Automate Your Server Deployment with Automated Deployment Services (ADS)
January 21, 2004
Published: February 26, 2004
Please note:Portions of this transcript have been edited for clarity
Introduction
Moderator: John (Microsoft)
Welcome to today's chat about Automated Deployment Service.
Moderator: John (Microsoft)
I'll ask the hosts to introduce themselves now.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Lilyn, Product Manager for ADS. I'm on the marketing side
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Hi I'm Partha (Microsoft) , a Developer on the ADS team.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Hi - This is Mukesh, I am a development lead on the ADS Team.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Hi, I am a Program Manager, ADS product team
Host: Michael (Microsoft)
Michael_MS: technical writer who wrote the ADS setup documentation.
Start of Chat
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: purpose of ADS and summary of ADS?
A: For bare-metal Windows server provisioning in a well-connected data center and also for remote administering of large scale server farms. For more info, check www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/ads/default.mspx
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: compare ADS to RIS -- when would I want to use RIS for deploying a server vs. ADS RIS performs an unattended install and requires a user on the client.
A: ADS performs a SYSPREP imaging deployment (about 10x faster) and then supports a remote sec
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: I have a small test environment with 2 2003 boxes. What would prevent an Image pull from an IBM with a mirrored raid. one big C drive, \harddisk0\Partition1 >I've added the raid adapter's 2003 drivers into the /PreSystem dir.
A: We are working on this one and will get back to you on the ADS feedback thread.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Can you use HP Smartstart with ADS?
A: Yes. Check this link and go to the OEM partner section www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/ads/default.mspx
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: can we test ads in virtual environment like vmware or MS Virtual server
A: Yes, the ADS services can be tested on the Virtual Server but not the clients/targets.
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Are there any scalability issues to consider when using ADS?
A: We have tested ADS with multicasting and running jobs on 128 Targets and also managing 1000 targets (with operations on 128 at a time).
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: Can you burn ADS images to CD instead of using PXE Boot?
A: ADS images are typically greater than 700 MB. So, no, it won't work in lieu of PXE boot.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Why should I use ADS instead of HP Smartstart for my HP/COmpaq Servers?
A: They work together. ADS is a free download if you have a copy of Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: Is ADS Free with Windows 2003 Server?
A: Yes, ADS is free with Windows 2003 Server, you would need the Enterprise Edition to install the ADS Services.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: to Jeff (Microsoft) - could you burn to a DVD?
A: You can burn the image to DVD, yes. ADS can use that as a source of the bits if you have another OS on the target server. ADS includes cmd line image tools.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: Will ADS work with any version of W2K3
A: The client machines can be any version of W2K3; the ADS Services requires Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition.
Host: Michael (Microsoft)
Q: Will ADS work with any version of W2K3:
A: 32-bit versions of English, German, or Japanese Enterprise Edition. ADS can deploy W2K Server SP3 and later and W2K3 server
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Can you image a DC with ADS (without sysprpep), and restore the domain later
A: As long as you not run sysprep and restore on the same machine it should work, But this is not a scenario that we recommend using ADS for.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: You can push installs of either 2000 or 2003, correct?
A: Not just W2K3 ADS can push Windows 2000 Server Sp3 or any Windows Server 2003 32-bit versions
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Whats the diff with ADS and Ghost or PowerQuest?
A1: on a higher level - ADS is a base Windows OS level imaging/administering tool. you can add/subtract from the image, task sequence all steps for provisioning
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Are many other people trying to use ADS and APF together?
A: Any scripts written for APF should work with ADS, you may also want to check out http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itsolutions/cits/dsd/wsrvdep/default.mspx.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Whats the diff with ADS and Ghost or PowerQuest? A2: do remote admin to multiple servers. It's Windows only, low cost.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: Any one tried to use Stored procs with temp table in Reporting services?
A: ADS SQL backend doesn't support stored procs.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: Can you image a DC with ADS (without sysprpep), and restore the domain later
A: Disaster Recovery is not a scenario we support or target with ADS.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Why are ADS devices limited to server operating systems?
A: ADS is not designed, tested or licensed for the distributed environment. It is not tested to handle user state migration, for example.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: if you were going to use ADS over a WAN what is the minimum connection speed between offices?
A: Using ADS over a WAN is not a support scenario.
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Can you image a DC with ADS:
A: You cannot run Sysprep on a DC and to be supported by Microsoft you must use Sysprep when deploying images: 162001 Do Not Disk Duplicate Installed Versions of Windows <http://support.microsoft.com/?id=162001>
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Does the "Virtual Floppy" set all the bios settings for the target server and how would I configure the raid controller? "
A: you will need to create a virtual floppy image that configures the BIOS/Raid controller. you may be able to get this from the OEMs who provided the hardware. ADS by itself does not come with these, we do have a basic image.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: is there any particular hardware that ADS needs?
A: ADS is supported on the minimum host OS hw req. However, the ADS docs makes specific recs to have at least a GHz cpu and 512 MB of mem.. Disk space per image varies, plan on initial 5GB min.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Any licensing issues we should be concerned with when using ADS?
A1: ADS is a free download if you have a licensed copy of Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Any licensing issues we should be concerned with when using ADS?
A2: ADS deploys 2 families of Windows Servers, W2K all server skus, Windows Server 2003 all 32-bit SKUs. The devices to be deployed should have valid licenses.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: What is the minimum numbers of servers in an environment that makes it worth while looking into ADS?
A: You need one system for the ADS Services. The number of targets may be 1 to many. Think about frequency. Most important benefit is consistency
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: To utilize ADS, will I need to manually set the BIOS on each machine to utilize PXE?
A: yes, if you want to image machines, then PXE must be the first boot option in the BIOS.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: How does ADS target the client machines? Does it use MAC address?
A: Yes, with MAC addresses or with SMBIOS GUIDs
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Apart from the white paper and ADS Help file, is there any other documentation on ADS?
A: Besides a few websites: <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/techinfo/overview/ads.mspx> <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/default.mspx
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
There is excellent documentation downloaded with ADS. Be sure to take a look at the ADS_quickstart.html
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: When is the next release of ADS due out. And will there be any enhancements to the current method of modifing and/or adding of Job Templates?
A: We are evaluating what features to add based on customer feedback; we are also looking at job templates for improvements. Thanks for your feedback.
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Micand - Are there any other articles in TechNet though
A: <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/ads/default.mspx> <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/techinfo/overview/adsbenefits.mspx>
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: OMG, Does ADS really use Batch files?
A: No. We use an object approach. Called a job template. A sequence of tasks that are executed in order and proceed only if previous succeeds.
Host: Mukesh (Microsoft)
Q: Currently, to mount the image you have to mount it by GUID. Have you thought of changing this to the image name?
A: We have received this request from other customers as well and we are evaluating this for the next release.
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Does ADS expose any APIs we can use to integrate?
A: yes, ADS has a rich API that is exposed via WMI. We have many samples included with ADS that show how to use the ADS WMI object model. See in the Microsoft ADS\samples folder on your ADS controller. In fact our MMC console and scripts themselves use the object model.
Host: Martin (Microsoft)
Q: Currently this process is convoluted and long. Editing of bat files. running of batch files etc. Will this be possible via the console in MMC
A: Dana, having tighter integration between the MMC UI and the ADS Task Sequence Editor is a feature that we are investigating for upcoming release. If you have thoughts on how this could best be surfaced to the end-user please elaborate on ADSFeed@microsoft.com
Host: Martin (Microsoft)
That was: ADSFeed@microsoft.com for submitting ADS feature requests
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Apart from the white paper and ADS Help file, is there any other documentation on ADS?
A2: We also have a Solution on ADS - Windows Server Deployment Solution Accelerator (WSD) http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/overview/benefits/manageability/default.mspx
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Apart from the white paper and ADS Help file, is there any other documentation on ADS? A3:<http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/overview/benefits/manageability/bestpractices.mspx>
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: Some of the sample Task Sequences are written in XML; is XML the preferred method?
A: Task sequences are for performing a long list of configurations from bare-metal to an os configured state. Remote scripting supports any WMI compatible scripting l
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Another link for Windows Server Deployment Solution Accelerator (WSD) <http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itsolutions/cits/dsd/wsrvdep/default.mspx>
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Does ADS provide any status of the deployments?
A: yes, when you run a sequence from the ADS controller, you get complete job logs for each task, if there is an image capture/deployment involved, then ADS also shows the real time percentage status ( on the target as well the controller)on the imaging operation.
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: Jeff (Microsoft) : scott : Q:OMG, Does ADS really use Batch files? No. ????????
A: We should clarify, so lets take this question apart. Ok?
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Can the status of the deployments be retrieved in a parsable fashion from the APIs?
A: Yes, this information is also available programmatically via the WMI interface.
Host: Martin (Microsoft)
Q: Are you looking at adding a capability to resize an image to enable deployment on a smaller partition than captured?
A: this is currently not planned for upcoming releases, as we've recommend users to create their reference images on as small of partition as possible. Then you can always deploy to a larger partition.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Q: Are there any training courses on ADS? I've not managed to get it to work using the Help files.
A: this is the area we are working on. In the meantime, check out the prescriptive guidance on WSD
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
WSD URL <http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itsolutions/cits/dsd/wsrvdep/default.mspx>
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Image resize: are there any guidelines on how to capture the image to avoid resize issues?
A: We recommend that you capture from the smallest partition possible, then you can always deploy on machines that have larger partitions than the one that was used to capture
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Image resize: are there any guidelines on how to capture the image to avoid resize issues?
A: 240126 Best Practices for Using Sysprep with NTFS Volumes <http://support.microsoft.com/?id=240126>
Host: Jeff (Microsoft)
Q: OMG, Does ADS really use Batch files? No. ????????
A: Job templates can be task sequences, command batch files, or Executables to run a target. Typically users take sample task sequences and customize the instructions
Moderator: John (Microsoft)
If you would like further information on this topic please visit the following URL(s): < www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/ads/default.mspx >
Moderator: John (Microsoft)
We are still working on some last minute questions. We're just about done for today.
Host: Partha (Microsoft)
Q: Can we use ADS to reimage a machine or does it only work on bare metal machines?
A: Sure, just reboot the machine to the DA and then do the imaging. to clarify, DA is the Deployment Agent
Host: Michael A (Microsoft)
Q: Is there easy way to image a machine and selecting what to grab. Or simply a way to remove unwanted items prior too like the swap file, temp internet files or unwanted profiles?
A: There is not a way to select what to backup, but there is a way to capture that does remove some dup files and the pagefile: take a look at Imgdeploy.exe (used from within a 32bit os such as WinPE): “/u Captures the volume in cluster <mk:@MSITStore:C:\Documents%20and%20Settings\Micander\Desktop\Help%20files\ADS3571.3\adsCtrlr.chm::/HELP=glossary.hlp%20TOPIC=gls_cluster> order. This creates an exact clone of the volume. When /u is omitted, the volume “/u Captures the volume in cluster order. This creates an exact clone of the volume. When /u is omitted, the volume is captured in file order, which produces a smaller image file. With file capture, files are defragmented, duplicate executable files are
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
You can provide product feedback and join our newsgroups. Send Feedback <mailto:adsfeed@microsoft.com > Send your feedback in e-mail. Each message will be reviewed by a member of the ADS team, but we cannot guarantee a personal reply.
Host: Lilyn (Microsoft)
Please join a Newsgroup <http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/newsgroups/serveros/win2003.mspx> Have a question about ADS? Want peer-to-peer support? Join the Windows Server Setup newsgroup too.
Moderator: John (Microsoft)
Thanks for attending everyone! We're all done for today.
For further information on this topic please visit the following:
Newsgroups: Windows Server Setup
Windows Server Transcripts: Read the archive
Website: Visit the Automated Deployment Services site