What is Windows Intune?
Windows Intune helps businesses manage and secure PCs using Windows cloud services.
What am I getting in the Windows Intune subscription?
It's a powerful combination of cloud services for management and protection and Windows upgrade licensing—rolled into a single license and subscription.
With the Windows 7 Enterprise upgrade included in the subscription, customers can get the best Windows experience with Windows 7 Enterprise or standardize on the Windows version of their choice.
How does an IT staff benefit from Windows Intune?
With the Windows Intune cloud service, IT staff can remotely perform a number of essential management tasks including Microsoft updates, malware protection, and inventory management so IT and end-users can remain productive from virtually anywhere—all that's required is an Internet connection.
How does Windows Intune lower my Total Cost of Ownership?
By leveraging the power of the cloud, Windows Intune helps IT staff relieve the burden of managing and maintaining a complicated PC infrastructure, which translates to more IT efficiency, user productivity, security and cost savings.
Microsoft recently commissioned a study from IDC that revealed a total savings of $702 per PC, per year, with Windows Intune, which includes savings from IT labor reduction of $521 per PC, per year, user productivity savings of $63 per PC, per year, and cost recovery from not having to use other tools at an average of $118 per PC, per year.
What type of business is Windows Intune designed for?
Windows Intune is designed for businesses without existing PC management infrastructure that need a cost-effective, simple way to manage and protect their PCs. Whether you are in search of a solution that can deliver the essentials of management and protection for all your PC's or just those hard-to-reach PCs—highly distributed workers, non-domain joined PCs, field employees, or recent acquisitions—Windows Intune can help.
What can I do with the Windows Intune cloud service?
1) Manage Updates:
Centrally manage the deployment of Microsoft updates and service packs to all PCs
2) Protect PCs from malware:
Help protect your PCs from the latest threats with centralized endpoint protection built on the award-winning Microsoft Malware Protection Engine.
3) Proactively monitor PCs:
Receive alerts on updates and threats so that you can proactively identify and resolve problems with your PCs—before they impact end users and your business.
4) Provide remote assistance:
Resolve PC issues, regardless of where you or your users are located, with remote assistance.
5) Track hardware and software inventory:
Track hardware and software assets used in your business to efficiently manage your assets, licenses, and compliance
6) Set security policies:
Centrally manage update, firewall, and endpoint protection policies, even on remote machines outside the corporate network.
Is the Windows Intune cloud service complicated to setup?
There is NO on-site infrastructure for you to deploy, which means you can start managing a PC in no time. Windows Intune delivers PC management capabilities through a cloud service. A simple web-based console gives you immediate visibility into what's going on across all your managed PCs.
Do I need to install client software on the PCs I wish to manage?
Yes, the Windows Intune cloud service requires the client software to be installed on each PC you would like to manage
Can my IT consultant setup and manage the service for me?
Yes, Windows Intune can be used by your IT consultant to provide PC management and support. IT consultants can remotely manage, help protect PCs, and assist end users based virtually anywhere.
Can Windows Intune manage virtual machines?
Yes, Windows Intune can be used to manage supported versions of Windows when running in a virtual machine. Windows Intune customers will be able to manage one virtual machine in addition to the physical device as part of their Windows Intune subscription.
Can Windows Intune be used to manage servers?
Windows Intune is designed to help customers protect and manage their PCs and cannot be used to manage servers.
What is the maximum number of PCs I can manage with Windows Intune?
Windows Intune can be used to manage up to 20,000 seats in a single account. The infrastructure is highly scalable and will be able to manage a larger number of seats per account in future versions. A customer may choose to have multiple accounts, but the maximum number of seats that can be managed on a single account in v1 is 20,000.
What is the difference between Windows Intune, the Microsoft Update service, and the Windows Software Update Service?
With Windows Intune, you get the same list of updates as the Windows Software Update Service (WSUS), with the same level of control. Windows Intune works over the cloud like Windows Update and Microsoft Update, but you don't need on-site infrastructure. Updates are delivered directly to any of your managed PCs that have an Internet connection.
What's the difference between the endpoint protection included in Windows Intune and Forefront Endpoint Protection?
The endpoint protection included in Windows Intune is powered by the same Microsoft Malware Protection Engine used by Forefront Endpoint Protection and can deliver alerts and infection reports in a similar manner. Windows Intune also takes advantage of many of the updates made to Forefront Endpoint Protection 2010 to deliver business-class endpoint protection.
Can I use Windows Intune endpoint protection to replace my current antivirus software?
Yes, you can use Windows Intune to replace your current malware protection. This is the recommended approach, because it will give you access to the centralized malware protection policies and reporting of Windows Intune.
What kind of alerts does Windows Intune provide?
You can view alerts by the alert type, by PC groups, or on an individual PC basis. You can also use filters to view alerts of a specific security level and display alerts that are active or that have been closed. A variety of predefined alerts are available.
Here are a few key alerts...
1) Security Alerts: Let you know right away when you've got a threat, so you can take care of it immediately.
2) Update Alerts: Notify you when new updates are available and can even track deployment progress—so you can identify which PCs have or have not successfully downloaded the update.
3) Disk Space Alerts: Let you know if PCs are running low on disk space, so that you can upgrade hardware before space becomes an issue.
How do I get alerted when a user has an issue and needs assistance?
Administrators can have alerts forwarded to their email and to other assigned administrators so that they are immediately notified of potential issues and requests for remote assistance—even when they aren't logged into the console. When you log into the Windows Intune web console and click on the System Overview and Alerts status pages, you can view all active alerts.
Does Windows Intune need Active Directory to work?
Windows Intune does not rely on Microsoft Active Directory to organize the managed computers. Regardless of a computer's domain membership, you are free to organize its group membership in Windows Intune however it works for you.
What types of reports can I create?
With Windows Intune, you can generate reports for major function areas. There are four template-based reports:
1) Update Report: Easily select report criteria based on product categories, update classifications, and computer groups to quickly identify updates that have failed to be installed on computers in your organization, see how many updates are needed by computers, and determine how many updates have been installed.
2) Software Report: Get a full list of the applications installed on all your computers, including version numbers, so you can better analyze the specific needs of users in your organization.
3) License Purchase Report: Compare inventoried volume-licensable software titles with your current license agreement coverage for those software titles according to the Microsoft Volume Licensing service. This report can help you identify possible gaps in license agreement coverage that your organization may have.
4) License Installation Report: Compare software that has been discovered on computers that you manage with your current license agreement coverage. Installation reports can help you determine whether your organization has adequate license agreement coverage for all product installations in selected computer groups.
NOTE: For enhanced reporting functionality, data can be imported into other reporting tools for further analysis. For example, you can export data as a comma-separated-value (CSV) file and import it directly into Microsoft Excel. Then you can organize the data into a view that's most helpful for you.
Do my PCs have to be online when I run reports?
No, reports are generated based on the information that was presented to the service the last time the computer was online.
If I use Windows Intune, does it mean that Microsoft is going to manage my PCs for me?
No, Windows Intune is a tool that can help your IT staff or IT consultant easily manage your PC environment.