Throwback Thursday: Sessions from TechEd Houston

Today is my final installment of highlights from TechEd Houston! Below are some of my session picks from the last day of the conference.

• TWC: Hacker's Perspective on Your Windows Infrastructure: Mandatory Check List (DCIM-B366)
• Windows 8 Security Internals (WIN-B350)
• Real-World Windows 8.1 Deployment Note from the Field (WIN-B358)
• Providing SaaS Single Sign-on with Microsoft Azure Active Directory (PCIT-B326)
• Delivering Disaster Recovery Solutions Using Windows Server 2012 R2, Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 and Microsoft Azure (DCIM-B421)
• How IPv6 Impacts Private Cloud Deployments (DCIM-B373)
• Windows Server 2003 End of Life Migration Planning for Your Workloads (DCIM-B376)
• Upgrading Active Directory the Safe Way: Using Virtualization Technologies (PCIT-B341)

For my lists of sessions from the other days, you can find them here: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Learn Something Today from TechEd Houston

Since today is Wednesday, I'm bringing you a selection of session from Day 3 of TechEd Houston which was also a Wednesday.

• Introduction to Microsoft Azure Automation (DCIM-B347)
• Data Protection in Microsoft Azure (DCIM-B387)
• How to Rapidly Design and Deploy an Active Directory Federation Services Farm: The Do's and Don'ts (PCIT-B324)
• Leveraging Your On-Premises Directory Infrastructure to Manage Your Microsoft Azure Active Directory Identities (DCIM-B301)
• Mark Russinovich and Mark Minasi on Cloud Computing (DCIM-B386)
• Deploying and Managing Work Folders (PCIT-B322)
• Windows To Go: Deployment, Support for BYOD, and What IT Pros Need to Know (WIN-B342)
• The Agile End-to-End Story for Developers and IT Professionals (DCIM-B358)
• TWC: How You Can Hack-Proof Your Clients and Servers in a Day (DCIM-B372)

As you can see, Wednesday was a busy day at TechEd and I since I was working down in the Windows Client area on the expo floor I still have a lot of these to watch!

More From TechEd - Tuesday Sessions

It's Tuesday, so a perfect time to flashback to some sessions that looked interesting to me from Day 2 of  TechEd 2014. These are all available on Channel 9.

• Effortless Migration from VMware to Windows Server 2012 R2 Hyper-V (DCIM-B412)
• Best Practices for Integrating On-Premise Datacenters with Microsoft Azure IaaS (DCIM-B330)
• Security and Microsoft Azure IaaS (DCIM-B385)
• TWC: Data Privacy and Protection in the Cloud (OFC-B233)
• Group Policy: Notes from the Field - Tips, Tricks and Troubleshooting (WIN-B328)
• TWC: Social Engineering: Manipulations, Targeted Attacks, and IT Security (PCIT-B319)

Go forth and learn something today!

TechEd!!!

Today starts off Day 2 of TechEd!  Yesterday, I spent a lot of time working in the Microsoft Solutions area (MSE) talking about Windows and Mobility.  You can find me in the “Device Bar” today and I’ll also be at the “Ask the Experts” event this evening.

So great announcements came out during the keynote yesterday.  I can’t wait to get started with Azure Files and the new site-to-site VPN tunnels between Azure VNets.  Also, being able to deploy Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 clients to Azure for testing and development is a great addition.

While I’m here at TechEd, my fellow colleagues have been busy blogging about what’s been going on as well.  Check out some posts below:

• Yung Chow - Deploying Windows Clients in Azure and the keynote Announcement Summary
• Kevin Remde - TechEd Day 1 Diary

Don’t forget, even if you aren’t here in person you can still stream a lot of great TechEd content from ch9!

Tis the Season… Conference Season!

I admit it, I’m a bit of a conference junkie.  I love attending events, listening to interesting keynotes or panel speakers, passing through the expo areas and chatting with other IT Professionals.
There are only so many weeks in the year though and my calendar is starting to fill up with some promising events.

CITE Conference (April) -  Okay, well, you just missed this one. The last day is today. I attended it yesterday and thought it was a great conference around Consumerization of IT and Mobility in the Enterprise. I highly recommend looking for it next year. Visit their website to keep track of them via all the popular social mediums.

TechEd 2014 (May) - There is a special place in my heart for TechEd… this will be my 10th year attending and you’ll be able to find me in the Windows Client booth area.

TechDays SF (June) - Brought to you by PacITPros and hosted in the Microsoft SF office, this two day event is like a mini-TechEd bringing you similar caliber speakers talking about all the current topics.  Registration is currrently open.

Dev/IT Connections (Sept) - I was able to speak at this event in 2013, but won’t be able to attend this year.  Still, it’s a great event and I hope to be able to attend in 2015. Plus everyone needs a reason to visit Vegas, right?

That’s just a short list… Do you have any conferences you love that I should try to check out?

TechEd 2014 Content Catalog is Live!

TechEd North America is fast approaching (May 12-15th) and if you know me, you know I've been a fan of this conference for many, many years.  One of the best ways to make sure the event is enjoyable for everyone is by indicating the sessions you are interested in using the Course Catalog and building your schedule.  This gives the conference organizers an idea of the popularly of topics and speakers so the room are assigned to support the number of attendees or they can schedule repeats.  No one likes being turned away at the door or standing in the back for 75 minutes.

I took a quick look at the catalog today and here is my short list of sessions I'd want to attend. These are either topics I think are interesting and more importantly, speakers who I've seen before or know personally and I know they know their stuff. (I was going to include the course descriptions, but it was going to make this post WAY too long... click to be take to the catalog for more information.)

DEV-B312 What's New in Windows Azure IaaS

Speaker(s): Corey Sanders

PRC05 DevOps: An IT Professional’s Guide

Speaker(s): David Tesar, Morgan Webb

PCIT-B319 TWC: Social Engineering: Manipulations, Targeted Attacks, and IT Security

Speaker(s): Erdal Ozkaya, Milad Aslaner

OFC-B220 Stop, Collaborate, and Listen

Speaker(s): Jessica DeVita

CIM-B328 TWC: CSI: Windows - Techniques for Finding the Cause of the Unexpected System Takeovers

Speaker(s): Paula Januszkiewicz

WIN-B328 Group Policy: Notes from the Field - Tips, Tricks, and Troubleshooting

Speaker(s): Jeremy Moskowitz

WIN-B356 Modern Applications for IT Pros

Speaker(s): Mark Minasi

WIN-B327 Application Compatibility and Modernization in a Fast Moving, Post-XP World

Speaker(s): Chris Jackson

DCIM-B379 Competing with VMware vSphere: Microsoft Cloud Fundamentals with Virtualization

Speaker(s): Jeff Woolsey, Matt McSpirit

DCIM-B359 TWC: Pass-the-Hash: How Attackers Spread and How to Stop Them
Speaker(s): Mark Russinovich, Nathan Ide

DCIM-B318 Windows PowerShell Unplugged with Jeffrey Snover
Speaker(s): Jeffrey Snover

DCIM-B325 The Real-World Guide to Upgrading Your IT Skills AND Your Infrastructure, Part 1
Speaker(s): Joey Snow, Rick Claus

DCIM-B352 Designing Windows Azure Virtual Networks for Hybrid Cloud
Speaker(s): Joe Davies

DCIM-B416 Microsoft System Center 2012 R2: Continual Availability in the Datacenter
Speaker(s): Symon Perriman

DCIM-B417 A Practical Overview of Desired State Configuration
Speaker(s): Don Jones

DCIM-B354 Failover Cluster Networking Essentials in Windows Server 2012 R2
Speaker(s): Elden Christensen

DCIM-B373 How IPv6 Impacts Private Cloud Deployments
Speaker(s): Edward Horley

Water Bottles? What to do? What to do?

I was doing a little New Year house cleaning and realized I have way more reusable water bottles collected from conferences over the years than I can really use. I doubt there is a market for used water bottles, so I haven’t figured out what to do with all of them, but I did have an idea that would be great for future conference planners. (You heard it here first!)

Instead of giving out NEW bottles at every event, like TechEd, invite attendees to bring a previous conference water bottle and when they show it at registration, they get an entry into a special drawing for something cool.

Maybe give bonus entries for bringing a bottle from a competing conference or one that shows you are a committed alumni - 3 years prior or older maybe?

Speaking of conferences, are you attending TechEd 2014 in Texas? Registration is open!  Any other conferences on your calendar?

That Sinking "TechEd" Feeling...

Turns out, even though I not at TechEd in New Orleans, I still am experiencing that sinking feeling in my stomach, reminding me that once again I probably have too many new things to learn and probably not enough time to learn them!

There have been a lot of great announcements coming out of the conference so far and it's only half over.  Here are some highlights I recommend you check out:

• On the Springboard Series Blog - What's New for the Enterprise with Windows 8.1 by Stephen Rose.  Lots of new features to help make Windows 8 easier to support in your enterprise.
• TechEd Keynote - Get a quick overview of everything on the horizon from Microsoft.
• Transform the Datacenter - Jeffery Snover and Jeff Wollsey cover the 3 different ways you can use Microsoft technology to support datacenter operations in the cloud, on-premise or in hybrid forms.

And if you REALLY don't know where to begin, click here and see a list of available presentations sorted by the most views.

Happy learning!

TechEd 2013 Is Just Around the Corner!

One of my most favorite IT Pro conferences is Microsoft TechEd.  This year would have been my 10th TechEd to attend in a row, but alas, I have a conflict and won't be there this year.  Still, I wanted to mention a few things you might want to check out if YOU are going to be there.

• If it's your first time attending, you want to be sure to grab some sessions from some historically popular speakers. You can't go wrong making sure that Jeffrey Snover, Greg Shields, Mark Russinovich, Mark Minasi, Stephen Rose, Paula Januszkiewicz, J. Peter Bruzzese, and Chris Henley are on your schedule.  Or at least a few of them. :-)
• Don't forget to check out the great TechEd Primer on the Springboard Series Blog
• Sometimes it can get overwhelming to sit in breakout session after breakout session. Don't overlook the smaller venue Birds-of-a-Feather topics where the conversations can be more intimate and detail oriented.
• If you are in certification mode, exams are 50% off!
• Are you a woman in technology?  Do you know a woman in technology? Enjoy a sit-down lunch served while listening to a panel discussion at the Women in Technology Luncheon.  Support your female colleagues and beat the lunch line - win, win!
• If it's not your first time attending and you think you have the "stuff" to present at a future TechEd, don't hesitate to participate in Speaker Idol. Hosted by Richard Campbell from RunAs Radio, you can win an all expenses paid speaking slot at the next TechEd.  The only rule is that you can't have presented a TechEd breakout session in the past. 
• What to make connections that last longer than a week? Don't forget about the Community Resource Zone where you learn about resources to expand your professional network beyond the reach of the conference or your office walls.

No matter how you schedule your week, you won't leave New Orleans disappointed.  You'll have learned a few things, made a few new contacts and be geared up to start some new projects in the office.  If nothing else, don't forget to come back and tell me what I missed!

TechEd 2012 Session Recap

As is likely with many of you, when I return from a conference that has taken me out of the office for more than a day or so, I have plenty of email and tasks to catch up with.  Now that I have a little bit of wiggle room, it's time to try to watch all the sessions I missed at TechEd.

There is one little problem when you are mostly an IT generalist and attend a multi-track conference event.  You simply can't be everywhere you want to be.  I'm so glad that sessions from TechEd are available after the conference for review, otherwise I'd miss out on some great stuff.

Here are some highlights of some of the sessions I attended or viewed so far:

EXL304 An Inside View of Microsoft Exchange 2010 SP2 - I listened to this yesterday and it highlights all the new features in SP2. Most are geared toward either multi-site or multi-tenant needs, but GAL segmentation might be useful for smaller organizations too, depending on your business needs. There are also over 600 bug fixes!

VIR317 Lessons from the Field: 22 VDI and RDS Mistakes You'll Want to Avoid - a lively session with more RDS than VDI mistakes, particularly geared toward farms with more than one RDS Host.

SIA312 What's New in Active Directory in Windows Server 2012 - A great summary of some of the cool AD features that come with Server 2012, particularly support for virtualized domain controllers while avoiding issues like USN Rollback.

WCL324 IPv6 Bootcamp: Get Up to Speed Quickly - IPv6 is here and if you are running Windows 7, you've already deployed it.  So don't forget to spend a little time becoming more "in the know" about what's probably already on your network.

And my to-do list of sessions to watch later!

• SIA402 - How to (un)Destroy Your Active Directory: Reloaded
• WSV321 - Windows PowerShell Crash Course
• SIA300 - Ten Deadly Sins of Administrators about Windows Security
• VIR308 - What's New in Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V, Part 1
• VIR309 - What's New in Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V, Part 2

 I didn't provide links to each session, but you can find them at MyTechEd or on MSDN's Channel 9.

Hello TechEd NA!

Today I landed in *rainy* Orlando to attend my 9th Microsoft TechEd.  I know it's my 9th because this year marks the 20th anniversary of the conference and alumni were given a button to write in how many years they've attended.

I couldn't remember the exact number I'd been to offhand, so since I had to look it up, I'll list them out here for those of you who've been attending along with me.  Perhaps we should have a 9-year veteran meetup!

2012 - Orlando, FL
2011 - Atlanta, GA
2010 - New Orleans, LA
2009 - Los Angeles, CA
2008 - Orlando, FL
2007 - Orlando, FL
2006 - Boston, MA
2005 - Orlando, FL
2004 - San Diego, CA

I have to say that my favorite locations so far have been San Diego, Boston and New Orleans. 

Finally, here a two quick tips for those of you who are first timers. 

1) If you feel like you must leave a sesson, don't try to race to another one in the same time slot.  Either network down on the event floor or in the community areas, or stick with your first pick and find that one nugget of good info to take away.
2) Do not try to attend a session in every available slot of every day.  You will burn out by Wednesday and I will recognize you in the lunch line by the information that is suddenly dripping out of your ears.

TechEd 2011... Come and Gone!

Time sure flies when you spend nearly a week in conference-land!  I had a great time at TechEd in Atlanta this year, I spent a lot of time catching up with other Microsoft MVPs, staff and favorite vendors as well as making some new friends.  I also had a great time talking to other attendees about Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) during my session and in the Technical Learning Center during the week.

I didn't catch as many sessions as I hoped to this year, but you and I can check out the recorded sessions at MSDN's Channel 9.  I caught some sessions on Exchange 2010, but missed one on transitioning to Exchange 2010 because the room filled right before I arrived!  That will be on my to-do list when I return to the office next week for sure.

Next year, TechEd returns to Orlando in June.  Bring your walking shoes, as always.

TechEd 2011... Here I Come!

Are you gearing up for TechEd 2011 in Altanta, GA?  If so, I hope to see you around!

This year, I'm not only looking forward to attending some of the sessions and events, but I'll also be presenting on MDOP.  If you want to check out some the tools in the MDOP and see some demos, be sure to add "WCL311: Solving Common IT Pro Pain Points with the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack" to you schedule.

Other things on my schedule this year are spending some time working the MDOP booth in the TLC area, hitting several of the Exchange 2010 sessions and enjoying the "Women in Technology" luncheon.

I'll miss out on the Attendee party this year, but I expect it will be a great way to unwind after a packed 4 days of learning and networking.

Surviving TechEd

TechEd 2011 is drawing near, so I thought I'd share my personal list of “Rules to Survive TechEd”. Perhaps they will help you this year in Atlanta or at another multi-day conference you might have coming up.

1. Register Early; Your Hotel is Key – Unless you have some special requirement or reason to stay at a particular hotel, you should register as early as possible so that you can pick a hotel within what you would consider walking distance to the conference center. I hate being at the mercy of the shuttles every morning.
2. Prepare to Walk a Mile in Your Shoes – Most conference centers are large sprawling venues, last year TechEd spanned over a mile within the New Orleans Conference Center. Wear comfortable shoes and expect to get some exercise.
3. Food and Beverage – Conference fare varies from year to year and location to location and it’s not always the highlight of the event. While some previous TechEds provided a hot breakfast and lunch, that’s not always the case. Also, depending on the contract of the venue, you may not find the soda brand of your choice provided. So you might have to make other arrangements or be flexible. The reality is that no matter what food is provided, not everyone is going to be happy.
4. Know Where You’d Like To Be (but don’t expect to be everywhere) – Every year I as I work on building my schedule, I find that I want to be in several sessions at the same time or attend a session in every possible time slot. With over two dozen learning opportunities during the course of TechEd, my brain is simply on track to seize up and crash if I don’t pace myself. Take advantage of the content that will be posted online post-conference and skip a session or two. It's amazing what a little down-time can do for you.
5. Don’t Jump Sessions – It’s annoying when you have multiple sessions to choose from in one time slot and the one you decide on is a dud. However, don’t try to run over to your next pick. By the time you walk to the session, you’ll have missed a good portion of it and will likely not get as much out of it as you’d hope. Either stick with your first pick (since you’ll likely find at least one “jewel” to take away from it) or bail and take that time to hit a TLC or community lounge area – you might find an answer to a burning question there instead.
6. How Much Swag Do You REALLY Need? – Seriously, a dozen vendor T-shirts? That flying pig? Another plastic thingamabob that glows green? I managed to get to the conference with only carry-on bags and I like to save those checked baggage fees for something other than branded pens and blinking buttons. Until vendors start bringing a stash of shirts smaller than an XL, I’ll keep swag collection to a minimum.  I prefer taking away new ideas for implementing technologies in my work or making new contacts for future conversations.

I'm looking forward to another great conference full of networking and learning opportunities.  If you don't pass me tearing from end to end between sessions, look for me at the MDOP booth in the TLC.

Get What You Need from TechEd 2011

If you are planning on attending TechEd 2011 in Atlanta this May, don't wait until the schedule is set to wonder if there will be sessions that strike your fancy.  Take a few minutes to weigh in with the Session Preference Survey.

I've attended TechEd for several years now and really enjoy the sessions and opportunities to connect with other systems administrators. It's great to hear about other people's experiences with Microsoft technologies and software. Sometimes there is so much information, I have trouble keeping up with the events schedule!

Can't decide if you want to go or need to convince your boss?  Check out the rest of the TechEd website for what to expect and some resources for making your case.   Maybe I'll see you there!

My TechEd Session Wish List

Had a great time at TechEd this year, do not get me wrong. But like all the other conferences of the past, there is often too much good stuff to get it all in.

This year, just about all the breakout sessions are available online. While some may think this reduces the value of actually attending the conference, I disagree. The more intimate sessions, like Birds-of-a-Feather and the “Interactive” style sessions were not recorded. So when I could, I attended those sessions over the traditional breakouts, chatted with Microsoft experts in the TLC areas, or spent time networking with others in the Expo and Community Lounge.

If I could have tailored TechEd to fit my schedule and I had more than 4 days, here are the sessions I would have attended. I did get to a few of them during the conference, they are marked with a (*). Since it will probably take me a while to view all the ones I missed, if you caught one of these and it’s especially good or bad, comment and let me know!

Management Track
MGT314* – Technical Introduction to Microsoft System Center Essentials 2010

Office & SharePoint
OSP314* – Microsoft Outlook and Exchange 2010: Better Together Overview
OSP208 – Microsoft Office 2010 for IT Professionals
OSP203 – (SharePoint) Designing Governance: How Information Management and Security Must Drive Your Design

Security, Identity & Access
SIA333 – Useful Hacker Techniques: Which Part of Hackers’ Knowledge Will Help You in Efficient IT Administration?
SIA230 – Why Security Fixes Won’t Fix Your Security
SIA306 – Night of the Living Directory: Understanding Windows Server 2008 R2 Active Directory Recycle Bin, Undeletion and Reanimation

Unified Communications
UNC303* – Upgrading from Microsoft Exchange Server 2003/2007 to Exchange Server 2010: Tips, Tricks and Lessons Learned
UNC307* – What’s New in Archiving, Retention, and Discovery in Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 SP1
UNC201 – Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 SP1: An Overview of What’s Coming
UNC306 – Going Big! Deploying Large Mailboxes with Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 without Breaking the Bank
UNC203 – What’s New in OWA, Mobility, and Calendaring in Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 SP1
UNC301 – Microsoft Exchange Server 2010: Sizing and Performance – Get It Right the First Time

Virtualization
VIR310 – Networking and Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V: Deployment Considerations
VIR403 – Virtualization FAQ, Tips and Tricks
VIR316 – Remote Desktop Session Host vs. Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Smackdown

Windows Client
WCL304 – Best Practices Guide to Managing Applications
WCL205 – Windows 7 Deployment Tips from Early Adopters

Windows Server
WSV208* – Best Practices in Architecting and Implementing Windows Server Update Services (WSUS)
WSV333 – DNSSEC and Windows: Get Ready, ‘Cause Here It Comes!
WSV201 – 10 Hot Topics Every IT Admin Needs to Know about Windows Server 2008 R2
WSV303 – Death of a Network: Identify the Hidden Causes of Lousy Network Performance
WSV301 – Administrators’ Idol: Windows and Active Directory Best Practices
WSV307 – Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

Developer Tools, Languages & Frameworks DEV211 - Microsoft Professional, Master and Architect Level Certifications: Notes from Those Who Have Conquered and Lived to Tell the Tale

Notes from TechEd

Hope all the TechEd attendees have been enjoying themselves – I know I’ve been busy racing from one end of the conference center to the other. Turns out that the conference center is about 1.5 miles long and TechEd is spread throughout a mile of it. And it never fails, the next place I have to be is always the furthest point from where I am the moment before.
So far, I’ve been concentrating on sessions around Exchange 2010, so look for some Exchange and Outlook related posts as soon as I get a little bit more time to get everything I’ve been learning straight in my head.
This morning I’m starting out with a session on some technology that’s pretty critical to most systems administration – WSUS. I know it’s time for me to review and potentially adjust how we monitor and update computers in the office and I’m hoping this WSUS session will help move those tasks higher up on my project list.

Check out the IT Grand Prix to TechEd

Start Your Engines! The IT Grand Prix is coming!

Four teams of Microsoft Certified Professionals are revving their engines! From June 1 through June 4, 2010, they’ll race from Washington D.C. to TechEd 2010 in New Orleans, where the winning team will award a $10,000 check to the charity of their choice.

Along the way, they'll overcome challenges and help local non-profits. But they need your help: pick your favorite team, join their virtual Pit Crew, and help them meet the challenges they’ll face during the race by solving on-line challenges to earn points for your team. It’s your opportunity to help four great causes in a way that only MCPs can.

Register for an online Pit Crew today – I’m on the Red Team, but all four teams are racing for some great causes!

On the Tech Radar: Upcoming Events

Looking for some technology events for your calendar in the upcoming months? Here are a few that you might want to check out.

Start out April with the regular Pacific IT Professionals meeting on April 6th. Hear from Neustar about their Webmetrics and UltraDNS solutions. Also, PacITPros will also be having a special TechDays event on Computer Forensics on April 12th. Sign up soon to secure your spot!

A one day Windows Intelligence event is being held in Burlingame on April 26th, hosted by QuickStart Intelligence and Microsoft. Technical tracks include Windows 7, Server 2008 R2 and Virtualization, Exchange and Office.

On June 10th, the Microsoft and Citrix will team up and come to San Francisco to talk about desktop virtualization. Other cities and dates are on the schedule from now through June as part of the 2010 Virtualization Summit.

Finally, don’t forget some of the multi-day events, which are always a lot of fun – the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas (April 19-23) and TechEd in New Orleans in June.