Systems Management Server
| Development status | Active |
|---|---|
| Operating system | Windows NT |
| Platform | x64 |
| Type | Systems management |
| License | Trialware |
| Website | microsoft |
System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM, also known as ConfigMgr), formerly Systems Management Server (SMS) is a systems management software product developed by Microsoft for managing large groups of computers running Windows NT, Windows Embedded, OS X, Linux or UNIX, as well as Windows Phone, Symbian, iOS and Android mobile operating systems. Configuration Manager provides remote control, patch management, software distribution, operating system deployment, network access protection and hardware and software inventory.
System Center Configuration Manager has evolved since Microsoft originally released it as "Systems Management Server" in 1994. Significant releases include:
SMS went through three major iterations:
The most frequently used feature is inventory management, which provides both hardware and software inventory across a business enterprise.
SMS 2003 saw the introduction of the Advanced Client. The Advanced Client communicates with a more scalable management infrastructure, namely the Management Point. (A Management Point (MP) can manage up to 25000 Advanced Clients.) Microsoft introduced the Advanced Client to provide a solution to the problem where a managed laptop might connect to a corporate network from multiple locations and thus should not always download content from the same place within the enterprise (though it should always receive policy from its own site). When an Advanced Client is within another location (SMS Site), it may use a local distribution point to download or run a program, which can conserve bandwidth across a WAN.
Microsoft released the current[update] generation of the product, System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, in March 2012.
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