Ensure that your computing environment meets the supported configurations that are required for upgrading to System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP1.

Before you upgrade to Configuration Manager SP1, install the required prerequisites on each computer that hosts a site system role. Several site system roles require new or upgraded prerequisites.

For example, to deploy an operating system, Configuration Manager SP1 uses the Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (Windows ADK) instead of Windows Automated Installation Kit (Windows AIK). Before you run Setup, you must download and install Windows ADK on the site server and on each computer that runs an instance of the SMS Provider.

For general information about supported platforms and prerequisite configurations, see Supported Configurations for Configuration Manager.

For information about how to use the Windows ADK with Configuration Manager, see the Prerequisites For Deploying Operating Systems in Configuration Manager topic in the Deploying Software and Operating Systems in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager guide.

Review the site and hierarchy status and verify that there are no unresolved issues.

Before you upgrade a site, resolve all operational issues for the site server, the site database server, and site system roles that are installed on remote computers. A site upgrade can fail due to existing operational problems.

For information about the status of sites and site system roles, see Monitor Configuration Manager Sites and Hierarchy.

Install all applicable critical updates for operating systems on computers that host the site, the site database server, and remote site system roles.

Before you upgrade a site, install any critical updates for each applicable site system. If an update that you install requires a restart, restart the applicable computers before you start the service pack update.

For more information, see Windows Update.

Disable database replicas for management points at primary sites.

Configuration Manager cannot successfully upgrade a primary site that has a database replica for management points enabled. Disable database replication before you create the backup of the site database to test the database upgrade, and before you upgrade the production site to Configuration Manager SP1.

For more information, see Configure Database Replicas for Management Points.

Reconfigure software update points that use NLBs.

Configuration Manager cannot upgrade a site that uses a Network Load Balancing (NLB) cluster to host software update points. For more information, see the Upgrading from Configuration Manager with No Service Pack to Configuration Manager SP1 section in the Planning for Software Updates in Configuration Manager topic.

Back up the site database at the central administration site and primary sites.

Before you upgrade a site, back up the site database to ensure that you have a successful backup to use for disaster recovery.

For more information, see Backup and Recovery in Configuration Manager.

Disable the site maintenance task Delete Aged Client Operations on primary sites.

Before you upgrade any sites to Configuration Manager SP1, disable this site maintenance task on each primary site in the hierarchy. When this task remains active at a primary site that runs Configuration Manager with no service pack, this task deletes information about active client operations for clients that run Configuration Manager SP1. After all primary sites are upgraded to Configuration Manager SP1, you can enable this task for standard site maintenance at each primary site.

For more information about site maintenance tasks, see the Planning for Maintenance Tasks for Configuration Manager section in the Planning for Site Operations in Configuration Manager topic.

Create a copy of each built-in collection that you have modified.

When you upgrade to Configuration Manager SP1, the built-in collections are overwritten in the site database. If you have customized a built-in collection, create a copy of that collection before you upgrade.

In Configuration Manager SP1, the built-in collections are read-only and cannot be modified.

Run Setup Prerequisite Checker.

Configuration Manager SP1 introduces new prerequisite checks. Before you upgrade a site, you can run the Prerequisite Checker independently from Setup to validate that your site meets the prerequisites. When you upgrade the site, Prerequisite Checker runs again.

For more information, see the Prerequisite Checker section in the Install Sites and Create a Hierarchy for Configuration Manager topic.

For information about prerequisite checks, see Technical Reference for the Prerequisite Checker in Configuration Manager.

Download prerequisite files and redistributable files for Configuration Manager SP1.

Use Setup Downloader from the Configuration Manager SP1 source media to download prerequisite redistributable files, Configuration Manager SP1 language packs, and the latest product updates for the service pack upgrade.

For information about Setup Downloader, see the Setup Downloader section in the Install Sites and Create a Hierarchy for Configuration Manager topic.

Plan to manage server and client languages when you upgrade a site.

Configuration Manager SP1 supports the same server and client languages as Configuration Manager with no service pack, and it also supports additional languages that are introduced with Configuration Manager SP1. However, when you upgrade to Configuration Manager SP1, the site upgrade installs new versions of each language pack.

When you run Setup, Setup reviews the current language configuration of your site, and then identifies the language packs that are available in the folder where you store previously downloaded prerequisite files. You can then affirm the selection of the current server and client language packs, or change the selections to add or remove support for languages. Only those language packs are available that are available with the prerequisite files that you download.

Important
Server and client language packs are service pack version-specific. You cannot use the language packs from Configuration Manager with no service pack to enable languages for a Configuration Manager SP1 site.

If you have previously installed a language pack for servers or clients at a site, and a Configuration Manager SP1 version of that language pack is not available with the prerequisite files, that language cannot be selected. Support for that language is removed from the site when it upgrades.

For more information about language packs, see the Planning for Client and Server Operating System Languages in Configuration Manager section in the Planning for Sites and Hierarchies in Configuration Manager topic.

For information about Setup Downloader, see the Setup Downloader section in the Install Sites and Create a Hierarchy for Configuration Manager topic.

Plan for new site system role prerequisites.

Important
Prerequisite Checker for Configuration Manager does not verify the prerequisites for site system roles on the site server or on remote computers.

Several site system roles have new prerequisites for Configuration Manager SP1. Before you upgrade a site, verify that each computer that hosts a site system role meets any new prerequisites for Configuration Manager SP1.

During a site upgrade, Configuration Manager automatically upgrades site system roles at the site by reinstalling each site system role. When prerequisites are not met, the site system role might not reinstall or might reinstall, but might fail to operate correctly.

For information about prerequisites for site system roles, see the Site System Requirements section in the Supported Configurations for Configuration Manager topic.

Review the list of considerations for site upgrades.

When you upgrade a site, some features and configurations reset to a default configuration. To help you plan for these and related changes in Configuration Manager SP1, review the information in the Considerations for Upgrading to Configuration Manager SP1 section in this topic.

Test the database upgrade process on a copy of the most recent site database backup.

Before you upgrade a Configuration Manager central administration site or primary site to a new service pack, plan to test the site database upgrade process on a copy of the site database. You should test the site database upgrade process, because when you upgrade a site, the site database might be modified and although a test database upgrade is not required, it can identify problems for the upgrade before your production database is affected. A failed site database upgrade can render your site database inoperable and might require a site recovery to restore functionality.

Note
Configuration Manager supports neither the backup of secondary sites nor the test upgrade of a secondary site database.

Although the site database is shared between sites in a hierarchy, plan to test the database at each applicable site before you upgrade that site. If you use database replicas for management points at a primary site, disable replication before you create the backup of the site database.

Important
It is not supported to run a test database upgrade on the production site database. Doing so upgrades the site database and could render your site inoperable.

For more information, see the Test the Configuration Manager Site Database for the Upgrade section in the Upgrade Configuration Manager to a New Service Pack topic.

Restart the site server and each computer that hosts a site system role to ensure that there are no pending actions from a recent installation of updates or from prerequisites.

Internal process that is company-specific.

Install the service pack.

Starting at the top-level site in the hierarchy, run Setup.exe from the Configuration Manager SP1 source media. After the top-level site completes the upgrade to Service Pack 1, you can begin the upgrade of each child site. Complete the upgrade of each site before you begin to upgrade the next site.

Until all sites in your hierarchy upgrade to the same service pack version, your hierarchy operates in a mixed service pack version mode.

For information about how to run the service pack installation, see the Upgrade a Configuration Manager Site section in the Upgrade Configuration Manager to a New Service Pack topic.

For information about operating a Configuration Manager hierarchy in mixed mode, see the Interoperability between Sites with Different Service Pack Versions in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager section in the Interoperability between Different Versions of Configuration Manager topic.

Upgrade stand-alone Configuration Manager consoles.

By default, when you upgrade a central administration site or primary site, the installation also upgrades a Configuration Manager console that is installed on the site server. However, you must manually upgrade each Configuration Manager console that is installed on a computer other than the site server.

Tip
When you use a Configuration Manager console that is of a lower service pack version than the site that you connect to, the console cannot display or create some objects and information that are available in the new service pack version. When you use a Configuration Manager console that is of a higher service pack version than the site that you connect to, the connection is blocked.

When you upgrade a Configuration Manager console, the installation process uninstalls the existing Configuration Manager console, and then installs the new version of the software. Therefore, to upgrade a Configuration Manager console on computers other than site servers, you can use any method that Configuration Manager supports to install the Configuration Manager console. These supported methods can include a manual installation or a deployment that installs the console.

For more information about how to install the Configuration Manager console, see the Install a Configuration Manager Console section in the Install Sites and Create a Hierarchy for Configuration Manager topic.

Reconfigure database replicas for management points at primary sites.

If you use database replicas for management points at primary sites, you must uninstall the database replicas before you upgrade the site. After you upgrade a primary site, reconfigure the database replica for management points.

For more information, see the Configurations for Using a Database Replica section in the Configure Database Replicas for Management Points topic.

Upgrade clients.

After you upgrade a primary site, plan to upgrade clients that are assigned to that site. Although a Configuration Manager primary site or secondary site can support communication from clients that have a lower service pack version, this communication should be a temporary configuration. Clients that run a previous service pack version of Configuration Manager cannot use the new functionality that is available with the new service pack version of Configuration Manager.

When you upgrade a client, the current client software is uninstalled and the new client software version is installed. To upgrade clients, you can use any method that Configuration Manager supports.

Tip
When you upgrade the top-level site of a hierarchy to a new service pack, the client installation package on each distribution point in the hierarchy is also updated. When you upgrade a primary site, the client upgrade package that is available from that primary site is updated.

For information about how to upgrade existing clients and how to install new clients, see How to Install Clients on Windows-Based Computers in Configuration Manager.

Software Center

When you upgrade to Configuration Manager SP1, the following Software Center items are reset to their default values

• Work information is reset to business hours from 5.00am to 10.00pm Monday to Friday.
  
  
• The value for Computer maintenance is set to Suspend Software Center activities when my computer is in presentation mode.
  
  
• The value for Remote control is set to the value in the client settings that are assigned to the computer.
  
  

Software update summarization schedules

When you upgrade to Configuration Manager SP1, custom summarization schedules for software updates or software update groups are reset to the default value of 1 hour. After the upgrade finishes, reset custom summarization values to the required frequency.