What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution for client management, especially for day-to-day operational activities, like access management or software deployment.
What is most valuable?
The main key feature that we find the most valuable is the patching. The remote desktop is a very useful feature as well. The software deployment aspect is helpful too. These are the three core features from which we see the customers really benefit if they have a System Center Config Manager. This is especially true for enterprise organizations here.
Microsoft is being very competitive right now, and they are really investing in a lot of new features to be more competitive in the marketplace.
What needs improvement?
We are okay with all the available features.
In the future, we're looking for tighter integration with cloud solutions like Windows Intune. It is already there, however, it's still in need of some improvements. It's not straightforward in terms of the administration on offer.
We'd like the solution to make it easier to manage remote users.
It offers a very difficult cloud gateway when it comes to cloud management.
The solution does need a lot of configuration and fine-tuning, so a company will need a dedicated person who's knowledgeable in the product to manage it.
A few people complained that SCCM is very complex without CPS, depending on the SQL database, and when using SQL as a backend service. Sometimes updating the dashboard and getting the reports, can be slow. They're not getting an instant update on the database. That is where most of the customers tend to complain.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution since version 2.0 or something close to that. It may be at least 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We don't have very many issues in SCCM. It's not a plug and play software, however. From time to time it does require fine-tuning. You need the right management and administrative people in place to manage the product. This is essential in order to keep it running correctly.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have clients in both the private and public sectors.
The solution requires fine-tuning and configuration tweaks. In order to scale it, you will need a knowledgeable person to manage the process.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support from Microsoft has been good. We've been satisfied with their level of service.
How was the initial setup?
We don't find the initial setup to be complex. We've done many implementations a this point, and we find it to be straightforward. Our team is very much experts at this point. They know all the processes and they go through everything step by step.
In terms of how long it takes to deploy the solution, this question is very tricky. It's all dependant on the customers, and their environment as well as the customer's readiness to proceed. If it's a POC, where I don't have any dependencies on the customer side, that everything will be within the private network, isolated environment, I can handle a deployment within two days. We can install, configure, and make everything ready in that short amount of time simply because we don't have customer dependencies.
You do need to have the correct people in place to manage it once it's up and running. They need to be experienced and dedicated to the product.
What about the implementation team?
We're an integrator and service provider here in Bahrain, so we have done more than a couple of installations, so where our team is very confident in our ability to implement the solution on behalf of our clients.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We're actually looking at ServiceNow as a potential product to use in the future.
What other advice do I have?
We are a Microsoft gold partner.
We're noticing many users in our country moving away from Microsoft and towards AWS.
We tend to use the latest solution, or something close to that. We always are trying to keep it up to date in all the customer database and systems. Whenever there is the latest update available, we update everything immediately for our customers. The latest version may be 19.06.
While all the customers we have are currently on-prem, we are looking for cloud-based solutions going forward, due to the fact that our customers tend to gravitate towards the cloud. They are like looking for something they can easily manage. That's all clients, irrespective of whether they are in the office or are our mobile users.
I'd rate the solution eight out of ten. I really like the product, however, there's always room for improvement.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner