Automating Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform

Automation isn’t just an option, it’s a necessity. Organizations managing complex infrastructures often face a divide between Windows management tools and their broader automation strategy to streamline operations, reduce manual overhead, and ensure consistency across environments. That’s where the Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (MECM) Certified Collection for Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform comes in, offering a bridge between MECM and automation.

What Is the MECM Red Hat Ansible Certified Collection?

The Red Hat Ansible Certified Collection for MECM, formerly known as System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM), has 26 modules and one plug-in for Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, developed to automate tasks and use MECM as the source of truth. With this collection, administrators can handle tasks like software distribution, patch management, and configuration updates to Windows Server, all through Ansible Playbooks. 

Core capabilities and modules

The microsoft.mecm collection provides a suite of specialized modules that allow Ansible Automation Platform to interact directly with the Configuration Manager site server. Key functional areas include:

• Patch management and orchestration: The collection offers granular control over Windows updates. Modules such as software_update_group and software_update_deployment allow you to create update groups and deploy them programmatically. The install_updatesmodule can be used to trigger the actual installation process on client devices, so that strict adherence to patching windows is maintained.
• Client management: Administrators can trigger immediate actions on devices using the client_action module. This is critical for tasks that cannot wait for the standard polling cycle, such as forcing a machine policy retrieval and evaluation cycle, or initiating an endpoint protection scan on a specific device or group.
• Infrastructure health and status: Automation isn't just about changing things. It's about verifying them. The collection includes "info" modules like dp_status_info to check distribution points, wsus_sync_status_infoto verify upstream synchronization, and site_status_message_info to query specific site messages, so that the underlying MECM infrastructure is healthy before deployments begin.

Orchestrating safer rollouts

The real benefits come from wrapping MECM tasks in Ansible workflows to orchestrate safer rollouts. Instead of basic scheduling, you can protect your fleet with:

Smart phasing

Validate updates in a test environment, and automatically advance to production only after passing specific health criteria. Ansible Automation Platform can automate Windows configuration and patching, updates, managing reboots, and verifying system state in any environment.

• Workflow example: Use software_update_group_membership to dynamically populate a test group. Once the deployment succeeds, Ansible Automation Platform can promote those updates to production groups automatically using software_update_deployment.

Full visibility

While MECM confirms that a patch has been installed, Ansible Automation Platform confirms the service is actually running successfully before moving to the next batch.

• Workflow example: Beyond just checking if an update is installed, you can use the site_ps_drive and site_status_message_info modules to query the site server for specific success codes or error messages that might not trigger a standard alert, providing a second layer of validation.

Zero downtime

Automatically redirect traffic away from the server and allow active tasks to finish before patching begins so that no connections are lost.

Why it matters

• Compliance: MECM can be used as the source of truth for the patching level and configuration status of Windows Servers throughout your environment.
• Certified and supported: Provided by Red Hat, the collection is certified and backed by enterprise‑grade support, giving organizations confidence in its reliability.

By combining MECM’s compliance and reporting tracking with Ansible Automation Platform’s automation for patching, configuration and orchestration, organizations gain a flexible and compliant solution for managing hybrid environments. 

Learn more

Check out these resources to learn more:

• Read the checklist 7 ways to automate Microsoft Windows with Red Hat
• Visit the solution page Automate Microsoft Windows and Active Directory with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform
• View the microsoft.mecm Certified Collection
• See a demo of the MECM Certified Collection in action