Launching Vista: Quinnipiacs Laptop Purchase Program

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Launching Vista Quinnipiacs Laptop Purchase
Program

• April 8, 2008
• Rick Brownell, Victoria Helland

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About Quinnipiac
(KWIN-uh-pe-ack)

• Private, coeducational university
• 5,400 undergraduate students
• 2,000 graduate students
• 280 Full-time faculty

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Laptop Purchase Program

• Required for all incoming students
• Dell Latitude D630
• Quinnipiac-specific image
• Student purchased, online
• Launch in April June

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Vista Strategy

• Enterprise Edition
• 2007 Laptop Program
• No upgrades
• Staff Labs remain WinXP
• Optiplex 745 specd for Vista
• Communicate

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Office 2007 Strategy

• Enterprise Edition
• 2007 Laptop Program
• Get Started Tabs, Save As PDF
• Communicate
• Encourage usage
• Distribute compatibility pack

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Planning

• Dell
• Microsoft
• Matt Hickey
• Planet Technologies
• The Advisory Council
• Webcasts, Vendor seminars, etc.

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Preparing

• Dell product options roadmap (Dec 06)
• MS conference call Versions Activation
  (Jan06)
• CFI test project Vista on D620 (Feb07)
• MS Support programs (April07)
• Overview Seminars (May07)
• CFI D630 Vista project (June 1 07)
• CFI D630 WinXP project (late June07)

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The Future

• 2008 Laptop program
• Vista on classroom computers
• Physics lab, Jan 08
• More Office 2007 for Staff
• Vista?

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The techie stuff
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Microsoft Tools

• BDD (Business Desktop Deployment)
• Used to create builds. Builds associate source
  files in the distribution share with a
  configuration (unattended-setup answer file and
  task sequence)
• ImageX
• Disk Imaging tool
• WAIK (Windows Automated Installation Kit)
• Used to customize Vista
• Power Schemes
• Sidebar options
• Insert Activation Key
• Used to rearm the activations

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What did we utilize?

• Quinnipiac did not use the BDD as it does not
  allow for Multicasting. Rather, we used Symantec
  Ghost Version 11 (Vista Rated and approved)
• The use of earlier versions of Symantec Ghost
  will result in the need for a Windows Repair
  after an image is casted
• Nor did we use ImageX for the same reason in
  addition to longer image times as compared to
  Ghost

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What did we utilize? (cont.)

• The WAIK was needed to rearm the activation
• Rearming a computer restores the Windows system
  to the original licensing state.
• All licensing and registry data related to
  activation is either removed or reset.
• Any grace period timers are reset as well

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Methods of Activation

• MAK (Multiple Activation Key)
• Can be activated over the internet or by phone
• KMS (Key Management System)
• Activated over a network via KMS Server
• In use at Quinnipiac for University owned
  computers
• MAK vs. KMS
• Quinnipiacs image uses a MAK activation,
  however, a script is hidden in the file system to
  change them over to KMS for computers that remain
  on the network
• The following script can be used to verify OS,
  Activation Method, partial key confirmation and
  License state
• cscript c\windows\system32\slmgr.vbs dli

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Volume Activation Management Tool

• Can perform remote MAK activation
• Reporting on the activation status of all
  machines in the environment (MAK and KMS)
• Current MAK activation count(s)
• Designed to run as a stand-alone application
• Enables IT pros to automate and centrally manage
  the volume activation process using MAK Key

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Volume Activation Management Tool (cont.)

• VAMT collects information on listed computers
• Product key being used
• Current license state (Licensed, Grace,
  Unlicensed)
• Operating System
• It stores one or more MAKs in the Computer
  Information List (CIL) file.
• Allows queries against the Activation database to
  determine the number of activations remaining for
  their organizations MAKs

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Using the WAIK to create an Unattend File

• Within the WAIK, you will need to run the Windows
  System Image Manager
• The WSIM allows you to customize Vista
• There are over 1000 customizations available

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Sysprep and the Unattend File

• Sysprep is now run from a cmd prompt, no
  installation or executables as in XP
• Sysprep switches
• /oobe Out of Box Experience
• Enables end users to customize their windows
  operating system, create user accounts, name the
  computer, and other tasks
• /generalize all unique system information is
  removed
• SID is reset, activation is reset, restore points
  are cleared and event logs are deleted
• /shutdown shuts down the computer after sysprep
  completes
• /unattend applies settings in the answer file

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Sysprep and the Unattend FileIn use

• At command prompt, run the following
• Sysprep.exe /oobe /generalize /shutdown
  /unattendc\windows\unattend.xml
• More information available at
• http//technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsVista/en/libr
  ary/fd2f79c9-3049-4b8c-bcfd-4e6dc5771ace1033.mspx

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Some Initial Glitches

• Initial testing with Image X would not create 2
  partitions
• More training on the product was needed on our
  part
• Proper command lines created 2 partitions
• We began with building Vista image on a Dell D620
• Converted over to D630 and ran into driver issues
• Sysprep removed our power settings
• Can not modifying current power plan
• Had to create a custom power plan

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Some Initial Glitches

• Intel Chipset/Video driver did not load after
  Sysprep
• Vista PnP driver out ranking Intel driver
• Speculations of unsigned drivers
• Resolution at the time was to stage the drivers
• Most recent image build did not have any driver
  issues
• Driver issues with Pharos Printing
• No issues after upgrade of Pharos to a Vista
  capable version

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Some Initial Glitches

• Initial drive had 2 partitions (OS and Data)
• Later found that this interfered with updates
• Re-created image with 1 partition
• Initial batch of laptops came in with incorrect
  BIOS configuration for VISTA
• Flash Cache Module needs to be off
• SATA Operation method needs to be ATA as compared
  to AHCI
• Some students would come in with refurbished Dell
  D630s
• Not enough memory to run Vista

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Some Initial Glitches

• Errors installing Roxio on Vista
• Error Msg These Products Will Not Be Installed
  Roxio Creator BDAV Plugin
• We later found that if your computer does not
  have a Blu-Ray drive, Roxio Creator does not
  install the Roxio Creator BDAV
• Click ok on error message to continue on
• KMS
• Activation will not occur against KMS Server
  until there are 25 KMS clients
• 50 KMS Clients are needed to have activation
  remain
• The client count is then cached and remains
• KMS Server resides in-house
• Computers with KMS activation need to check-in
  every 180 days

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Some Initial Glitches

• Administrator account disabled by default
• Even if the account is enabled, sysprep will
  reset it to disabled
• Resolution - initial account created in OOBE was
  named Admin and used as the administrator
  account
• We found that with Sysprep, there was a long
  start up time up to 12 minutes
• About 2 months were spent working out all these
  glitches

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Tweaks

• Added items to the start menu to make it more
  like XP
• Printers
• Games are not installed by default
• We had to add the games pack to the image
• If using an older version of Ghost, windows
  repair is needed
• The wired NIC was disabled in the device manager
  on start up
• in Control Panel it was set to disable when
  running only on battery