MMC provides a consistent, familiar interface for accessing the capabilities of Microsoft server products. The MMC user interface is similar to the Windows Explorer environment, with a vertically split work area containing a console tree of categories and objects relevant to a particular server on the left side, and a details pane about a selected item on the right. Detailed information in the details pane can be displayed in a variety of ways, including as an HTML document.
MMC allows for more sophisticated tools to assist the novice or infrequent database administrator. One significant addition is taskpads, which group multifaceted activities such as building a database, establishing user security, and monitoring the SQL Server database. Taskpads combine tutorial information, guided activities, and wizards.