ConfigMgr 2007, Updating a Windows 7 Image with the latest Software Updates – A less conventional, but very effective way

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Inspired by a previous post about the option to Schedule Updates for an already existing Operating System Image in ConfigMgr vNext, I created a little batch-file to do something similar without the GUI of ConfigMgr vNext. Of course, I do know that the ‘best practice’ for ConfigMgr 2007 is to just run another Build and Capture Task Sequence, but in some cases this can come in handy. One thing is for sure, this updates a Windows 7 Image within fifteen minutes. Background Story Now lets start with a little background story, to explain why in some situations there might be the need for this batch-file. Every month there are new Software Updates released by Microsoft. During the Software Updates Deployment the, for the organization needed, …

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ConfigMgr 2007, PXE Service Point and DHCP Options

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As I’m getting some questions lately about the DHCP Options in combination with PXE Service Points (PSP), I decided to devote this post to those possibilities. When talking about a PSP and DHCP Options, there are three often used options: 060 = client Identifier (PXEClient) 066 = boot server host name 067 = boot file name Now lets start with saying: “It shouldn’t be necessary to make manual additions to the DHCP Options on the DHCP Server”. Now I can already hear the questions pop-up, what about a combined server of DHCP and WDS/PSP, what about crossing over subnets and vlans, etc., etc.. These are all good and justified questions, but not necessary. DHCP Option 060 In case there is a combined server of DHCP …

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ConfigMgr 2007, Client Push Installation – The server-side story

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Sometimes its good to freshen-up some “hidden” knowledge. Its somewhere in your head, but it just needs to be freshened. One of these things is the Client Push Installation. In this post I will try to tell the story of the server side. Prerequisites for Client Push Installation To be able to do a successful Client Push Installation, the following prerequisites need to be met: There must be a Client Push Installation –account defined in the Accounts tab of the Client Push Installation Properties. The Client Push Installation –account must be a member of the local Administrators group on the targeted computer. The targeted computer must have been discovered a ConfigMgr discovery method. The targeted computer must have an ADMIN$ share. The targeted computer must …

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ConfigMgr vNext: It just gets easier and easier.

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Its about time that I write my first post about ConfigMgr vNext BETA and well I really have to say that it just gets easier and easier compared to ConfigMgr 2007. The only thing I have to get used to is that everything is in a different location. Capture User Files and Setting Offline (WinPE) with Hard-Links As I have been busy a lot with capturing user files offline on my blog, lets start about how easy that becomes in ConfigMgr vNext. I still remember making BAT-files to run the ScanState –commands, in ConfigMgr vNext its just selecting the checkboxes Capture locally using links instead of copying files and Capture in off-line mode (WinPE only). After this the Capture User Files and Settings –step will …

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Configuration Manager 2007 R3 Release Candidate has been released!

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I would like to make a short note of the following announcement on the ConfigMgr Connect Site (https://connect.microsoft.com/site16) System Center Configuration Manager 2007 R3 Release Candidate (RC) has been released! As a member of the Configuration Manager 2007 R3 Open Beta program you can download at this Connection via the downloads tab. Feedback can be provided using the Feedback tool and also available is discussions via the Newsgroups where you can post comments and ask questions. Thank you. ConfigMgr Customer team

How to sequence the ConfigMgr 2007 Admin Console

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Well… this has been asked (and handled) before and by different people, but always with using registry keys and dependency’s. I noticed that it is much easier to do this by just following the Best practices for sequencing in Microsoft Softgrid. So to create the sequence of the ConfigMgr Admin Console, follow these steps: Prepare the Sequence machine Create a sequencing machine which represents a standard machine in your company. Make sure to exit any antivirus software and stop the Windows Update service. Make sure the machine has at least two partitions and configure the second partition as Q Create an empty folder on drive Q, with an 8.3 directory name (something like CFGMGR07.v01). (Optional) Install the prerequisites for the ConfigMgr 2007 Admin Console (like …

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ConfigMgr 2007, Client Push Installation and (a) Firewall(s)

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One of the most common problems with Client Push Installation is (are) the (Windows) Firewall(s). As I had some questions about this (again) lately, I will post here all the open ports/ firewall exceptions needed for a Client Push Installation. Exceptions for the Windows Firewall To be able to do a Client Push Installation you need the following exceptions in the Windows Firewall: File and Printer Sharing Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) TCP Port 80 (for HTTP from the client computer to a MP (Mixed Mode)) TCP Port 443 (for HTTPS from the client computer to a MP (Native Mode)) Specific ports for other Firewalls To be able to do a Client Push Installation you need to open the following ports in the Firewall: Description UDP …

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Capture User Files and Settings Offline (WinPE) or Online (FullOS) with ConfigMgr 2007

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They always say never change a winning team, but sometimes its just cowl to see if its possible to be even better. I had the same with a previous post in which I already showed how to do a Hard-Link migration, when started from WinPE (and FullOS). The biggest part of that example is still the same, but some pieces changed to get a better result. In this post I will go step-by-step (again) to mention the changes that I made to make it even better. At the end of both parts of this post I will shine a light on the changes that I made. Part 1: Capture User Files and Settings For creating a Task Sequence, that does an Online or Offline Capture, …

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How to install a ConfigMgr Client on a WORKGROUP computer, when the ConfigMgr Site is in Native Mode.

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To install a ConfigMgr Client on a WORKGROUP computer is always a nice battle, when the ConfigMgr Site is in Native Mode. I think I am not the only one who didn’t work that much with certificates before ConfigMgr. So to make the basics of this process for everyone a bit easier I wrote down these seven steps for implementing the correct certificates and installing the ConfigMgr Client on a WORKGROUP client. These same steps can also be used for separate forests. Step 1. Export the Root Certificate for use on the WORKGROUP computer Logon to the Certification Authority server and create a folder to contain your certificate files (eg C:\Certificates). Open a command prompt and go to the just created folder. Use the following …

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User Driven Installation with ConfigMgr 2007 and MDT 2010 Update 1

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A few months ago I wrote a post about User Driven OS Deployment "Modena". By then it wasn’t sure if it was going to be released to the big public. Well I can tell now (after finally looking around in the the MDT 2010 Update 1 Beta) that it is going to be released, as it is a part of the MDT 2010 Update 1 (Beta). Of course the scripts are now made to fit with the other MDT scripts, but the look-and-feel is the same (see picture). This means that there is now an easy way coming for everyone to get their users “involved” in an OS Deployment. The only requirements are to have ConfigMgr 2007 and MDT 2010 Update 1 (Beta) installed and …

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