Microsoft Releases Windows Intune - PC Management for Businesses

Last week Microsoft (News - Alert) released the final, official version of its Windows Intune service. Now available for purchase or through a free 30-day trial, Intune lets businesses farm out their PC administration to Microsoft via the cloud.

Though Intune can probably best fill a niche among small and mid-sized businesses, it’s designed for any company that doesn’t have the time or resources to manage its PCs internally. It can be especially helpful for organizations with PCs in remote locations, a growing trend in today’s world of virtual offices. The product can also be useful to consultants who need to take care of PCs for a variety of different clients.

The Intune beta was tested by businesses of all sizes over the past year, according to Microsoft, from enterprises that need to manage thousands of PCs to SMBs whose needs are lighter.

Through Intune, Microsoft can keep your PCs up to date with the latest Windows patches and security definitions. You can also set up various security policies and keep an inventory of all your hardware and software. In addition, you can monitor your PCs to make sure they’re being properly managed and updated. A remote control option is available so that you can connect to the managed PCs.

A dedicated console is available for consultants and other admins from which you can manage all the PCs of your various clients and customers. Finally, you can run reports to check on the status of all the applications, updates, licenses, and other information on each managed PC and even export those reports into Microsoft Excel where you can sort and filter the data.

Microsoft charges $11 per computer per month for any organization that sets up Intune. But volume discounts are available for a business that buys 250 licenses or more.

To get the service running, you have to install a client PC on each individual PC. Intune can run under either 32-bit or 64-bit versions of Windows, including Windows 7 Enterprise, Ultimate and Professional; Windows Vista Enterprise, Ultimate, and Business; and Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2 or 3. Businesses can also take advantage of Intune to standardize on the same Windows version for all PCs. The cost of Intune includes free upgrade rights to Windows 7 Enterprise.

Looking ahead, Microsoft is promising to keep Windows Intune updated on a quicker basis than it updates its regular commercial software.

A recent Windows blog reveals some interesting background behind Intune, while Microsoft also provides a FAQ page with details about Intune. Those of you interested in learning even more about Intune can catch a free Technology Tune-up on March 31 at 9 a.m. PST during which time Microsoft’s own Mark Russinovich and other experts will answer questions about the service.