One of the things I like about SQL Server (and Sybase for that matter) is that it comes with tons of system stored procedures. Who doesn't find procs like sp_who, sp_help, and and sp_helprotect indispenable?
But unfortunately it seems to me that Microsoft is on the path to abandon these system stored procedures. Judging from the fact that many of these procs are not being updated to keep up with the new versions of SQL Server and the responses from Microsoft to query the system catalogs and DMVs to make up the difference when this is pointed out and reported, I'd say that updating these system stored procedures are at least not on their priority list.
True, one can argue that you could write scripts to query system catalogs and DMVs yourself, and Microsoft has provided quite a few scripts through their blogs and codeplex projects. But that is not the same as shipping these procs in the product and therefore making them ubiquitous. Yes, you probably can't expose everything--that the new system catalogs and DMVs have to offer--through these system stored procedures. I'd be happy if Microsoft can stick to the 80/20 rules to have the system stored procedures cover 80% of the common admin tasks and leave the other 20% for people to write their own scripts, or at least just keep the existing system procedures updated, whereever applicable.
It just seems to me to be such a huge collective waste of time for the users to keep writing the same or similar admin scripts when they could be written once by Microsoft.