Big Picture vs SCCM (Microsoft Configuration Manager)
Microsoft Configuration Manager (SCCM / ConfigMgr) provides application deployment to device/user collections and controls how/when installs occur.
What SCCM is optimized for
Section titled “What SCCM is optimized for”- IT / SecOps teams in enterprises
- Enterprise endpoint deployment and lifecycle under IT control
- Application deployment to device/user collections
Where SCCM is strong
Section titled “Where SCCM is strong”- Enterprise endpoint deployment and lifecycle under IT control
- Device/user collection management
- IT-controlled deployment workflows
Where SCCM is not a replacement
Section titled “Where SCCM is not a replacement”- It does not give software vendors a multi-tenant release governance plane for their customers
- It’s not a vendor’s update decision service for “all customers, all channels”
- It focuses on IT-managed deployments within an organization, not vendor-to-customer release governance
How Big Picture differs
Section titled “How Big Picture differs”- Big Picture provides a vendor control plane for release governance across all customers
- Big Picture offers explicit tenant policy + action decisions (AUTO_INSTALL, NOTIFY, MANAGED_BY_IT)
- Big Picture combines release governance + update policy + licensing in one coherent control plane
- Big Picture is designed around regulated downstream customers who require self-hosted artifact mirrors with signed metadata
How Big Picture integrates with SCCM
Section titled “How Big Picture integrates with SCCM”- When policy says MANAGED_BY_IT, Big Picture’s client becomes a notifier + policy enforcer, not an installer
- Big Picture can generate deployment manifests/metadata and provide signed artifacts for IT-controlled rollout
- Mirrors can be hosted inside regulated networks while SCCM handles rollout scheduling
- Big Picture can export packages/metadata for SCCM workflows (when vendor customers choose MANAGED_BY_IT)
Suggested positioning
Section titled “Suggested positioning”“SCCM manages deployments inside an enterprise. Big Picture manages vendor release governance and licensing across all customers, and integrates cleanly with IT-managed deployment when required.”