This blog post addresses the Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 support questions you’ve been asking about for Configuration Manager and Endpoint Protection.
Question: Which versions of Configuration Manager will support Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2?
Answer: We are adding support for Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1 in both System Center 2012 Configuration Manager (includes Service Pack 1 and R2) and Configuration Manager 2007 with SP2 (includes Configuration Manager 2007 R2 and Configuration Manager 2007 R3). This support and any required updates will be available in the same timeframe as System Center 2012 R2.
More information:
System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager:
We will add site server and site system support for the following operating systems:
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
We will add client support for the following operating systems:
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Service Pack 1:
We will add the following operating systems to our client support matrix with the release of Cumulative Update 3 for Service Pack 1:
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
Note: Computers with these operating systems will also be able to host a distribution point.
All site system roles - with the exception of site servers and SMS Providers - can be deployed to servers with the following operating system editions:
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
Note: Limited operating system deployment support for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 will be provided with the release of Cumulative Update 3 for Service Pack 1. The Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (Windows ADK) for Windows 8.1 is not supported with Service Pack 1; however, all of the standard capture and deployment methods (PXE, boot media, standalone-media, etc.) will be supported with the use of an imported Windows PE 5.0 boot image. Image maintenance actions, such as applying software updates to an OS image or boot image management that require the new Windows ADK will not be supported. Those actions will need to be performed offline on a computer that has the Windows ADK for Windows 8.1 installed. Additional documentation will be provided on the manual steps required to perform these actions. The Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (Windows ADK) for Windows 8.0 is not supported on Windows Server 2012 R2. This prevents the support of site servers and SMS Providers on Windows Server 2012 R2.
Configuration Manager 2007 Service Pack 2
As with System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Service Pack 1, we are adding the following operating systems to our client support matrix in Configuration Manager 2007 with SP2 (includes Configuration Manager 2007 R2 and Configuration Manager 2007 R3):
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
Note: Though these will be fully supported as clients, there is no plan to add support for deploying these as operating systems by using the Configuration Manager 2007 operating system deployment feature. Also, no site servers or site systems will be supported on any version of Windows Server 2012 R2.
Question: Which versions of Endpoint Protection will support Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2?
Answer: We are adding support for Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1 in both System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection (includes Service Pack 1 and R2) and Forefront Endpoint Protection (FEP) 2010 with Update Rollup 1 applied. This support and any required updates will be available in the same timeframe as System Center 2012 R2 general availability.
More information:
System Center 2012 R2 Endpoint Protection:
We will add support for the following operating systems:
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection Service Pack 1:
We will add the following operating systems to our client support matrix with the release of Cumulative Update 3 for Service Pack 1:
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
Forefront Endpoint Protection 2010 with Update Rollup 1
As with System Center 2012 Endpoint Protection Service Pack 1, we are adding the following operating systems to our client support matrix in FEP 2010 with Update Rollup 1 applied:
- Windows 8.1 Pro
- Windows 8.1 Enterprise
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
- Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
Note: For FEP 2010 with Update Rollup 1 no site systems will be supported on any version of Windows Server 2012 R2.
--The Configuration Manager Team
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties and confers no rights.