Why the Microsoft Solutions Framework is a good tool for System Center

The Microsoft Solutions Framework is a valuable yet often overlooked tool when working with System Center products. The MSF process model can be used as a roadmap for an Operations Manager or Configuration Manager project. 

As Microsoft states at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc785993.aspx,
the MSF process model divides the process of creating and deploying a solution into five distinct phases. These phases are:

• Envisioning
• Planning
• Developing
• Stabilizing
• Deploying

To illustrate this, look at several of the phases in the context of a System Center project:

During the envisioning phase, the project team identifies the high-level requirements and business goals, which leads to a Vision/Scope document. For a project as far reaching as an OpsMgr or ConfigMgr deployment to be successful, business goals must definitely be mapped out and agreed upon. In this sense, these deployments are no different from developing and deploying an application.

The planning phase includes identifying the features that will be implemented and determining how that will be done. Again, this needs to be done for a systems management project, not just with application development. The planning phase includes developing a project plan and schedule.

Developing includes developing the architecture that will be used for the implementation.

Each of these five phases may be repeated ... that is, you may need to go back through the phases and adjust your plan based on the results during your testing ... and then test again.

Think about the phases of the MSF and how using them can help you organize your next System Center deployment or major upgrade. While System Center activities encompass the Microsoft Operations Framework (MOF), using the MSF can help you achieve a successful implementation.

For information about the MOF and System Center, refer to my earlier posting at http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/28760, which discusses how Operations Manager and Configuration Manager include activities that support the Microsoft Operations Framework.

• Data Center
• Microsoft
• Network Management
• Software
• Configuration Manager
• Microsoft Operations Framework
• Microsoft Solutions Framework
• MOF
• MSF
• Operations Manager
• System Center