Processors keep getting faster, hard drives keep getting bigger, memory keeps getting cheaper.  Enterprises want their computers to last longer, too.  So you would think that would mean that they would buy something close to the best in order to extend the life of the machine.  Frighteningly though, I still hear from companies buying machines that are marginal in today's world.  This is especially true with memory: given the price of RAM today, buying less than 2GB should be a crime.  Yet I still hear from companies that are buying machines with half of that, or even worse.  Maybe you can get by for three years (or more) with a slower processor or smaller hard drive, but limping along without enough RAM should be easy to avoid.

Don't do it, buy more RAM!

So what do you consider to be a mainstream computer configuration?  I've been out of the corporate environment for four years now, so maybe I'm a little out of touch, but I would expect to see something like this:

So is that anywhere close to what your company is currently buying?  (Replace "Core 2" with "Pentium 4" and put in slightly smaller hard drives and that's what I was recommending four years ago, although it was a tough sell at that point on the 2GB of RAM...)

On a related topic, machines with 4GB of RAM are becoming more and more common.  Be aware that if you run an x86 OS on these machines you won't be able to see or use all 4GB.  See http://blogs.msdn.com/hiltonl/archive/2007/04/13/the-3gb-not-4gb-ram-problem.aspx for some background information.  Note that there are some changes in Windows Vista SP1 to show you that there is more RAM installed but it will still show the reduced usable number.  Simple solution: use Windows Vista x64 to get access to all the memory you installed (assuming the chipset supports more).

I've seen quite a few "concise history" books recently -- apparently people like history, but don't like it to be long-winded or rambling.  So keeping with that idea, let me present the history of the Business Desktop Deployment (BDD) solution accelerator:

We will soon have two new entries to add to this table, with updates for BDD 2007 and Microsoft Deployment both planned for release around the time Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 are released.  As soon as that happens, I guess I'll need to update the table.

From a personal perspective, I've been working on BDD and Microsoft Deployment since Spring 2004.  It's hard to believe that it's been that long already :-)

For several years, Microsoft has provided the Internet Explorer Administration Kit (IEAK) to create custom installation packages with your own options and settings; that's no different with Internet Explorer 7, as you can download the IEAK via http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/ie/bb219543.aspx.  But what about Windows Vista, where Internet Explorer 7.0 is built in?  In those cases you don't want to (and actually can't) reinstall Internet Explorer with your customized version.  So what do you do?

Well, there are four options:

1. Configure the settings via the unattend.xml used to install Windows Vista.  That works reasonably well, although the settings that are available for configuring are limited.  See http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsVista/en/library/d3c324c4-b516-4c38-b1dd-04829022d5ee1033.mspx?mfr=true and http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsVista/en/library/16f13690-3ad2-4d03-92fd-6ca93806cfaa1033.mspx?mfr=true for the full list.
2. Configure the settings via Group Policy.  This is a great option: all settings are exposed through administrative templates (ADMs) and can be configured using the group policy editor.  Another option is to add the Internet Explorer Maintenance (IEM) extension, which enables you to configure settings in "Preferences" mode: the settings you configure can be changed by the user after they are established.  Using these two options together (administrative templates for enforced settings, IEM for preferences) gives you ultimate flexibility.
3. Configure Internet Explorer to retrieve settings from an INS configuration file (retrieved from a URL that you specify, either via Group Policy or as part of the IE installation package).  Any time this file changes, Internet Explorer will automatically reapply the settings.
4. Configure the settings using the IEAK "Internet Explorer Customization Wizard" to create a "Configuration-only package" that can be installed on client computers.

All of these options are explained in more detail in the Internet Explorer 7 Deployment Guide, a 156-page document describing everything about the IE deployment process, as well as in the IEAK documentation.

Let's explore the fourth option a little more for a particular scenario:  You want to include all the necessary Internet Explorer settings in your custom Windows Vista image, which you are building with Microsoft Deployment using a Lite Touch task sequence.  How do you go about doing this?  Here's the basic step-by-step process:

1. Download and install the IEAK.  Choose the "Corporate" profile so that you have all the configuration options available.
2. Run the "Internet Explorer" customization wizard.  Specify where you want to save the package, and then specify a target platform of "Windows XP with SP2 or Vista (x86)":
   
3. Choose the language you would like, then make sure only the "Configuration-only package" box is checked:
   
4. Specify the features you want to customize.
5. Download the Internet Explorer installation files by clicking "Synchronize":
   
6. Customize the user experience to make the installation completely silent by checking the "Completely Silent Installation" box, and keep the machine from rebooting using the "No restart" box:
    
7. Customize the Internet Explorer settings as you would like.
8. Complete the wizard to generate the "Configuration-only package".

At this point, the specified build directory will contain an "IEBrand.msi" file that can be installed as part of a Microsoft Deployment Lite Touch task sequence.  Follow these steps to set it up:

1. Add a new application using the Deployment Workbench by right clicking on the "Applications" node and choosing "New".  Specify that you want to add an "Application with source files":
   
2. Specify a publisher (e.g. "Microsoft") and an application name (e.g. "Internet Explorer 7 Branding"):
   
3. Specify the directory containing the "IEBrand.msi" file, e.g. "c:\builds\01202008\BrndOnly\WIN32\EN":
   
4. Use the default destination directory, then specify the command line as "msiexec.exe /i IEBrand.msi /quiet /norestart":
   
5. Add an "Install Application" step to an existing task sequence, specifying that you want to run the "Internet Explorer 7 Branding" application.
6. Add a "Restart computer" step after the "Install Application" step, as the branding installer leaves a "RunOnce" entry that needs to run as an administrator.

That's all it takes.  Now the settings you specified will be applied to each new user that logs onto the computer.

One of my Christmas presents was a 2GB microSD card for my T-Mobile Wing phone (a very nice Windows Mobile 6 device, extremely happy with it).  I thought it would be nice to sync some music to it so I could use it as a player.  So I attached it to my Windows Vista PC, went into Windows Media Player, and went to the Sync tab.  So far so good: it sees the device.  But it doesn't see the storage card (even though Explorer does), and the internal storage on the phone can't store more than a few songs.

After swearing at Microsoft, I remembered that I work for Microsoft - makes the swearing kind of pointless :-)  So I started searching for a fix, which led me to this KB article:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931621/en-us

One reboot later and problem solved.  One of these days Windows will proactively tell me about these types of things...

Did you ever read the title for a blog entry and have no idea what the posting is about?  Well, this one might fall into that category.  So first, some background information straight from the Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 documentation (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb633291.aspx):

To deploy an operating system to a new computer without stand-alone media that is not currently managed by Configuration Manager 2007, the new computer must be added to the Configuration Manager 2007 database prior to initiating the operating system deployment process. Although Configuration Manager 2007 can automatically discover computers on your network that have a Windows operating system installed, if the computer has no operating system installed you will need to import the new computer information by using the Import Computer Information Wizard. This wizard supports importing information about a single computer, or importing information about one or more computers from an external .csv file.

Simple enough, but not very convenient: in order to do the import you need to have the MAC address and optionally the SMBIOS UUID of the computer.  To get the MAC address of a computer that doesn't yet have an OS, you'd probably need to turn on the computer and go into the BIOS setup, write down the 12-character hex value, then go back to the server and type it in -- accurately.

So ideally we would like to automatically add the computer to the ConfigMgr database just-in-time.  Now, there are two scenarios that can be used with ConfigMgr to deploy an OS to a new computer:

• Boot media: inserting a CD or USB key into a computer containing a ConfigMgr-customized version of Windows PE that starts the deployment process.
• PXE boot: network booting a ConfigMgr-customized version of Windows PE that starts the deployment process.

There are different challenges in each of these scenarios, so we'll focus on only the first one for now.  When you boot a computer using ConfigMgr boot media, a wizard will start.  The first screen don't require that the computer be present in the ConfigMgr database, but in order to complete the wizard it must be.  So how can we hook into this wizard to do something about this?  That's where the pre-execution hook, described at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb694075.aspx, comes in.

Microsoft Deployment provides a pre-execution hook script that runs a wizard of its own that will call web services to add the computer to the ConfigMgr database, as well as adding the computer to a collection for a task sequence advertisement.  After that's complete, then the rest of the ConfigMgr boot media wizard can be completed and the task sequence starts.

So that brings us to the next challenge: setting up the web services.  See the documentation at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb978399.aspx for the details, although note that step #2 assumes you are using Windows Server 2008, so the steps are slightly different for Windows Server 2003.

Now, for an experiment.  Instead of just trying to explain those steps, I thought it would be useful to record a screencast of the entire configuration process.  So you can play the video below for the whole walk-through, which is about 13 minutes long.

Web Service Configuration and Troubleshooting Walkthrough

Assuming you can get this far, everything should be set up properly.  (There are some potential additional complications: if you have a larger hierarchy, you may need to verify security to connect to each site, since the computer needs to be present in the ConfigMgr database for the computer's assigned site.)  Then you just need to create a new boot image, enabling the pre-execution hook and specifying the URL of the web services.  Yes, it's not a trivial setup.  And yes, troubleshooting is more difficult than it should be.  We'll work on that :-)

Going back to the experiment, if you think screencast recordings like this are useful, please let me know and suggest what additional ones you'd like to see (and hear - adding the audio is the most difficult part).

I've heard several people ask how to deploy Office 2003 using Microsoft Deployment, as they have been given the impression that Microsoft Deployment doesn't support Office 2003 deployment.  While it's true that Microsoft Deployment provides no specific tools or documentation about deploying Office 2003, that doesn't mean you can't do it.  Office 2003 is just another application that can be included in your reference image creation process or in your deployment process.  You just need to know how to set it up, which is what I want to review in this posting.

(Now, I have to ask: Why are you deploying Office 2003 instead of the 2007 Office system?  OK, I've got that off my chest.)

It seems like it's been ages since I worked with Office 2003, so I had to go back and review the steps myself.  Here they are in a nutshell when performing a Lite Touch deployment:

1. Install the Office Resource Kit (ORK) for Office 2003.  See http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/ork2003/default.aspx for the download links.
2. Copy the entire Office 2003 CD to a directory on disk, e.g. \\server\share\Office2003, as you'll be making some additions and customizations to it.  Be sure to copy all hidden files and directories - almost all the real install files are hidden.
3. Use the ORK Custom Installation Wizard to create a transform to automate the installation of Office 2003.  At the minimum, this transform should specify the installation product key and accept the EULA, otherwise the installation won't run without user interaction.  Save this transform in the same directory you created in the previous step using a name like "MyTransform.mst".
4. Optionally customize the SETUP.INI file to change cache settings, chain additional application installs or hotfixes (e.g. OHOTFIX.EXE), etc.  There are lots of options here, but none are required.  See http://www.microsoft.com/office/ork/2003/ref/RefA03.htm#sub_10 for more information.
5. Test the installation before you try anything else.  On a machine that doesn't have Office 2003, run \\server\share\Office2003\SETUP.EXE TRANSFORMS=\\server\share\Office2003\MyTransform.mst /qb-!.
6. Now add a new application to the Deployment Workbench by right-clicking on the Distribution Share\Applications node and choosing "New".  Specify "Application with source files" to copy the folder into the Microsoft Deployment distribution share.  Specify a publisher of "Microsoft" and an application name of "Office 2003".  For the source directory, specify the path you created above, e.g. \\server\share\Office2003.  For the command line, specify "SETUP.EXE TRANSFORMS=.\MyTransform.mst /QB-!".

Now you're ready to go.  You can add this application to an existing task sequence, or you can choose it during the Lite Touch deployment process in the deployment wizard.

If you are performing a Zero Touch deployment using SMS 2003 or System Center Configuration Manager 2007, the steps are the same at least until step 6.  Instead of creating an application in the Deployment Workbench, you would create a package with a program to run the same command line, distribution that package to all distribution points, and add it to the task sequences.

Yes, it's already past the middle of January, which means I'm already slacking on one of my New Year's resolutions: to post blog entries more frequently.  Another resolution is to respond promptly to e-mail, but sadly I'm already behind on that too.  It's just been one of those years (so far).

To start off the year, I'd like to call your attention to some new Office-related downloads.  As you can see, the Office team has been very busy (although the last two items have been around for a while).

Document viewers for the 2007 Office system

Enable users to open, view, and print Excel workbooks, Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and Visio diagrams without first installing any Office programs.

· Download Excel Viewer

· Download Word Viewer

· Download PowerPoint Viewer

· Download Visio Viewer

2007 Office system Administrative Template files (ADM, ADMX, ADML) and Office Customization Tool version 2.0

This download includes updated Group Policy Administrative Template files and Office Customization Tool OPA files for use with the 2007 Microsoft Office system programs. It also includes an \Admin folder with an updated Office Customization Tool, and ADMX and ADML versions of the 2007 Microsoft Office system Administrative Template files for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. In Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 operating systems, the ADM files are replaced by ADMX files, which use an XML-based file format to display registry-based policy settings. This download also includes a workbook (Office2007GroupPolicyAndOCTSettings.xls) that provides information about the 2007 Office system Group Policy settings and OPA settings.

· Download 2007 Office system Administrative Template files and Office Customization Tool version 2.0

See http://technet2.microsoft.com/Office/en-us/library/2aa26c81-d80c-4be4-9114-8ea205ef47f21033.mspx?mfr=true for more information.

The 2007 Microsoft Office Suite Service Pack 1 (SP1)

The 2007 Microsoft Office suite Service Pack 1 delivers important customer-requested stability and performance improvements, while incorporating further enhancements to user security. This service pack also includes all of the updates released for the 2007 Office suite prior to December of 2007. You can get a more complete description of SP1, including a list of issues that were fixed, in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 936982: Description of the 2007 Microsoft Office suite Service Pack 1.

Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats

By installing the Compatibility Pack in addition to Microsoft Office 2000, Office XP, or Office 2003, you will be able to open, edit, and save files using the file formats new to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007.

· Download Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats

2007 Microsoft Office Add-in: Microsoft Save as PDF or XPS 

This download allows you to export and save to the PDF and XPS formats in eight 2007 Microsoft Office programs. It also allows you to send as e-mail attachment in the PDF and XPS formats in a subset of these programs. Specific features vary by program.

· Download Microsoft Save as PDF or XPS Add-In

We always receive invitations to attend user's group meetings around the country (and in some cases, in various parts of the world) but due to time (and money) limitations, we don't get to do too many of them, focusing instead on just the big conferences and a few other events here and there.  It's always nice to get together with groups of people to "share the pain" and swap experiences.

But what if we did a virtual user's group meeting?  Would you attend?  We could talk about BDD 2007, Microsoft Deployment, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, SMS 2003, Configuration Manager 2007, Windows Deployment Services, and anything else related to Windows and Office deployment.  With any luck, we could even do some "virtual door prizes" :-)

If you are interested, fill out the survey I set up at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=BhsoY4Vq4948YwWngk6Rfw_3d_3d just so we can gauge the level of interest and we'll see what we can set up.

If you have created your own custom Windows Vista image (WIM file) and tried to use it with BDD 2007, Microsoft Deployment, or even with just the Windows System Image Manager tool, you may have run into the error above.  For the fix to that issue, see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/941595.  Be sure to follow the instructions carefully, as you will need to copy a new DLL into two places if you are using BDD 2007.  (That's not necessary for Microsoft Deployment as it uses the files directly from C:\Program Files\Windows AIK.)  And you'll need to create the new registry key before you'll be able to import any new updates or language packs.

I guess I'm a little out of touch:  I had noticed the "Click to activate" behavior in Internet Explorer 7, but never knew why it was like that.  All I knew was that it was annoying :-)  I wouldn't have guessed that it was a direct result of a lawsuit.

Well, fortunately, the behavior will soon be going back to the way it was.  See IE Automatic Component Activation (Changes to IE ActiveX Update) for more details on the upcoming fixes, with availability beginning in December.