SC 2012 Integration Packs - VMM

What do you get if you give steroids to the Windows Task Scheduler?

-          System Center Orchestrator

Orchestrator empowers IT pros as well as developers to easily develop Runbook that interoperate with 3^rd party systems to automate datacenter workloads. With a simple drag and drop interface, you`re able to do whatever you want, and a little bit more.

System Center 2012 will play a major role for the IT pro, and Orchestrator will be another mind shift in the cloud stack, with reference to automation and best practice.

Orchestrator includes over 41 built-in workflow standard activities that perform a wide variety of functions and tasks. For the integration with 3^rd paty platforms and products, and of course also Microsoft products, you can install integration packs (IPs) which will contain additional activities that extend the functionality of Orchestrator.

To summarize: System Center 2012 – Orchestrator is the glue in your private cloud.

You can grab the integration packs and extensions related to SC 2012 from here.

How to register an Integration Pack

After the download, you have to register the IP with the Orchestrator management server and then deploy it to a runbook server that has the Runbook Designer installed.

1.       Start the Deployment Manager, expand Orchestrator Management Server, right click Integration Packs to select Register IP with the Management Server. This will start the Integration Pack Registration Wizard. Click Next.

2.       In the Select Integration Packs or Hotfixes dialog box, click Add, locate the .OIP files, click Open and then Next. Finish the wizard and accept the End User Agreement (after you`ve read the Microsoft Software License Terms)

How to deploy the integration pack

1.       In the very same Deployment Manager as mentioned above, righ click Integration Packs and click Deploy IP to Action Server or Client. Select integration packs you want to deploy and click Next. Enter the name of your runbook server, add, and click next.

2.       Choose a time to deploy, select Schedule Installation and finish the wizard. If you don`t schedule an installation time, the IP will be deployed immediately after the wizard.

 Getting started with the VMM IP

1.       Logon to your runbook server and click Options and SC 2012 Virtual Machine Manager

2.       Type a name for the connection and select the proper type (in this case, Virtual Machine Manager).

3.       Configure the connector by specifying VMM configuration data and authentication. (Make sure that you have configured the authentication you choose in your environment prior to this, or else it might fail).

4.       Once this is done, you have several new options to the right in the Runbook Designer.

5.       Have fun!

Getting started with Services in VMM 2012

Dear community,

If you`re not familiar with Services in VMM 2012, I have created a tiny document where I`m trying to explain it a bit with my own words and by using a visual guidance.
Hopefully some of you will find it useful.

Download / view it from here: Getting started with Services in VMM 2012

Cheers.

System Center 2012 RC Integration Packs

Finally available.
Now it`s time to explore the glue in the System Center 2012 family. System Center Orchestrator will force the technologist to perform a mind shift. Start focusing on best practice and create automated processes so that you finally can watch all the youtube videos you want, read newspaper and drink all the coffee you can get your hands on! :-)

Read more about the release here: http://blogs.technet.com/b/server-cloud/archive/2012/02/08/microsoft-announces-availability-of-system-center-2012-release-candidate-orchestrator-integration-packs.aspx

Microsoft Private Cloud Book

2011 was such an exciting year. I became a Microsoft MVP the 1th July, and also published my book later that year. Of course it was about Cloud Computing – using Virtual Machine Manager 2012 (written in Norwegian).

A couple of weeks later, I received one of the best e-mails ever. From Mr. Aidan Finn!

And the CC`s on that mail, were the likes of Hans Vredevoort, Damian Flynn and Patrick Lownds.

They informed me that they were working on a book. “Microsoft Private Cloud” – focusing on Virtual Machine Manager 2012, and they needed a technical editor.

To get quickly to the point: I did not hesitate a single moment, and was happy to confirm that I would accept this great honor.

So my job with this book is related to review the technical content and make suggestions where it`s needed. Actually, this is a luxury job. With so many skilled authors and technicians on the team, you should prepare yourself for a really good, technical and academically compelling book, covering all the details you would require to be successful with your private cloud implementation.

Pre-order it today from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Private-Cloud-Computing-Aidan/dp/1118251474/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328561832&sr=8-1