Some organisations like to disable Java applets from running in a web browser for tighter security. This can be done with group policy, but in our organisation I already manage Java settings across the enterprise with Configuration Manager's Compliance Settings (as documented in my solution guide for Java), so I decided to use a Compliance Setting for … Continue reading Disabling Java Content in all Browsers with ConfigMgr Compliance Settings
Category: Powershell
Searching the Registry Uninstall Key with PowerShell
Here's a little PowerShell function I wrote that searches the Uninstall key in the registry for DisplayNames and product code GUIDs. I wrote it to help in finding the relevant uninstall key to use for the registry detection method when creating new applications in System Center Configuration Manager. You can use it to output all … Continue reading Searching the Registry Uninstall Key with PowerShell
PowerShell Tip: Utilizing Runspaces for Responsive WPF GUI Applications
For those with limited C# or VB.Net programming skills, using PowerShell with XAML code is a great way to create a simple GUI application. But because the PowerShell host is single-threaded, all your code must run sequentially. When you have long running commands, this can cause the GUI to freeze and be unresponsive, and you … Continue reading PowerShell Tip: Utilizing Runspaces for Responsive WPF GUI Applications
Retrieving Software Inventory for a ConfigMgr Site with PowerShell
In my last post, I demonstrated how we can retrieve software inventory information for a single ConfigMgr client or an array of clients, using PowerShell. In this post, we will change the scope from the client to the entire site. Using this script, you can query for all installations of a specific software/s in your ConfigMgr site, … Continue reading Retrieving Software Inventory for a ConfigMgr Site with PowerShell
Instant Client Software Inventory with ConfigMgr and PowerShell
Here's a simple but handy PowerShell script I wrote that uses the ConfigMgr database to retrieve software inventory information for any client. You can return the entire inventory for the client, or search for specific software. You can also pass the computer name and/or software name along the pipeline to the script, so you can … Continue reading Instant Client Software Inventory with ConfigMgr and PowerShell
Retrieving ConfigMgr Status Messages with PowerShell
Did you know you can retrieve status messages from ConfigMgr, including the message descriptions, using PowerShell? I pieced together some code I found on the internet with some of my own code, and came up with the following script. Essentially, it's the equivalent of running the "All Status Messages from a Specific System" from the status message … Continue reading Retrieving ConfigMgr Status Messages with PowerShell
Create a Database of Error Codes and Descriptions for Windows and ConfigMgr
In a recent post, I described different ways to translate error codes for Windows and Configuration Manager into their friendly descriptions. In this post, I will show you how to create a SQL database of known error codes and descriptions that you can join to in your SQL queries, to help simplify your troubleshooting, and … Continue reading Create a Database of Error Codes and Descriptions for Windows and ConfigMgr
Translating Error Codes for Windows and Configuration Manager
As a Windows and Configuration Manager administrator, I often come across error codes that need translating into their more friendly descriptions. In Configuration Manager, sometimes these codes are translated for you in the log files, reports and the ConfigMgr console, but sometimes they are not. Sometimes they will be in decimal format, and sometimes hexadecimal. … Continue reading Translating Error Codes for Windows and Configuration Manager
Checking for New Versions of Common Software with Powershell
In any enterprise environment there will be some common software that you will install on all your computers, and some of these are frequently updated to new versions, such as Adobe Flash Player, or the Java Runtime for example. So I wrote a little script that runs as a scheduled task every day and checks … Continue reading Checking for New Versions of Common Software with Powershell
Setting the Default Windows Wallpaper during OS Deployment
Note: For a Windows 10 Version, see this blog instead: https://smsagent.wordpress.com/2017/07/06/setting-the-default-wallpaper-for-windows-10-during-configmgr-osd/ Recently I was given an interesting task - set the default wallpaper on new computer builds with ConfigMgr OSD, but don't lock it such that users can't change it. It turns out it is simple enough to do, but it requires changing the default wallpaper … Continue reading Setting the Default Windows Wallpaper during OS Deployment