Release Cadence Changes to Microsoft Configuration Manager
This article provides information about release-cadence changes for Microsoft Configuration Manager, introducing a new release cycle starting after the release of a Configuration Manager baseline version in 2303. To learn about the changes introduced in previous updates for Configuration Manager, branding, and baselines, see What's new in Configuration Manager incremental versions, Microsoft Configuration Manager FAQ, and, Baseline and update versions. As Windows is moving to a once-a-year update model, Configuration Manager will be better aligning to that cadence by moving from three to two updates a year. The next release of Microsoft Configuration Manager after 2303 will be in September 2023, version 2309. Effectively, the xx07 and xx11 updates are being merged into an xx09 update. The consolidation of updates will roll up enhancements into this release; another outcome is reducing the number of deployments customers must manage annually. Along with better alignment to the Windows cadence and reducing CM deployment management, this change will also allow Configuration Manager to have a longer development cycle to address key customer feature asks while continuing to deliver high quality updates. With this change and the longer development cycle, the Configuration Manager 2309 update will be able to address key customer asks around policy sync, software update troubleshooting, improved alerts, dashboarding, and more. Hotfix rollups and security updates will continue to be made available as necessary to address any critical bugs. Cadence Change Summary: Starting in the calendar year 2023 customers will now receive two releases of Configuration Manager, one in March (xx03), and another in September (xx09) rather than the previous release cadence of xx03, xx07, and xx11. Baseline versions can be used to install a new Configuration Manager site and hierarchy, or to upgrade from a supported version of Configuration Manager. 2303, 2403… will be baseline releases. There will be four Technical Preview (TP) releases per year. Two will be released before each production current branch release, and one of Technical Preview release would be a baseline release. (TP Baseline are 180 days evaluation) There is no change to current branch support cadence. Each current branch version remains in support for 18 months from its general availability release date. For more information, see Support for Configuration Manager current branch versions.Cloud Attach Your Future - Part II - "The Big 3"
When the global pandemic started, we were all thrust into the new (and very lightly explored) area of managing devices remotely 100% of the time. Of course, everyone rushed to their VPN solution only to uncover new obstacles and even more significant challenges which they had never anticipated. As I talk to customers and I listen to how their management of the Windows estate has changed, I am always surprised by the lack of the "Big 3": Cloud management gateway (CMG) Tenant attach Co-management These are the essential features that you need NOW as you continue to modernize and streamline your management solution.Deploy Microsoft Edge using Configuration Manager Technical Preview 1910
Update 1910 for the Technical Preview Branch of System Center Configuration Manager has been released. The all-new Microsoft Edge is ready for business. Administrators can now deploy Microsoft Edge and its policies to users from the Configuration Manager console.Estimating Cloud Services Usage with ConfigMgr Technical Preview 1903
Update 1903 for Technical Preview Branch of System Center Configuration Manager has been released. This release introduces a new cost estimator tool in the Configuration Manager console. The tool uses data from your site database to estimate the cost of deploying the cloud management gateway.Microsoft Configuration Manager 2309 - Press release
This article provides information about Microsoft Configuration Manager 2309 release. To learn about the Configuration Manager, see Microsoft Configuration Manager FAQ. Microsoft Configuration Manager 2309 release is planned for October 2023. With this release we are bringing in new features and additional enhancements to the existing feature set. Configuration Manager 2305 Technical Preview had new enhancements, likewise, 2307 Technical Preview will bring additional capabilities to customers. Here is the list of features that are being introduced during Configuration Manager 2307 TP and 2309 Current Branch focusing on key customer value/asks and delivering high quality product updates. Some of the key additions are 1) Operating system deployment support for Windows 23H2; 2) Customers can perform Windows 11 edition upgrade like they did for Windows 10 edition upgrade from Professional to Enterprise Operating System; 3) a Windows 11 readiness dashboard for administrators or management to decide on how many devices are ready to upgrade to latest Windows 11 operating system, 4) Script runtime can be scheduled with simple steps, and customers can schedule the scripts to run on a particular time from the Primary Site time zone 5) Unified Service Orchestrator (USO) integration with Configuration Manager provides native windows update reboot experience( pre-release feature), and 6) Improvements in external notifications (Console Connectors). Furthermore we added critical customer asks such as, 1) Operating Systems Deployment (OSD) Preferred MP options which enables IT admins to choose a preferred Management point for PXE boot scenario; 2) Task Execution Status messages can now be deleted from primary servers which are older than 30 days, or any configured number of days; 3) CMG creation using third party app via console or PowerShell instead of the first party app; 4) Attack Surface Reduction (ASR) capability now marks server SKU as compliant only after enforcement is completed successfully; 5) Enable BitLocker through provisionTS task sequence option available on CM console to save the recovery key on CM database; 6) Client certificate state in console (self-signed) will now match state in control panel (PKI) applet; 7) Discrepancy in App Summarization report in console is corrected; 😎 Synchronization of collection memberships to Azure AD groups now optimized to show the entire set of members; 9) Patch downloader log size increased for troubleshooting purposes. We value your feedback on the upcoming functionalities to be released as it will contribute greatly to the enhancement of the product. Thanks, The Configuration Manager team Additional resources: What’s New in Configuration Manager Documentation for Configuration Manager Microsoft Configuration Manager announcement Microsoft Configuration Manager vision statement Evaluate Configuration Manager in a lab Upgrade to Configuration Manager Configuration Manager Forums Configuration Manager Support Report an issue Provide suggestions
