SMS 2003 and Software Distribution

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SMS 2003 and Software Distribution

• Stana Kopczuk
• DMS Project Lead
• Tony Valencia
• SMS 2003 Administrator

2
What will be talked about

• Identify machines that receive the software
  deployments
• Dynamic Query collections
• Desktop Management Software (DMS) Exemptions
• Package, Program and Advertisement settings
• Phased deployments for maximum percentage of
  machines successfully patched

3
Software Distribution

• Machines that receive the deployment
• No DMS exemptions
• Software to be upgraded currently installed and
  not at latest version
• Machines that do not receive the deployment
• DMS exemptions by rule or registered in NWIS
• Software not installed

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Desktop Management SoftwareDefined

• DMS includes the applications required to
  manage machines with the following core
  features
• Patching
• Software Distribution
• Hardware and Software inventory
• At SNL more than one application is required to
  patch and distribute software to each platform
• Windows platform
• Patching achieved with WSUS
• software deployments achieved with SMS 2003

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Desktop Management SoftwareExemption Types

• Exemptions by rule
• Non-Sandia owned equipment, no client is
  installed
• Servers exempt from patching
• LAN exemptions exclude network equipment
• Explicit DMS Exemptions requested by machine
  System Administrator in NWIS and approved by
  upper management, CSR and DMS Administrator
• DMS Client installed, no patching
• DMS client not installed, no inventory or patching

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DMS Exemptions integrated with SMS 2003

• Registry key populated and exemption collections
  built nightly
• File generated from NWIS of machine names and a
  code representing exemption type
• Windows server scheduled task calls .cmd, which
  calls vbscript program that reads the NWIS file
• Populate SMS server registry key that SMS 2003
  uses to determine which machines are exempt from
  client installations
• Populate pre-defined collections used for
  exemptions from software distribution with
  machines that exist in SMS All Systems
  collection

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Software Distribution Collections

• What is the advantage of building exemption
  collections?
• Collections created from All Systems, minus
  exempted machines become the target machines for
  deployments
• Collections are updated by a set schedule
  dynamically based on criteria stored in the
  database
• Dynamic queries replace the use of makecoll.bat
  utility
• Makecoll.bat utility used to create collections
  based on list of machines from a flat file
• Dynamic query collections based on software
  deployment criteria and updated on a schedule
• Deployments are limited to the collections that
  exclude the exempted machines

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Software Distribution Collections

• Dynamic Queries are used to build collection of
  machines for software deployments meeting
  deployment criteria
• Machines are included in the collection based on
  a dynamic query of software and/or hardware
  inventory information
• Collection changes daily (dynamic) as
• New machines connect to the network and are added
  to the collection if meet requirements
• Software is successfully installed on a machine
  and it drops out when machine inventory reports a
  successful update and the collection is updated.
  

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Software Distribution Collection
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Software Distribution Collections

• SMS used primarily for software distribution of
  third party software and Office upgrades or
  installations.
• ICA Client
• Adobe Reader
• Microsoft Communicator

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Software Distribution Deployment

• Successful installation dependent on
• Healthy client
• Software and/or hardware inventory
• Collection update on regular schedule
• First phase of the deployment
• Customer receives text box/notification about the
  deployment
• Customer can cancel the installation
• Second phase of deployment the application is
  sent in silent mode at night requiring no
  customer interaction

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Software Distribution Package
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Software Distribution Program
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Software Distribution Program
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Software Distribution ProgramPhase One
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Software Distribution Advertisement
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Software Distribution Begins
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Software Distribution ProgramPhase One Text box
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Software Distribution ProgramPhase Two
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Software Distribution AdvertisementPhase Two
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Software Distribution

• Machine saturation reaches 60 on phase one
• One to two nights of silent deployment quickly
  updates another 15-20 with minimal impact on the
  customer
• Phase two continues another week to complete the
  deployment

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Software Distribution Success Story

• Update software on a large number of machines in
  a quick and timely manner
• Few problems reported to the Help Desk
• Customers call to verify it is OK to click OK
  button on the text box
• Customers call when the software updates cause
  problems with their machines, but they are
  minimal due to thorough testing by the SNL CSU
  deployment team -- but that is another story

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• Questions?
• Thank you!