System Center MVP Cameron Fuller authored a great blog post on using a common SQL backend database for System Center.  I get this question all the time in my conversations with customers/partners and Cameron’s advice is spot-on.

http://blogs.catapultsystems.com/cfuller/archive/2012/05/23/system-center-2012–using-a-common-sql-backend-database-sysctr-scom-scsm.aspx

Couple things first.  Check out the TechEd 2012 Session on what’s coming in SC 2012 SP1:  http://northamerica.msteched.com/topic/details/2012/VIR201#fbid=ovh6LDyxJpE

Download SC 2012 SP1 CTP2 Here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30133

A few things to note about CTP2, this release contains updates to all the System Center components. See below for more information and stay tuned for additional posts describing the component updates.

Upgrade: CTP1 cannot be upgraded to CTP2 and CTP2 will not be upgradable to Beta.

Production Use: this release is not intended for production deployments, it’s targeted at giving you all an early preview of some of what’s coming in this SP1 release. And there is a lot that still has to come after CPT2!! We specifically focused on a key set of scenarios documented here for this release.

What’s New:  All components now support Windows Server 2012 RC and SQL Server 2012.

Introducing Windows Server 2012, by Mitch Tulloch, is now ready for free download! Please see the links below to download one or all of the available formats.

So, you want to get started with Windows Azure VM’s and System Center?

Well, here’s the fast track.

Check this out when you have time – Mark Russinovich @ TechEd talking about Azure Virtual Machines.

Get an Azure 3 month trial account: https://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/

Second, you need System Center App Controller SP1 CTP2.  This integration will not work with the RTM version (or any other previous version) of App Controller.  You can download it here:  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30133

• Technical Documentation for CTP2 is here:  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30134  You will probably want to download the .DOC for App Controller to read through what is supported and step-by-steps on how you do it.

We’ll configure App Controller a little later – you don’t have to have VMM installed to get the Azure piece working, but if you want to upload VM’s to Azure, you’ll need to have that integration because you can only upload VM’s from the VMM library.

When you get logged into your trial account, you may see the following screen, I did.  You may need to sign-up for the preview program.  I was approved quickly (within a few hours).

Once that’s done we have a few other details to take care.  Specifically, creating a certificate that we’ll use to connect App Controller to Azure.  You can do this with an IIS Server.  Just follow the screen shots.  The process is pretty straightforward.  We’re creating a self-signed X.509 certificate that we import into Azure and App Controller.  The steps to do this are well documented on the internet.

Click on the “Server Certificates” and then click the option to create a “Self-Signed Cert”:

Now provide a “FRIENDLY NAME” – it doesn’t have to be anything specific or match anything in Azure…call it whatever you want.

This will create and place the certificate in the local machine.  Create a custom MMC Console and connect to ‘certificates’ on the local machine.

Search by the column “FRIENDLY NAME” to match what you put in the “FRIENDLY NAME” when you ran through the wizard:

Do a right-click –> All Tasks –> Export

The first cert we will create will be the one we will upload in Azure.  Choose this option:

Use DER encoding and save the *.cer file to disk where you can easily get to it.

IMPORTANT: You’ll want to run through that export wizard again on the same cert you used to create the *.cer file and this time select the YES, EXPORT THE PRIVATE KEY option.  This is the key that you’ll use in App Controller.  This process will create a *.PFX file.

Let’s go back out to our Azure Portal.  If you are still in the 'new’ metro style interface, the easiest way to get the cert in is to go back to the previous interface.  You can do this by hovering the mouse over the green PREVIEW area at the top of the webpage and a window will fly open prompting you to go back to the older interface:

Now that you’re in the old interface – lets’ import the *.cer.  I’ve highlighted all the places that you need to pay attention to.  Use the ‘add cert’ to upload your *.cer file.  You’ll want to take note of the ‘SUBSCRIPTION ID’ as you’ll need that in App Controller to get the integration working.

Now, let’s go to App Controller.

Once everything is working right, you’ll see your Azure subscription appear and as you create VM’s using the Azure Portal, they will appear in App Controller:

You can create VM’s using the Azure Preview Portal or using App Controller:

Be sure to read the documentation (linked above) to get a more complete picture on what you can / cannot do with App Controller CTP2 and Azure.  This should get you going on the integration piece though.

Good luck!

What can I do with this thing again?

Convert-WindowsImage is the new version of WIM2VHD designed specifically for Windows 8. Completely rewritten in PowerShell, this command-line tool allows you to rapidly create sysprepped VHD and VHDX images from setup media for Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 and Windows 8/Server 2012.

What’s new in this version?

· Bug fixes (for example: bigger text on the UI to make it more readable, -Edition switch now accepts image number as well as image name, etc.)

· New switches to enable kernel debugging in the VHD(X).

· The ability to share this script with your friends, family, partners, pen pals, customers, and pets, even if they don’t work for Microsoft!

Where can I get it?

The public site is here.