SCCM Interview Questions/FAQs

Part 1:

1)  Can u change a SCCM Secondary Site to Primary Site?

Ans:  a Big NO.

Explanation : A Secondary site will always be a Secondary site.We cannot upgrade, move, or change it without deleting it and reinstalling. If  you delete and reinstall, you will lose all secondary site data.

Reference : http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb693570.aspx

2) Can you distribute a package to a computer without making it a member of a collection?

Ans : Again, a Big No.

Explanation : To distribute software, Well, you need 3 things 1) a package 2) a program and 3) an advertisement.  Advertisements can be sent only to collections, not to computers. If you want to push package to a single system then create a collection for it.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb694110.aspx & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb694134.aspx

3) Can a site have more than one default management point?

Ans : No again.

Explanation: You can configure more than one management point in a site, but only one will be configured as a default.  But you can configure more than one management point and put them all in a NLB cluster and then configure the NLB cluster as a default MP.

Reference: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb632897.aspx

4) Can a secondary site have child sites?

Ans: No

Explanation: A Secondary site cannot have a primary or a secondary site reporting to it. Secondary sites are always child sites to a primary site.

References:  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb632547.aspx

5) Can you install the configuration Manager Client components without discovering the computer first?

Ans: An Absolute Yes.

Explanation: Client push installation is the only Client install method that requires the computers to be discovered first.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb680749.aspx and http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb633063.aspx

6) Does SCCM 2007 Mixed mode require a public key infrastructure (PKI)?

Ans. No

Explanation: SCCM 2007 native mode requires a PKI, but mixed mode does not. PKI authentication provides a greater level of security, but SCCM 2007 does not help you install or configure the PKI infrastructure. If you do not already have the expertise to install and configure the PKI infrastructure, you start with mixed mode and then change to native mode later.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb693811.aspx  &  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb632573.aspx

7) Can computers show up in the SCCM console before they have the SCCM client installed?

Ans: Yes.

Explanation: If you use a discovery method, SCCM can find many resources and create DDRs for them (Data Discovery Records) and these DDRs are stored in the database. But, for SCCM Features like Software distribution, software updates management and inventory will not work till you install the client components.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb680749.aspx & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb633276.aspx

8) Can you assign clients to a Secondary Site?

Ans: No

Explanation: Clients can be only assigned to primary parent site of a secondary site. SCCM very well has the intelligence on how to manage clients at a child secondary site. If there is a DP at the secondary site that has the content that clients need, the clients will fetch it from the local DP instead of accessing the content over WAN link at a primary site.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb681005.aspx & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb680569.aspx & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb680749.aspx

9) Can SCCM 2007 be used to package applications for distribution?

Ans : No.

Explanation: SCCM 2007 delivers command lines to clients and can force those command lines to run with ADMIN privilege using the local systems accounts. SCCM 2007 command lines can be batch files, scripts, windows installer files with .msi extensions, executable files – any files that the OS can run , SCCM can distribute but does not packages any software for distribution.

Reference(s): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb693873.aspx & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb892803.aspx (more FAQ on Software distribution here) & http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb632880.aspx

10) Are there any checklists or step-by-step guides to help me get started using Configuration Manager?

Ans : Yes.

Explanation: The Configuration Manager Documentation Library contains topics ranging from basic overviews to deep technical planning. Search the library for Words like “Checklist”, “Workflow”, “Step-by-step” and “Example” to find information that might help you as you start to learn the product.

References: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb693895.aspx & http://blogs.technet.com/b/wemd_ua_-_sms_writing_team/archive/2007/11/07/how-to-more-easily-search-the-configuration-manager-documentation-library-online.aspx