SCCM Migration Checklist: Planning and Executing an Upgrade to Modern Management

10 Essential SCCM Best Practices for Configuring and Managing Windows Environments

1. Design and document your architecture

   • Define sites, site roles, boundaries, and management hierarchy before deployment.
   • Document decisions, IP/subnet boundaries, high-availability needs, and backup/restore procedures.

2. Colocate or size SQL properly

   • For most primary sites, colocate SQL with the site server unless DBAs require separation.
   • Right-size CPU, memory, and I/O; follow SQL best practices (tempdb, file placement, autogrowth, maintenance).

3. Keep Configuration Manager up to date

   • Run current branch updates soon after validation; test in a lab and pilot rings before broad production upgrades.
   • Stay aligned with supported Windows and SQL versions.

4. Harden security and use RBAC

   • Implement Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), least privilege for console/SQL access, and use HTTPS for client communication where practical.
   • Secure site server OS, restrict administrative accounts, and audit critical actions.

5. Optimize client health and deployment

   • Automate client installation and remediation; monitor client health (heartbeat, policy, inventory).
   • Use client push, Group Policy, or CCM boot images as appropriate and keep clients updated.

6. Plan content distribution and network impact

   • Use Distribution Points, Pull DPs, BranchCache, Peer-to-Peer (when valid), and maintenance windows to reduce WAN load.
   • Prestage content for remote/slow sites where needed.

7. Implement software update best practices

   • Use Automatic Deployment Rules (ADRs) for patching cadence, test and pilot updates, and perform regular WSUS/SUP maintenance.
   • Monitor compliance reports and remediate non-compliant systems.

8. Maintain collections, deployments, and cleanup

   • Keep collections efficient (use incremental membership rules judiciously), limit direct membership changes, and regularly evaluate and delete stale deployments.
   • Schedule site maintenance tasks (inventory, delta discovery, database cleanup).

9. Monitor and maintain SQL and site performance

   • Configure and schedule index maintenance, backup, DBCC checks, and monitor key metrics (CPU, I/O latency, log growth).
   • Use built-in maintenance tasks and consider tools like Ola Hallengren scripts for SQL maintenance.

10. Prepare for modern management and co-management

    • Evaluate integrating Intune (co-management) and cloud management gateway (CMG) to enable modern, cloud-attached scenarios.
    • Plan pilot migrations and lifecycle strategy for moving workloads to cloud-managed services where appropriate.

If you’d like, I can expand any item into step-by-step actions, configuration examples, or a short checklist tailored to a small, medium, or enterprise SCCM environment.