Windows IntunePartner Solution Case Study

Software Reseller Reduces IT Workload by 90 Percent with Cloud-Based PC Management

OverviewCountry or Region: United StatesIndustry: Professional services—IT services

Partner ProfileFounded in 1984, CDW is a software reseller and systems integrator with 25 locations, 6,150 employees in the United States and Canada, and 300,000 customers.

Business SituationCDW had many midsize customers that needed PC management tools to support increasingly mobile workforces. The company wanted to offer a cost-effective, cloud-based solution.

SolutionIn January 2011, CDW began offering Windows Intune, a subscription-based PC management solution, which customers employ to monitor PC health, track inventory, and distribute updates.

Benefits Reduced costs Streamlined PC management Improved security Standardized PC environment Expanded growth opportunities

“Windows Intune gives our customers the ability to create a standardized desktop environment and manage and secure it through the web—all without investing in expensive on-premises infrastructure.”

Galen Auch, Technical Specialist, CDW

CDW provides end-to-end technology solutions. Many of its midsize customers had unmanaged PC environments because of cost and complexity concerns, and CDW wanted to provide a simple and cost-effective solution. In early 2011, the company began offering Windows Intune, a cloud-based PC management solution that companies can use to update software, protect PCs from malicious software, and track inventory—all from a single console. With the subscription-based solution, CDW customers can take advantage of the option to standardize desktops on the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system and adopt PC management technologies that were formerly available only to large organizations that use on-premises solutions. CDW benefits from new revenue opportunities while its customers benefit from reduced costs, streamlined IT workload, improved security, and a standardized PC environment.

SituationBased in Vernon Hills, Illinois, CDW provides end-to-end technology solutions to business, government, education, and healthcare sectors. Founded in 1984, the company has 25 locations in the United States and Canada, 6,150 employees, 300,000 customers, and annual revenues of more than U.S.$9 billion. The company is dedicated to helping customers use technology to increase efficiency and productivity. A member of the Microsoft Partner Network since early 2000, CDW offers a variety of products and services, and it operates as a software reseller and systems integrator.

CDW caters to companies of all sizes, but many are midsize organizations with fewer than 250 PCs. Some of those customers had been operating without tools to maintain their PC environments. They lacked insight on what was happening with employees’ PCs, which made it difficult to apply software updates, run inventory reports, and keep PCs free of malicious software (malware). In addition, customers were increasingly supporting mobile workforces, which meant that remote PCs were often disconnected from the corporate network, leaving them exposed to threats.

“IT professionals in organizations with unmanaged environments tend to spend their time reacting to PC problems with manual troubleshooting,” says Drew Shanahan, Practice Architect at CDW. “Our goal was to get these customers into a more forward-looking environment.”

Many CDW customers are particularly apprehensive about the costs and

complexities associated with purchasing, maintaining, and managing a server-based infrastructure. “Our customers typically have limited resources, both in terms of personnel and budgets,” says Galen Auch, Technical Specialist at CDW. “The cost of establishing an on-premises PC management environment can be prohibitive.”

In recent years, CDW had provided hundreds of customers with online productivity suites through Microsoft Online Services. The company is now providing Microsoft Office 365, a cloud-based productivity and collaboration tool that includes Microsoft Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and Lync Online. CDW wanted to extend the advantages of cloud-based services to customers who need PC management but don’t want to maintain a local infrastructure, and it wanted to make it easy and inexpensive for its customers to manage PCs effectively in a way that required little staff training.

SolutionWhen the release of Windows Intune was announced in 2010, CDW worked with Microsoft to make sure that its sales force would be prepared to promote the solution. Windows Intune is an easy-to-implement, cloud-based PC management solution that simplifies the way businesses manage and secure PCs. It includes the option to upgrade all managed PCs to the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system.

In January 2011, CDW enrolled five customers—including four midsize organizations and one large enterprise—in the Windows Intune beta program. When the solution became available to license on

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“Once the initial work of optimizing PCs is completed, customers using Windows Intune see a 90-percent reduction in labor on the part of their IT professionals.”

Drew Shanahan, Practice Architect, CDW

March 24, all five beta customers chose to subscribe. “After participating in the beta program, our customers realized how much they needed a comprehensive PC management solution to address all of their users,” says Auch. “By using Windows Intune, they could optimize the workload of their IT professionals while keeping workers current and protected, so they could remain productive from virtually anywhere.”

IT professionals at customer sites use Windows Intune to manage remote PCs by using a standard Internet connection and a browser enabled with Microsoft Silverlight. From a single console, they can monitor PC health, apply updates, ensure endpoint protection, and track hardware and software inventory. End users need only be connected to the Internet.

One beta customer, 2tor, an organization headquartered in New York City, New York, partners with institutions of higher education to deliver degree programs online to students around the world. 2tor has five permanent offices and one temporary office and more than 200 employees—including numerous remote workers around the world. 2tor initially purchased 50 Windows Intune subscriptions in March 2011; since then, it has rolled out the solution to 335 PCs, which includes most of its PC infrastructure.

“Providing the latest versions of software and updates is essential for successful collaboration among our staff members, who reside in multiple locations,” says Arthur Jordan, IT Manager at 2tor. “With Windows Intune, our staff has the freedom and flexibility to work from anywhere while

our IT department provides enhanced management and security with ease.”

2tor was eager to participate in the Windows Intune beta program because it relies on several cloud solutions to conduct business. To protect its remote workforce, the company uses Windows Intune to help address security risks and ensure that PCs are up-to-date. The endpoint protection available with the solution is built on the same Microsoft Malware Protection Engine used by Microsoft Forefront Endpoint Protection. With the update management capabilities in Windows Intune, PCs are no longer connected directly to the Windows Update service. Instead, Windows Intune obtains a list of available updates from Windows Update and presents them to the IT professionals for review and action.

“Before Windows Intune, the customer had to use several disparate tools to manage updates and respond to malware threats,” says Kathi Grumke, Solutions Manager at CDW. “Now, its IT professionals can simply log on to the Windows Intune console to check alerts and distribute updates.”

In addition, 2tor used its Windows Intune subscription to deploy Windows 7 Enterprise to all of its PCs. It also implemented BitLocker Drive Encryption, a feature in Windows 7 that helps keep everything from documents to passwords safer by encrypting the entire drive on which Windows and data reside. Once BitLocker is turned on, any file saved on the drive is encrypted automatically. “The option to standardize desktops and use BitLocker was a big reason that this customer moved to Windows Intune,” says Auch. “They also have the right to upgrade

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“With Windows Intune, companies of all sizes can take advantage of a standardized desktop environment and enterprise-class tools that were once available only to large companies. It levels the playing field.”

Galen Auch, Technical Specialist, CDW

to the next version of Windows when it comes out.”

Customers who use Windows Intune have the option to subscribe to the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, a suite of PC management technologies that can be used to virtualize applications and keep desktop configurations up-to-date across the organization. These technologies were formerly available only to customers enrolled in the Microsoft Software Assurance program, which features support and upgrade rights for enterprise organizations through a multi-year contract.

Since conducting the beta program, CDW has demonstrated the capabilities of Windows Intune to more than 100 customers. After reviewing the solution, most customers sign up for a 30-day trial. “When I demonstrate the product, I talk about a day in the life of an IT professional,” says Auch. “When I come to the office in the morning, I just need to look at the Windows Intune console to know exactly which issues need to be taken care of. Within a half-hour, I can start working on higher-value projects. If issues arise, I’m alerted.”

With Windows Intune, IT professionals no longer have to wait to be contacted by employees about PC problems. In many cases, they receive an alert about an issue before the user knows about it. This includes alerts about malware threats, which can go undetected and unreported for long periods of time on unmanaged PCs. They can also use Windows Intune to identify a hard drive that is failing even before a user knows it is going to crash.

IT professionals also employ Windows Intune to view an inventory of hardware and software in a PC infrastructure. The inventory occurs automatically according to a customizable schedule, and the process is invisible to the end user. “What the IT professional sees is very readable information about software loaded on PCs,” says Auch. “Microsoft has a large database of software titles to match against, and the inventory report features detailed information, including vendor and version. The product also captures details about the hardware.”

With the next version of Windows Intune, IT professionals will be able to take advantage of several new features. For example, they can use the software distribution capabilities to deploy most Microsoft and third-party updates or applications to PCs nearly anywhere over the Internet. “Updating software is one of the most time-consuming tasks that IT administrators undertake, and they needed costly third-party tools to make it happen,” says Auch. “Software distribution was one of our customers’ most requested features.”

In addition, with the next version of Windows Intune, IT administrators can use the Administration console to perform remote tasks, including scans and restarts, on managed PCs. Says Auch, “Before these features were available, it would have been impossible for customers experiencing a virus outbreak to update virus signature files in a timely manner.”

Another feature in the next version of Windows Intune is the option to give select administrators read-only access to the

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Administration console, so they can view PC information but can’t perform any configuration tasks. “Read-only access to the console gives stakeholders, including help-desk engineers, access to valuable data,” says Auch. “IT professionals don’t have to worry that there will be inadvertent changes made to carefully planned and implemented system configurations.”

Customers also can use the latest version of Windows Intune to run reports based on filters for common hardware characteristics. “By providing weekly or monthly reports, IT professionals can help management make timely and informed decisions,” says Auch. “This feature also makes it possible to create ad-hoc reports.”

One IT professional who had just finished the 30-day trial called CDW to report that he had had the busiest 30 days of his career after installing the Windows Intune agent on 25 computers. He has spent the month resolving issues that he didn’t know existed. “He was very happy because he knew that the PCs were running effectively,” says Auch. “They had the latest updates. They had malware protection.”

BenefitsBy adopting the solution, CDW customers are able to make intelligent and timely decisions about managing their PC environments. They benefit from a simple, easy-to-operate, and cost-effective solution that reduces the workload of IT professionals and tightens security, and they also gain a stable and manageable PC environment that is standardized on the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system. In addition, CDW benefits from expanded revenue opportunities by providing a

cloud-based solution that can serve customers who previously lacked an entry point to sophisticated PC management options.

“With Windows Intune, companies of all sizes can take advantage of a standardized desktop environment and enterprise-class tools that were once available only to large companies,” says Auch. “It levels the playing field.”

Reduced CostsCDW customers who adopt Windows Intune avoid the costs of acquiring an on-premises server infrastructure because the PC management solution is available on a predictable per-month, per-seat subscription basis. “Windows Intune gives our customers the ability to create a standardized desktop environment and manage and secure it through the web—all without investing in expensive on-premises infrastructure,” says Auch. They can also replace third-party tools for safeguarding data, monitoring threats, and running inventory reports. For example, by using BitLocker for data encryption, customers can save up to $100 annually for each PC.“The productivity benefits for the IT staff at 2tor have been huge,” says Jordan. “We estimate that we’re saving at least $450 per PC per year in administration, compliance, and help-desk costs.”

According to an IDC study [“A First Look at How Windows Intune Can Lower Costs and Raise Productivity,” IDC, 2011], organizations that deploy Window Intune can save $702 per PC per year. Plus, there’s additional potential for cost savings for customers who subscribe to the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack.

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Streamlined PC ManagementWith Windows Intune, CDW customers can perform routine PC management tasks regardless of a user’s location, easily manage updates, track inventory, and address problems “Once the initial work of optimizing PCs is completed, customers using Windows Intune see a 90-percent reduction in labor on the part of their IT professionals,” says Shanahan.

For 2tor, the solution has minimized calls to the help desk, increased user productivity, and reduced IT workload. “With Windows Intune, we’ve been able to reduce our workload by 33 percent,” says Jordan.

Improved SecurityBecause endpoint protection and update management features are built into Windows Intune, IT professionals can respond to potential security risks and maintain up-to-date PCs. “Thanks to Microsoft Malware Protection Engine, one of the most highly regarded malware protection engines, and built-in access to the Windows Update service, customers with remote employees can feel more secure,” says Auch. “Their workers don’t have to connect to the corporate network to get the latest fixes.”

Standardized PC EnvironmentWith a subscription to Windows Intune, customers can standardize all of their PCs to run the latest version of the Windows operating system, which yields business benefits that include cost savings, reduced help-desk workload, and improved uptime. “If companies want to get the best return on investment for their PC environment, they need to deploy a common operating

system,” says Auch. “By upgrading to Windows 7 Enterprise, they get the latest operating system, which was designed and built for businesses. A subscription to Windows Intune makes it possible.”

Expanded Growth OpportunitiesBy offering Windows Intune to customers, CDW benefits from new business opportunities in cloud-based services that didn’t exist previously. As a Microsoft partner, the company earns ongoing revenues for each Windows Intune subscription that it provides. “We are working to get Windows Intune to our customers because it is a valuable service,” says Grumke. “Customers who weren’t able to afford an elaborate on-premises infrastructure now have a tool for maintaining their PC environments.”

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Windows IntuneWindows Intune simplifies how businesses manage and secure PCs using Microsoft cloud services and Windows 7, so your computers and users can operate at peak performance from almost anywhere. You can provide a better experience for your workforce that's easier to manage by standardizing your PCs on Windows 7 Enterprise or on an earlier version of Windows—it’s your choice. Windows Intune fits your business by providing a comprehensive desktop solution that gives you big tech results with a small tech investment.

For more information about Windows Intune, go to:www.windowsintune.com

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For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers in the United States and Canada who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:www.microsoft.com

For more information about CDW products and services, call (800) 800-4239 or visit the website at: www.cdw.com

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published October 2011

Software and Services Windows Intune Windows 7 Enterprise

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack Microsoft Silverlight 2