I ran in to a few issues during the deployment that I figured would be worth writing a blog post about, maybe they will help someone else out there if they encounter the same issue. Thus, a cloud distribution point is typically used as a fallback source for intranet-based clients. Use a cloud distribution point as a fallback content location 3. They randomly select a cloud distribution point. Cloud distribution points use the following standard blob storage depending upon the deployment model: An Azure Resource Manager deployment use Azure locally redundant storage (LRS). The Cloud Management Gateway is a virtual instance within Azure that enables the management of SCCM clients that are not located in the local network. In addition to that: No additional servers or systems are necessary for Bitlocker Management; Configuration policies can be customized for laptop and desktop computers; A cloud distribution point is a Configuration Manager distribution point that is hosted as Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) in Microsoft Azure. All rights reserved. For more information, see CMG server authentication certificate, and the following subsections, as necessary: The cloud distribution point uses this type of certificate in the same way as the cloud management gateway. If you only distribute a certain piece of content to a single cloud distribution point, and a large number of clients try to download this content at the same time, this activity puts higher load on that single cloud distribution point. The Configuration Manager client automatically determines whether it’s on the intranet or the internet. They only use internet-facing distribution points or cloud distribution points. This version is the last to support creation of these Azure deployments. Use the deployment option to Download content from distribution point and run locally. To reduce complexity, Microsoft recommends using a certificate issued by a public provider. Asset Intelligence, Asset Intelligence allows your Licensing Administrator to monitor applications that have been installed and where, keep track of the number of installations, and determine which applications are being used. Depending upon your PKI design, this certificate can introduce additional complexity to the deployment of the cloud distribution point. Pricing for data transfer is tiered. The size of the content that clients download, The length of time allowed to meet your business requirements, Server authentication certificate issued by public provider, Server authentication certificate issued from enterprise PKI. That’s why we released a detailed installation guide a couple of months ago. If you install cloud distribution points in multiple regions, and a client receives more than one in the content location list, the client might not use a cloud distribution point from the same Azure region. 1. This feature doesn't enable support for Azure Cloud Service Providers (CSP). A classic deployment with Configuration Manager version 1810 or earlier uses Azure geo-redundant storage (GRS). You can't resize the Azure VMs used for the cloud distribution point. With these improvements, it has never been easier to setup the CMG. SCCM Cloud management gateway (CMG) is an Azure service (PAAS) to manage SCCM client over the internet. Starting in version 1806, use cloud distribution points as source locations for pull-distribution points. If you want clients on your internal network to use a cloud distribution point, then it needs to be in the same boundary group as the clients. Remote actions For more information on this immediate value from co-management, see the quickst… When doing so, you also need a. Classic service deployment: Create this type only at a primary site. The classic deployment wasn't using the additional features of GRS. For more information, see Configure boundary groups. 1610 – Cloud Management Gateway Configuration Manager 1610 introduced a new feature to manage clients on the internet - the Cloud Management Gateway. Configuration Manager doesn't migrate existing classic cloud distribution points to the Azure Resource Manager deployment model. SCCM Cloud Management Gateway Deployment Notes Hi All, I've been working this week on getting the new Cloud Management Gateway that was introduced in Configuration Manager 1610 deployed. Use a content-enabled cloud management gateway by enabling the option to Allow CMG to function as a cloud distribution point and serve content from Azure storage. Introduction. SCCM Cloud DP VM provides URL of blob storage and an access token to SCCM client. It doesn't require this management certificate. These VMs aren't a part of your on-premises environment, as is the case with infrastructure as a service (IaaS). Each cloud service has a dynamic IP address. Since Configuration Manager is a complex application that can become overwhelming to navigate without the proper expertise and experience, partnering with a managed services provider (MSP) like Dalechek can provide your organization with a dedicated engineer team that will configure your investment in MECM to work with you. To help reduce the number of data transfers from cloud distribution points by clients, use one of the following peer caching technologies: For more information, see Fundamental concepts for content management. While you can't configure the number of VM instances for the cloud distribution point in Configuration Manager, if necessary, reconfigure the cloud service in the Azure portal. The cloud distribution point deployment with Azure Resource Manager continues to use the classic cloud service, which the CSP doesn't support. The site server needs to create outbound connections to the Microsoft cloud. If you want a cloud-first design, then design your boundary groups accordingly. It greatly simplifies the configuration required to manage clients on the Internet. Don't distribute Microsoft software updates to a cloud distribution point. Azure secures and updates the virtual machines. Each cloud distribution point service uses two Standard A0 VMs. Link users, devices, and apps with Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) 5. You don't need to open any inbound ports to your on-premises network. The design of the cloud distribution point uses Azure platform as a service (PaaS). This allows you to manage your remote workforce without creating exposure to your internal network, keeping you secure at both a client and data center level. Create new cloud distribution points using Azure Resource Manager deployments, and then remove classic cloud distribution points. The client next resolves the Azure service name, for example, WallaceFalls.cloudapp.net, to a valid IP address. With Service Map integration with System Center Operations Manager (SCOM), you can automatically create distributed application diagrams in Oper… Charges are based on data flowing out of Azure (egress or download). When you enroll existing Configuration Manager clients in co-management, you gain the following immediate value: 1. The cloud management gateway can also serve content to clients. If you issued a server authentication certificate from your organization's PKI, then your clients need to trust the issuing certificates in the entire chain. Another feature Microsoft introduction in 1610 is the Cloud Management Gateway which gives you the capability to clients over the Internet without the complex setup of the Internet Based Client Management (IBCM) and in a more secure way. Azure ExpressRoute lets you extend your on-premises network into the Microsoft cloud. Configuration Manager allows administrators to give end users access to the devices and applications they need without compromising security. The cloud distribution point is a PaaS that extends your Configuration Manager environment into the cloud. Internal and external (managed using Cloud Management Gateway - CMG) computers are supported by MECM BitLocker Management. You already have IBCM, but CMG allows you to eliminate the fairly complex infrastructure that … Cloud management gateway, or as I shall refer to it in the rest of the blog, CMG for short, is a cloud service hosted in Azure that acts as a proxy for clients. This means a new feature upgrade will be released twice annually alongside the Windows 10 feature releases, with support ending for product versions at the 18 month mark. The CMG is a PaaS and requires no management of VMs in Azure. For more information, see available Azure services in Azure CSP. Clients also need to trust this certificate. This change provides additional flexibility with your Windows 10 in-place upgrade deployments to internet-based devices. Throw in a cloud distribution point and you can serve content when the client is out in the wild. This chain includes the root certificate authority, and any intermediate certificate authorities. A management point site system role services client requests per normal. If you manually reconfigure the cloud service in the Azure portal, the number of instances resets to the default of two. When using a CMG for content storage, the content for third-party updates won't download to clients if the. To determine whether to include cloud distribution points in boundary groups, consider the following behaviors: Internet-based clients don't rely on boundary groups. Microsoft has recently moved Endpoint Configuration Manager into its continuous improvement development cycle, in lockstep with Windows 10’s release scheduling. To enable this, we have integrated System Center with a set of management services in Azure to augment the on-premises tools. Where you create the cloud distribution point depends upon which clients need to access the content. In Configuration Manager version 1810 or earlier, if using the Azure classic deployment method, you need an Azure management certificate. In 2018, Microsoft added the Cloud Management Gateway role to SCCM. Supports both intranet and internet-based clie… The client does need to trust the server authentication certificate used by the cloud distribution point. Don't distribute software update deployment packages with Microsoft software updates to a cloud distribution point. If the client trusts the cloud distribution point's server authentication certificate, it connects to Azure storage to download the content. Clients prioritize cloud distribution points last in their list of content sources, because there's a cost associated with downloading content out of Azure. ExpressRoute, or other such virtual network connections aren't required for the Configuration Manager cloud distribution point. We can do that already using SCCM Internet-based client management (IBCM). For more information, see Monitor cloud distribution points. The management point responds to the client's location request with the Service FQDN of the cloud distribution point. The cloud distribution point provides the following additional benefits: The site encrypts the content before sending it to the cloud distribution point in Azure. About DalechekDalechek is a professional IT services company and managed services provider (MSP) that can help you navigate today’s rapidly changing IT landscape utilizing MECM’s many integrated cloud management capabilities, such as the Azure Cloud Management gateway, which extends your on-prem MECM environment into Microsoft’s Azure platform. In Configuration Manager version 1906 and earlier, other options such as Download content locally when needed by the running task sequence don't work in this scenario. Manage cloud distribution points individually or as members of distribution point groups 2. In a nutshell the Cloud Management… Configure Configuration Manager to alert you when thresholds for client downloads meet or exceed monthly limits. This is especially true if you work at a large company using Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (ConfigMgr). Internet-based clients always get Microsoft software update content from the Microsoft Update cloud service. This action doesn't require that you install and provision additional distribution points in Configuration Manager. You won't be able to create a traditional cloud distribution point in the future. 4 Benefits of System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) October 20, 2020, ... such as the Azure Cloud Management gateway, which extends your on-prem MECM environment into Microsoft’s Azure platform. For more information, see Security advantages of a PaaS cloud service model. Cloud Management Gateway (CMG) is a Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager extension (MECM, previously – SCCM or System Center Configuration Manager) that provides remote device management even when the users are outside the corporate network. Otherwise, you'll incur data storage costs for content that clients never use. The distribution manager of the primary site that manages the cloud distribution point transfers all content. The SCCM Cloud Management Gateway (CMG) has been a very popular feature in the past months. There are two primary data flows for the cloud distribution point: The site server connects to Azure to set up the cloud distribution point service, A client connects to the cloud distribution point to download content. When you update Configuration Manager, the site redeploys the cloud service. For more information, see CNG certificates overview. You need an Azure subscription to host the service. For more information, see Cryptographic controls technical reference. The classic deployment method is deprecated as of version 1810. When I talk to my customers about the SCCM Cloud Management Gateway setup, the first question that will be asked is, will there be any cost associated with this service? For more information, see About source distribution points. Part 1 - Cloud management Gateway Part 2 - AAD Discovery Part 3 - Co management Part 4 - Deploying the ConfigMgr Agent through Intune Let’s bring these Co-Management blog series to an end and tie it all together with conditional access.As you could see in Part 3, we have configured “Compliance policies” as our first (and only) workload to pilot. A cloud distribution point uses the following Azure components, which incur charges to the Azure subscription account: The cloud management gateway can also serve content to clients. If you have been following the SCCM community for the past months, you’ve been hearing a lot about comanagement, cloud management gateway, cloud distribution point and Intune. The following cost information is for estimating purposes only. When deploying a cloud distribution point with Azure Resource Manager, the site uses Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) to authenticate and create the necessary cloud resources. Even though you install cloud distribution points in specific regions of Azure, clients aren't aware of the Azure regions. If you are three or more versions behind, you will not receive Configuration Manager related security updates, regardless of its severity and will not be able to leverage Microsoft for support for emergency issues or product failure. In Configuration Manager Current Branch 1806, Microsoft introduced the Cloud Management Gateway Connector Analyzer. For more information, see Monitor cloud distribution points. The client connects to the cloud distribution point. The site distributes content to this service, which stores it in Azure cloud storage. With this revolutionary new feature, organizations can now manage SCCM clients over the Internet without the need for a VPN back to the corporate network. The cloud distribution point supports several features that are also offered by on-premises distribution points: 1. This service uses virtual machines (VMs) that incur compute costs. The implementation for sharing content from Azure has changed. When you configure Windows with the following policy: System cryptography: Use FIPS compliant algorithms for encryption, hashing, and signing. Setup Guide for SCCM Cloud Management Gateway Co-Management. This functionality reduces the required certificates and cost of Azure VMs. When a client uses a cloud distribution point as a content location: The management point gives the client an access token along with the list of content sources. Supported operating systems for clients and devices, Fundamental concepts for content management, Cryptographic controls technical reference, Deploy the service certificate for cloud distribution points, Security advantages of a PaaS cloud service model, To reduce complexity, use a public certificate provider for the server authentication certificate. You can't configure a cloud distribution point as a pull-distribution point. If the client can contact a domain controller or an on-premises management point, it sets its connection type to Currently intranet. Starting in version 1806, there are three types of cloud distribution points: Azure Resource Manager deployment: Create this type at a primary site or the central administration site. For more information, see Cost for cloud management gateway. The Configuration Manager client must download the content from the cloud source before starting the task sequence. Internet-based clients either use a cloud management gateway, or an internet-based management point. In short, it's a more than welcome and helpful feature! This certificate is required for all cloud distribution point deployments. If this certificate is issued by a public certificate provider, then most Windows devices already include trusted root certificates for these providers. SCCM Cons. Applies to: Configuration Manager (current branch). Dalechek’s in-house cloud licensing specialist can also collaborate with your IT team to help ease the process of acquiring and maintaining licenses for your environment.4. Centralized IT Infrastructure Management. Configuration Manager allows you to manage the changes and configurations and helps reduce maintenance operations, decreases the response time of technical assistance and generates comprehensive and customizable reports that can be easily consumed by your organization to make important business decisions. SCCM client downloads the content from Azure Blob storage hence the scalability is very high for CDP. You may have a roaming sales force, home office users, and/or Internet-connection-only offices. You don't need to open any inbound ports to your on-premises network. For more information, see Data transfer threshold alerts. This default deployment meets most customer's needs. If you're using your domain name, for example, WallaceFalls.contoso.com, then the client first tries to resolve this FQDN. Cloud distribution point dataflows out of Azure consist of the software content that clients download. The first problem … The cloud distribution point uses Azure Cloud Services as platform as a service (PaaS). This service supports the following scenarios: Provide software content to internet-based clients without additional on-premises infrastructure, Cloud-enable your content distribution system, Reduce the need for traditional distribution points. This article will discuss four key benefits of Configuration Manager and how an MSP can help monitor and maintain your MECM infrastructure to work with your business needs. Clients must trust this certificate. As enterprise environments now span on-premises to the cloud, customers look to leverage the innovation in Azure services using their on-premises tools. Performance testing of a single cloud distribution point supported distribution of a single 100-MB file to 50,000 clients in 24 hours. One of the benefits of co-management is that you control which workloads you switch from Configuration Manager to Intune. Installing and troubleshooting an SCCM Cloud Management Gateway (CMG) can be challenging. The cloud distribution point uses two Azure VMs as the front end to the Azure storage. This change reduces the cost of the storage account. If you want clients on your internal network to use a cloud distribution point, then it needs to be in the same boundary group as the clients. In Configuration Manager version 1810 and earlier, the cloud distribution point wizard still provides the option for a classic service deployment using an Azure management certificate. The Azure Content Delivery Network (CDN) is a global solution for rapidly delivering high-bandwidth content by caching the content at strategically placed physical nodes across the world. The client authenticates itself using the access token. For more information, see the Certificates section below. To avoid this complexity, Microsoft recommends using a public certificate provider that your clients already trust. The SCCM cloud management gateway (CMG) offers the following advantages: You don’t need to expose any of your on-premise SCCM infrastructure to the Internet Get this answer and full access to our Knowledge Base of over 2,100 SCCM tutorials, help, hints, tips, and FAQs by simply signing up for your FREE 14-day, Cancel Anytime trial. The cloud management gateway provides a "simpler" way to manage ConfigMgr clients on the Internet. Alisiana Peters is a marketing specialist at Dalechek, a professional IT services company and managed services provider (MSP) headquartered in St. Louis, MO. CMG also open up different scenarios for modern device management. These systems may rarely phone home to the mothership (ConfigMgr). The more you use, the less you pay per gigabyte. This functionality will be removed in a future Configuration Manager version. Contacts us at info@dalechek.com. This post will … A cloud distribution point doesn't support App-V streaming applications. By deploying the CMG as a cloud service in Microsoft Azure, you can manage traditional clients that roam on the internet without additional infrastructure. Starting with Configuration Manager version 1806, use the Azure Resource Manager deployment model. Your environment may have other variables that affect the overall cost of using a cloud distribution point. This is similar to the Azure Cloud Proxy feature released in the Technical Preview 1606. Each instance of the cloud distribution point and cloud management gateway requires a unique server authentication certificate. For more information, see What is Azure CDN?. When using the Azure Resource Manager deployment method, integrate Configuration Manager with Azure AD for Cloud Management. If you use the classic service deployment in Azure, also back up and save a copy of the Azure management certificate. A server authentication certificate. The cloud distribution point authenticates the client's access token, and then gives the client the exact content location in Azure storage. The site server requires internet access to deploy and manage the cloud service. If possible, redeploy existing cloud distribution points through Resource Manager. Intune-based remote actions, for example: restart, remote control, or factory reset 3. The cloud distribution point supports all Windows versions listed in Supported operating systems for clients and devices. You can't use a cloud distribution point for PXE or multicast-enabled deployments. For more information on content location priority and when intranet-based clients use a cloud distribution point, see Content source priority. The Azure storage service supports 500 requests per second for a single file. If you want a cloud-first design, then design your boundary groups to meet this business requirement. Download all content locally before starting task sequence. You can't prestage content on a cloud distribution point. The Configuration Manager cloud distribution point currently doesn't support Azure CDN. This functionality reduces the cost by consolidating the Azure VMs. The management point provides to clients this content location in the list of available sources as appropriate. You can still use this option in version 1910 if needed to meet your requirements. For more information on how the client communicates with the cloud distribution point components and downloads content, see Ports and data flow. When you deploy the CMG as a cloud service in Microsoft Azure, you can manage internet clients without additional infrastructure. Implementing IBCM is a complex tasks for many companies. There is actually a specific reason for choosing Compliance Policies. This is one of the advantages of Cloud Attached SCCM. Certificates for cloud distribution points support the following configurations: Version 3 certificates. In some extreme circumstances, with a large number of concurrent client connections (for example, 150,000 clients), the processing capacity of the Azure VMs can't keep up with the client requests. This article helps you learn about the cloud distribution point, plan for its use, and design your implementation. MECM has the integrated tools to allow help desks and system administrators alike to automate their day-to-day tasks, creating significant increases in productivity. The site server initiates all communication with Azure and the cloud distribution point to deploy, update, and manage the cloud service. Conditional access with device compliance 2. SCCM – Cloud Management Gateway and Cloud Distribution Point The cloud management gateway (CMG) provides a simple way to manage Configuration Manager clients on the internet. A client authentication certificate isn't required. For more information, see Removed and deprecated features. Any dataflows into Azure are free (ingress or upload). A highly valued feature which is a great starting point to troubleshoot your Cloud Management Gateway (CMG) in case you ran in to any issues.