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Launch the download of the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit.

Launch the download of the sample documents created by the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit.

About This Solution Accelerator

The Microsoft® Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit makes it easy to assess your current IT infrastructure and determine the right Microsoft technologies for your IT needs.

MAP is a powerful inventory, assessment, and reporting tool that can securely run in small or large IT environments without requiring the installation of agent software on any computers or devices. The inventory and assessment capabilities provided by this Solution Accelerator can significantly simplify the planning process for migrating your laptops, desktops, and server computers to Windows® 7, Windows Server® 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista® and Microsoft Office 2007. The server virtualization scenarios help you identify underutilized resources and the hardware specifications needed to successfully consolidate your servers using Microsoft Hyper-V technology. Additionally, the toolkit can help you identify unmanaged assets, Microsoft SQL Server® components and virtual machines in your environment.

Included in the Download

The Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit includes the following components:

Microsoft_Assessment_and_Planning_Toolkit_Setup.exe. The installation package includes the tool, release notes, Getting Started Guide, and toolkit help (chm file). Download now.
Release_Notes_en.htm. Provides information you should read before installing the MAP Toolkit, including installation prerequisites, and known issues. Available as a separate download. Download now.
Getting_Started_Guide.en.doc. Provides information about installing the tool, describes supported assessment scenarios, and shows how to use the results. Available as a separate download. Download now.
MAP Sample Documents.zip. Contains sample reports and proposals that the MAP tool generates in Word and Excel formats. Available as a separate download. Download now.

Feature Overview

MAP performs three key functions: inventory, compatibility analysis, and readiness reporting.

Microsoft Assessment and Planning

Figure 1. Three Key Functions of Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit

Secure and Agentless Inventory

MAP provides secure, agentless, and network-wide inventory that scales from small business to large enterprises. It collects and organizes system resources and device information from a single networked computer. Assessment tools often require users to first deploy software agents on all computers to be inventoried, but this tool does not. MAP uses technologies already available in your IT environment to perform inventory and assessments. These technologies include Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), the Remote Registry Service, Active Directory Domain Services, and the Computer Browser service.

You can use MAP to inventory the following platforms:

Windows 7
Windows Vista
Windows XP® Professional
Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2
Windows Server 2003 or Windows Server 2003 R2
Windows 2000 Professional or Windows 2000 Server
VMware ESX
VMware ESXi
VMware Server

Note To see a list of platforms on which MAP can be installed, refer to the “Installation Prerequisites” section of the MAP Release Notes.

Comprehensive Data Analysis

MAP performs a detailed analysis of hardware and device compatibility for migration to Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Microsoft Office 2007, Microsoft Application Virtualization, and Windows Vista. The hardware assessment looks at the installed hardware and determines if migration is recommended. If it is not recommended then the reports tell you why it is not.

The device assessment looks at the devices installed on a computer and reports availability of drivers for those devices. Device assessment is provided for Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Vista migration scenarios.

For customers interested in server consolidation and virtualization through technologies such as Hyper-V and Virtual Server 2005 R2, this tool helps to gather performance metrics and generate server consolidation recommendations that identify the candidates for server virtualization and how the physical servers might be placed in a virtualized environment.

In-Depth Readiness Reporting

MAP generates reports containing both summary and detailed assessment results for each migration scenario. The results are provided in Microsoft Excel workbooks and Microsoft Word documents. Reports are generated for the following scenarios:

Identification of currently installed Windows client operating systems, their hardware, and recommendations for migration to Windows 7 and Windows Vista. The tool also reports if desktops have anti-virus and anti-malware programs installed and if the Windows Firewall is turned on.
Identification of currently installed Windows Server operating systems, their hardware, and recommendations for migration to Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2008.
Identification of currently installed Microsoft Office software and recommendations for migration to Microsoft Office 2007.
Detailed assessment and reporting of server utilization gathered using the Performance Metrics Wizard.
Recommendations for server consolidation and virtual machine placement using Hyper-V or Virtual Server 2005 R2.
Assessment of client machines, servers, and the technology environment for the implementation of Microsoft Application Virtualization (formerly SoftGrid).
Identification of machines where Microsoft SQL Server components are installed.
Identification of virtual machines, their hosts, and details about each.
Power Savings Assessment: Create a proposal to identify server and client machines running in your environment and understand the power management capabilities available.

Related Resources

Community and Feedback

To interact with other members of the Microsoft Assessment and Planning community, learn more about the tool, and get help with questions, visit the Microsoft Assessment and Planning forum on TechNet at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=110990.

To send feedback or suggestions for improving the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit (MAP), send e-mail to mapfdbk@microsoft.com.

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Download the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit