Some System Center 2012 Configuration Manager object properties are implemented as bit fields, where individual binary bits of an integer (usually a uint32 data type) are used as Boolean flags to store information. These properties can be difficult to interpret at the user interface because the bit field is often displayed as a decimal number.

For example, the Security User Class Permissions object (SMS_UserClassPermissions) contains an integer property called ClassPermissions, which is defined as an int32 data type with the following bit flags:

Bit Value

0

READ

1

MODIFY

2

DELETE

3

DISTRIBUTE

4

CREATE_CHILD

5

REMOTE_CONTROL

6

ADVERTISE

7

MODIFY_RESOURCE

8

ADMINISTER

9

DELETE_RESOURCE

10

CREATE

11

VIEW_COLL_FILE

12

READ_RESOURCE

13

DELEGATE

14

METER

15

MANAGESQLCOMMAND

16

MANAGESTATUSFILTER

A typical value of this bit field might be 10100000111. Bit 0 is the least significant bit (on the right) and the other bits are counted right to left. Therefore, in this example, the available class permissions include READ, MODIFY, DELETE, ADMINISTER, and CREATE, corresponding to bit fields 0, 1, 2, 8, and 10, respectively.

The difficulty arises when the binary number 10100000111 appears as the decimal number 1287 in an Configuration Manager console display and in how you interpret the bits. The solution is to open the Windows Calculator application (Calc.exe, in the Accessories group). Use the Scientific view, set the calculator for decimal mode, and enter 1287. Use the radio buttons of the calculator to convert to a binary display. The binary bit field 10100000111 appears. You can read the selected bit flags from this display.

Note
In a typical bit field property, many of the bits are unused and have no defined meaning.

See Also