Linking to ConfigMgr Reports through right click tools

One of the cool things about ConfigMgr is that you can add in your own tools as right click menu items.  There are some really good ones out there.  In my environment, I have some GUI tools I have for boundary and collection creation that are used to enforce naming standards as well as perform additional steps to help eliminate human error.  I recently decided that I would like to leverage this function to open up ConfigMgr reports and pass the parameters from the console to the report. Continue reading “Linking to ConfigMgr Reports through right click tools”

VSCode script template with logging

I recently created an alternative version of the script template. This one is for PowerShell scripts and includes additions for the logging that I do both within a log file and Event Viewer. I am including the template and the code to add to VSCode to make it a snippet. I also have the code and snippets for adding the logging within the script. Continue reading “VSCode script template with logging”

ConfigMgr Technical Previews 1805 and 1806

Technical Previews 1805 and 1806 have been released and each introduced some cool features I cannot wait to test out.

Technical Preview 1805

  • CMPivot – This has to be the coolest feature add in a long time and will be a game changer.  Gone should be the days of the Slow Moving System (SMS).  It is a query tool that lets admins get real-time data on clients.  You are able to query against connected devices and no longer have to wait for inventory.
  • Current logged in user – Get information on the current logged in user of a system in the console.
  • CMTrace – This lovely log viewing tool in now installed by default with the client install

Read up on other changes at https://cloudblogs.microsoft.com/enterprisemobility/2018/05/14/query-real-time-client-data-with-configuration-manager-technical-preview-1805/

Technical Preview 1806

  • 3rd Party Updates – You can now subscribe to 3rd party update catalogs from within the console and publish to your software update points.  ConfigMan will also sync with the catalog periodically to keep them up to date.  I haven’t had a chance to test and see if this requires SCUP to still be installed somewhere.
  • Package conversion manager – This tool in now part of ConfigMgr and can be used to convert classic packages to modern applications.

 

 

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Using VSCode snippets to apply your script template

Previously I wrote about the need for standardizing scripts and showed the template that I made. The question is how to easily start your scripts from the template.  You can open the template and save it as a new file but I think that is extra work I do not want to do.  If your script editor allows for the use of code snippets, things become easier.  My editor of choice is Visual Studio Code (VSCode) and I will show you how to create a code snippet for your template.  You can use this to easily add repeatable code to your scripts.  Again, this is being done with VSCode which is what I recommend as I love the script analyzer that it has as well as the ability to expand its functionality with community created extensions. Continue reading “Using VSCode snippets to apply your script template”