consoles• Find it here: http

://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj628205.aspx

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj628205.aspx



System Center SP1 Upgrade Sequence

Problem Statement: What guidance does System Center have for the best way to upgrade my System Center environment?

What we are doing about it:

Improvement: System Center 2012 SP1 Upgrade Sequence Improvement

Goal :The goal of the improvement was to provide prescriptive guidance to enable a rolling sequenced upgrade from System Center 2012 to System Center 2012 SP1 that enables customers to keep operations going in mixed states of component upgrades. This guidance will provide tested and validated sequences for upgrade, approved mixed state matrixes, and detailed information on component dependencies.

Upgrade Sequencing to System Center 2012 SP1

Upgrade Sequence Order

OrchestratorService ManagerDPMOperations ManagerConfiguration ManagerVirtual Machine Manager and App

Controller

Upgrade Sequence Success Rules

• Follow the prescribed guidance• Do not deploy new components during your upgrades• Do not perform DB upgrades• Do not perform OS upgrades unless mandated.

We had to figure out what component should go first in the sequence.

Service Manager, Orchestrator, and Operations Manager were all candidates as they all share the most connections with other System Center Components.

Determining Sequence Order

Orchestrator System Center ConnectionsOperations Manager:

• Integration Pack• Operations Manager Agent• Operations Manager Console (for

IP communication) Service Manager• Run book Connector• Integration Pack Configuration Manager• Integration Pack• CM Agent• Endpoint Agent (potentially) Virtual Machine Manager• Integration Pack Data Protection Manager• Integration Pack

What to know about placement order:

• Orchestrator 2012 SP1 can run 2012 and 2012 SP1 Integration Packs for different components side by side, which made Orchestrator a top candidate for the top of the stack.

• Problems discovered that challenged this idea:• Service Manager connectors are not forward compatible

• Solving the problem:• The Run book connector uses a web service SDK and it took no

changes between versions. • Results

• Since the connector took no changes we were able to confirm, with testing, that after upgrade the connector continued to function. With those results, Orchestrator became #1 in the sequence order.

• What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?• If you upgrade any System Center component before

Orchestrator, the 2012 integration pack for that component will no longer work. Additionally, you will not be able to load the new component’s System Center 2012 SP1 integration packs in Orchestrator 2012.

Service ManagerSystem Center ConnectionsConfiguration Manager• Connectors (2)• CM Agent• End Point Agent

(potentially) Operations Manager• Connectors (2)• Management Pack• Agentless monitoring Orchestrator• Run book Connector• Integration Pack

• What to know about the placement order:

• Connectors are backward compatible Service Manager must be upgraded next to ensure the connectors with System Center 2012 components continue to operate as other components are upgraded.• Exception: The connector with Orchestrator Run book

connector will continue to function when Orchestrator is upgraded first.

• What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?• If you upgrade any component that shares a connector with

Service Manager attempting to re-connect will fail.

Data Protection ManagerWhat to know about placement order:

DPM has some flexibility in sequence.

Things to know about the placement of DPM in sequence:• DPM must go after Orchestrator so it’s SP1

Integration Pack can be supported• DPM must upgrade before Operations Manager

to accommodate continued functionality of a central console.

• DPM must upgrade before VMM

What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?• If using the central console functionality in

Operations Manager it will no longer function if upgraded before DPM.

• If VMM is upgraded prior to DPM, VMM will not be able to back up the WS 2012 thus resulting in no VMM backup.

.

System Center Connections

Operations Manager• Operations Manager

Agent/Management Pack• DPM Central Console Client Side

Component connector Orchestrator• DPM Integration Pack Configuration Manager• CM Agent• Endpoint protection agent

(potentially)

Operations ManagerWhat to know about placement order:

Things to know about the placement of OM in sequence:• Management Packs are not normally forward compatible.

• Management packs for Orchestrator and Service Manager will still be able to monitor those upgraded components as today they are not version specific.

• VMM also shares a forward compatibility issue since OM is upgraded first. Users will need to uninstall VMM connection and re-establish post upgrade with the new SP1 console. This has been tested and steps are documented.

What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?• Management packs for SP1 will not load in Operations

Manager 2012, except for those noted above.• If you upgrade Virtual Machine Manager to System Center

2012 SP1 before Operations Manager then the Operations Manager console in System Center 2012 SP1 will not load on Windows Server 2012. This means is that you will be unable re-establish integration between Virtual Machine Manager and Operations Manager.

System Center Connections

Configuration Manager• CM Agent• Endpoint protection agent (potentially) Virtual Machine Manager• Management Pack• Integration via OM console (SDK) Service Manager• Connectors (2)• Management Pack Data Protection Manager• Management Pack• Central Console Server Components

Orchestrator• Integration Pack (OM Console (SDK)

connection required for IP)• Management Pack App Controller• Management Pack

Configuration ManagerSystem Center connections:

Configuration manager• CM management agents and

end point protection agents on the component servers.

Service Manager• Connectors (2) Orchestrator• Integration Pack Operations Manager• Management Pack

What to know about placement order:

• Configuration Manager must follow Orchestrator, Operations Manager, and Service Manager to ensure the connectivity with those components (Connector, IP, and MP) remain as those connections are backward compatible.

• It is important to note that CM must be upgraded before VMM as it has a mandatory OS upgrade requirement.

•What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?

• If you upgrade Configuration Manager before Service Manager, the connectors for Service Manager will fail and you will lose that connector functionality until Service Manager is upgraded to System Center 2012 SP1.

• If you upgrade Virtual Machine Manager to System Center 2012 SP1 before Configuration Manager you will not be able to manage the VMM management server as the Configuration Manager for System Center 2012 does not support Windows Server 2012.

Virtual Machine Manager and App Controller Why do VMM and App Controller have to be upgraded at the

same time?• Due to the hardcoded dependency App Controller has on the

version of Virtual Machine Manager the two must always exist at the same version level.

Why VMM and App Controller are last in sequence? • For VMM itself it has a hard dependency running on Windows

Server 2012. Since no component would be forward compatible to manage Windows Server 2012 means that VMM must be upgraded last in sequence.

What is the impact if sequence is done out of order?• If you upgrade Virtual Machine Manager to System Center 2012

SP1 prior to any other component you will lose the ability to back up with DPM, monitor and integrate with Operations Manager, manage with Configuration Manager, orchestrate run books with Orchestrator, and you will lose integration with Service Manager.

• If you upgrade Virtual Machine Manager to System Center 2012 SP1 and don’t upgrade App Controller at the same time you will be unable to re-establish the integration until App Controller is upgraded

System Center Connections:

Configuration managerAgents Service ManagerConnectors (1) OrchestratorIntegration Pack Operations ManagerManagement PackOperations Manager Console

App ControllerOperations Manager Management PackVMM SDK (Console) ConnectionAzure API connection

Key areas of concern:• SQL Server Version and Cumulative Update Alignment• SQL Collation Alignment Considerations• SQL Server Pre-requisite Alignment

SQL Server Requirements - RTM

Component SQL 2008 SP1 SQL 2008 SP2 SQL 2008 SP3 SQL 2008 R2 RTM SQL 2008 R2 SP1App Controller Configuration Manager CU9 Min CU4 Min CU6 MinData Protection Manager Operations Manager Orchestrator Service Manager Virtual Machine Manager

Areas addressed:• SQL Server Version and Cumulative Update can be current release• SQL Server Pre-requisites aligned across products• SQL Collation alignment still requires planning

SQL Server Requirements – SP1

Component SQL Server 2008 SQL Server 2008 R2 SQL Server 2012App Controller SP1 or later RTM or laterConfiguration Manager SP2 or later SP1 or later RTM only (currently)Data Protection Manager SP1 or later RTM or laterOperations Manager SP1 or later RTM or laterOrchestrator SP1 or later RTM or laterService Manager SP1 or later RTM or later Virtual Machine Manager SP1 or later RTM or later

SQL Server Requirements SC 2012 SP1Fabric Management Component

Collation Set or inherited from

Virtual Machine Manager SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS

Set at the Database level (Component Install)

Windows Server Update Services (optional)

SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS

N/A

Operations Manager Management Group


Validates that the instance is the appropriate collation (SQL Instance Installation)

Operations Manager Data Warehouse


Validates that the instance is the appropriate collation (SQL Instance Installation)

Service Manager Management Server

Latin1_General_100_CI_AS * Validates that the instance is the appropriate collation and matches Windows collation (SQL Instance Installation)

Service ManagerData Warehouse

Latin1_General_100_CI_AS * Same as above

Latin1_General_100_CI_AS * Same as above

Service ManagerWeb Parts and Portal


N/A

Orchestrator SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS

Configured to use SQL collation, set at the DB level

App Controller SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS

Collation agnostic (SQL Instance Installation)

Data Protection Manager SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS

Collation is set in SQL and set by the product as DPM installs SQL


• RTM• Previously required dedicated instances to support a full-suite deployment• Dependent components such as SharePoint provide alternative guidance which does not take

into account the nature of how it is used in System Center• Guidance was component-centric – customers had little guidance, recommendations and best

practices on full suite deployments

• SP1• Still requires dedicated instances for most components• Guidance is being provided for a product-centric (multiple component) infrastructure• Progressing to consolidation• Limited consolidation can occur with some workloads (App Controller, Orchestrator,

SharePoint)

Component Co-Existence - SQL

SQL Design – RTM

SQL Design – SP1


• RTM• Previously required dedicated installs to support a full-suite deployment• Never tested together as a suite on the same platform• Gap in concrete guidance left customers without a clear understanding of the support model of

their deployment

• SP1• Relevant to 2012 RTM and SP1 deployments • Component coexistence was tested and the resulting guidance now on TechNet!• http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj851033.aspx

Component Co-Existence





• You cannot • Deploy the following components on one or more systems where they co-exist:• DPM Management Server• Operations Manager Management Server• Service Manager Management Server• Service Manager Data Warehouse Management Server

• You can• Deploy App Controller, Orchestrator, and VMM on a single system• Deploy App Controller, Orchestrator, and VMM with any of roles listed above

For customers looking to perform consolidated System Center deployments, a minimum of 4 systems are required deploy all of the System Center 2012 SP1 components – however this may not be the recommended design based on scale

Component Co-Existence


• RTM• For System Center 2012 there were best practice analyzers for VMM and Orchestrator. • Customer had to download each BPA model to run it requiring separate installs.• Not all components delivered a BPA

• SP1• Coming soon! System Center will release a single best practice analyzer that be able to scan

any System Center server side component and report issues found.• This should be customers first line of defense before calling support.

• Advisor• Rules from Configuration Analyzer ported into System Center Advisor

System Center 2012 SP1 Configuration Analyzer

Update Rollups • Customer’s said- “Make System Center updates

more discoverable, accessible, and consistent.

• Update Rollups are the primary way CDM System Center will release updates publicly

• Quarterly Update Rollup releases • Each Update Rollup will supersede the last making is easier track if you have

everything you need installed • Update delivery on Microsoft Update to enable ease of detection and installation via

MU or WSUS • A single master KB article that describes all fixes to enable ease of finding all

information in a single location • New!! Update Rollup 2 for System Center 2012 SP1 and Update Rollup 5 for System Center

2012 released April 9, 2013.

• Blog post

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2706783

http://blogs.technet.com/b/scvmm/archive/2012/07/25/cloud-and-datacenter-management-system-center-update-rollups-improvements.aspx

Helpful Resources• System Center 2012 SP1 System Requirements - Link• System Center 2012 SP1 Upgrade Sequence – Link• System Center 2012 SP1 Configuration Analyzer - Link



http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=36796

Related Sessions

SD-B201 Implementing Common Scenarios in VMM: Services and Service Templates

IM-B203 Building UI Add–Ins For System Center 2012 SP1 Virtual Machine Manager

IM-B308 System Center 2012 SP1 Virtual Machine Manager: Managing Large Datacenters

IM-B310 Troubleshooting Common System Center 2012 SP1 Virtual Machine Manager

Issues

WS-B312 How to Design and Configure Networking in VMM and HyperV (Part 1 of 2)

WS-B313 How to Design and Configure Networking in VMM and HyperV (Part 2 of 2)

WS-B314 Implementing Common Storage Scenarios in Windows Server 2012 with SCVMM

WS-B327 Software Defined Networking with WS2012, SC2012 SP1 and Partner Solutions

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© 2013 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

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© 2013 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

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