The TechNet Australia Blog : TechNet Updates

Windows Vista SP1 TechNet Update Events

Deeps — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 07:22:00 GMT

We will be having 2 Windows Vista SP1 TechNet Update Events in Sydney and Melbourne for IT Professionals. Details below.

Session 1 - Windows Vista Service Pack 1 – Updates and Improvements!
Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) along with work from Microsoft’s hardware and software partners, brings improvements that address many of the key pieces of customer feedback, especially in the areas of compatibility, performance and reliability. SP1 also improves some management, deployment and support features, as well as power options for a greener PC. This session will cover what’s new, what has changed and the benefits that Windows Vista brings to your organization.

Session 2 - How Windows Vista makes desktop deployment easier!
Deploying desktop operating system can be challenging, time consuming and at times difficult! Find out how Windows Vista with Service Pack 1, together with Microsoft management technologies and the new Microsoft Deployment framework helps you address the desktop deployment challenges. This session will cover technologies such as the new Windows Automated Installation Kit, Application Compatibility Toolkit v5, Single Image deployments all leveraging the Microsoft System Centre management technologies.

Melbourne Registration
Tuesday 29th April 9am-11am (Registration from 8.30am)
Microsoft Melbourne Office
Entrance is around the corner from the PWC entrance.
Level 5, 4 Freshwater Place
PWC Building, Southbank Southbank Victoria 3006

Sydney Registration
Thursday 1st May 9am-11am (Registration from 8.30am)
Microsoft Head Office
Directions: Dehli rd or Epping rd are the main streets for driving into the corporate park
Go to the registration desk past the elevators on the ground floor. Parking available outside reception and also in the visitors carpark located at the rear of the building (Signs will direct you to the B1 carpark).
1 Epping Road
North Ryde North Ryde New South Wales 2113

Catering will be provided.

TechNet Updates November: Unified Communications

Deeps — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 05:25:00 GMT

To support the Unified Communications Launch events in Sydney and Melbourne (more details to follow about these events), TechNet will be running a series of Technical Readiness events across the country for IT Professionals wanting to learn more about the technology.

What will be covered?
Office Communications Server 2007 Deployment
This demonstration will walk through deployment of Office Communications Server 2007 starting with the planning & deployment guide, standard edition installation, user provisioning and entitlement, configuration, and finally validation. OCS 2007 will be the main emphasis of this demonstration. This session can be broken down into three parts. In the first part of the demonstration, we show the easy setup of Standard Edition 2007, this allows an organization to provide IM, peer to peer voice call capabilities immediately. The second part of the session will include an overview of complex installation topologies recommended for OCS 2007; this includes considerations for Enterprise Edition deployment, Edge server roles, various MCU roles, Mediation server and the Archiving server role. The third part of the session focuses on federation and public internet connectivity features of OCS 2007. This includes setup of Edge server roles for Public Internet Connectivity and Federation capabilities. It will also cover integration with Exchange 2007 SP1 Unified Messaging which enables an exciting set of features for end-users.

Mobility and Anywhere Access
This presentation will demonstrate the benefits of remote access and mobility features for Communicator and Exchange. The scenario will focus on how users stay connected and can work without interruption while travelling and on the go. Users continue to have access to presence and contact information and choice of communication options including mail, instant messaging, voice and multi-party conferencing. They can view documents and access SharePoint sites remotely. All these features increase productivity for the organization and are easy to set up by IT Pros. We will talk about implicit benefits of cost saving and lower help-desk calls.

VOIP Architecture
This presentation will describe to network managers and administrators the VoIP architecture of Office Communications Server 2007, demonstrate OCS’ superior quality of experience for voice and video, and describe the network requirements for implementing OCS in the data network. We will discuss Microsoft’s user-focused approach to quality with OCS, the core media stack and codecs used for VoIP in Office Communications Server 2007, and network provisioning for enterprise deployments of Office Communications Server 2007. The attendees will leave with knowledge of the advanced media technologies present in Office Communications Server 2007 and how those technologies relate to planning for a deployment in their environment.

Exchange Server 2007 SP1 Overview
This demonstration will walk through the feature enhancements introduced in Exchange Server 2007 SP1. The demo will cover a range of new technologies, from Windows Server 2008, Standby Continuous Replication and OWA 2007, to enhanced functionalities such as Mobility, end user experience and administrator management.

VOIP Topologies and Interoperability
This demonstration will expose administrators to the voice configuration and management experience in Office Communication Server 2007. We will walk through administrative tools, explore RouteHelper, and implement key deployment functionality such as dial plans, new site deployment, and least cost routing. The administrators will leave with knowledge of basic telephony deployment scenarios and options for more complex configurations.

Registration Details
Canberra Friday 16th November
Adelaide Thursday 22nd November
Brisbane Monday 26th November
Perth Wednesday 28th November

I will post the major launch events (Sydney and Melbourne) information soon. The launch events will also have technical readiness sessions brought to you by TechNet.

TechNet Updates October: Network Policy Server, NAP and WSUS 3.0

Deeps — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 03:41:00 GMT

The TechNet team is touring in October and will be speaking on the following topics:

Windows Network Policy Server and Wireless Security
In this session we will look at Network Policy Server in Windows Server 2008, and how to implement Network Access Protection. The session will start with an introduction to the Network Policy Server (NPS). We will see how it can play a valuable role in maintaining the integrity of an internal computer network. Then we will see how to deploy and configure NAP. We will show you how NAP works, and how it employs NPS. The session will also take a look at some wireless networks and why they aren’t secure. Then see how to build a secure wireless network – a really rock solid one.

What will be covered:

Network Policy Server Architecture and Functionality
Deploying and configuring Network Access Protection (NAP) for 802.1x
Why many secure wireless deployments aren’t secure
Deploying and configuring a secure wireless network

Demonstrations in this Session:

Reviewing Network Policies
Configuring NAP for 802.1x
Examining Connection Trace events
Configuring secure wireless

Deploying and managing a Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Server

This session focuses on Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) network architecture and deployment methodologies, from single server to replica hierarchies. It also covers how to migrate from WSUS 2.0 to WSUS 3 and looks at the day-to-day management of Windows Server Update Services (WSUS), including backup strategy, compliance reporting, reboot strategy, and health monitoring.

What we will cover:

What's changed in WSUS 3.0
What changed on the client
How you administer WSUS 3.0
How you migrate from WSUS 2.0

We are offering 2 sessions in some cities so you wont have to miss out this time round!
Brisbane: Session 1 - Monday 1st October
Brisbane: Session 2 - Tuesday 2nd October
Sydney: Session 1 - Monday 15th October
Sydney: Session 2 - Monday 22nd October
Canberra: Monday 8th October
Melbourne: Session 1 - Monday 29th October
Melbourne: Session 2 - Tuesday 30th October
Adelaide: Monday 15th October
Perth: Session 1 - Friday 12th October

UPDATE: we are offering another Perth session Perth: Session 2 - Wednesday 24th October

Additional TechNet Update Sessions June

Deeps — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 03:28:00 GMT

As we have reached capacity at our upcoming TechNet Updates we are offering some additional sessions at some of cities (thanks to our branch support to make this happen). Click on below to register:

Brisbane 12th June 6pm – 8pm
Melbourne 13th June 2.30pm – 4.30pm
Perth 22nd June 9am – 11am
Adelaide 26th June 9am – 11am

Get in quick.

TechNet Updates June - Register today

Deeps — Wed, 16 May 2007 09:38:00 GMT

TechNet Updates registrations are now live. Its free so make sure you register today.

What is being covered?
Windows Vista and Windows Server Longhorn Branch Office Technologies – Level 300
In this session, we will look at the Microsoft vision for branch offices and the new options available with Windows Server 'Longhorn.' We will also discuss the benefits and challenges of consolidating servers at branch locations. We will review some of the new technologies that can play key roles in branch office scenarios, including new protocols, like Remote Differential Compression, and Windows Server 'Longhorn' enhancements, like Server Message Block 2.0. Windows Server 'Longhorn' also includes new improvements in SYSVOL and on-demand replication. We will also look at some of the exciting new Windows Server 'Longhorn' features that relate to branch offices, like policy-based Quality of Service and the Read-Only Domain Controller. Windows Server 'Longhorn' security improvements within the branch office will include secure startup and Read-Only Domain Controllers.

Windows Server “Longhorn” Terminal Services Technical Overview – Level 400
In this session, we will examine Terminal Services for Windows Server 'Longhorn'. For organizations that have remote users, Windows Server 'Longhorn' adds improvements and innovations to Terminal Services that facilitate better integration of remote and local applications on client computers, access to these same remote programs via Web browser, and a means to access remote terminals and applications across firewalls. As Windows Server 'Longhorn' will ship on x64 if can utilize more processors and RAM that x64 offers, this can increase 3.4 x increases in the number of users that a Terminal Services server can support.

Registration Details
Brisbane 12th June
Canberra 15th June
Melbourne 12th June
Sydney 19th June
Adelaide 26th June
Perth 22nd June

TechNet Update Sessions coming to a city near you

Deeps — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 03:56:00 GMT

We are coming to a city near you, again. Kleefy and Jeffa are touring in the latest TechNet Update Sessions.

Session Agenda:
Part 1, 60 mins: Group Policy Deep Dive: Managing Policy Features, Troubleshooting, Settings in Enterprise Environments

Lets face it, you’re not going to deploy Vista overnight but at some stage you will begin to think about the incremental additions to your network. So what do you need to know in order to get ready for it? There’s new policy settings and other stuff that you need to know about before you begin the deployment process. This session tells you all of them!

Part 2, 60 mins: Longhorn Server: The Technical Overview

Before you know it Longhorn Server will be upon us. There’s so much in it to understand though and so little time to understand what each bit does. In this session we’re going to go through the top 10 things in Longhorn Server that customers asked us for and we’re going to show you all about it! This will be a engaging and demo heavy session that shows you why you will want Longhorn Server!

Registrations:

Click on your city to register – places are strictly limited

Brisbane Tuesday April 3rd 2007
Adelaide Wednesday April 4th 2007
Sydney Thursday April 5th 2007
Canberra Tuesday April 10th 2007
Melbourne Wednesday May 2nd 2007
Perth Tuesday May 8th 2007

See you there!