Planning Server Deployments Lesson 1

Skills Matrix Technology Skill Objective Domain Objective # Installing Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator Plan server installations and upgrades 1.1 Understanding the Deployment Process Plan for automated server deployment 1.2

Server Deployment When planning a server deployment for a large enterprise network, the operating system edition you choose for your servers must be based on multiple factors, including the following: The hardware in the computers. The features and capabilities you require for your servers. The price of the operating system software.

Windows Server 2008 Editions Windows Server 2008 Web Windows Server 2008 Standard Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Windows Server 2008 Datacenter Refer to Table 1-1 and review the Features and Capabilities of Windows Server 2008 editions. Review the number of processors, maximum number of RAM, and which editions support clustering.

Windows Server 2008 Web Designed specifically for computers functioning as Internet or intranet Web servers. Includes all of the Internet Information Services 7 capabilities, but it cannot function as an Active Directory domain controller, and it lacks some of the other features found in the other editions as well. The licensing terms for this product forbid you to run client/server applications that are not Web-based.

Windows Server 2008 Standard The Standard edition includes nearly the full set of Windows Server 2008 features, lacking only some high-end components, such as server clustering and Active Directory Federation Services. Standard edition is also limited to computers with up to 4 GB of RAM (in the x86 version) and up to four processors.

Windows Server 2008 Enterprise The Enterprise edition includes the full set of Windows Server 2008 features, and supports computers with up to eight processors and up to 64 GB of RAM (in the x86 edition). Enterprise also supports up to four virtual images with Hyper-V (in the 64-bit version) and an unlimited number of network connections.

Windows Server 2008 Datacenter Designed for large and powerful servers with up to 64 processors and fault tolerance features such as hot add processor support. This edition is available only from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), bundled with a server.

Processor Support Each of the editions support x86 and x64 processors. There is also a Window Server 2008 for Itanium-Based Systems and Windows HPC Server 2008.

Server Core Windows Server 2008 includes an installation option that gives a stripped-down version of the operating system. There is no Start menu, no desktop Explorer shell, no Microsoft Management Console, and virtually no graphical applications. All you see when you start the computer is a single window with a command prompt. Review Table 1-2 and Table 1-3 and show which roles and features are available for Windows Server 2008 Server Core.

To work with a Server Core computer, you must rely primarily on: The extensive collection of command prompt tools Microsoft includes with Windows Server 2008. Use MMC consoles on another system to connect to the server.

Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator (MAP) Deploying Windows Server 2008 on a large network can often mean evaluating a large number of existing servers, to determine whether they have the appropriate hardware for the operating system. Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator (MAP) is a new tool that adds to the capabilities of its predecessor, Windows Vista Hardware Assessment Solution Accelerator, so that you can evaluate the hardware on servers as well as workstations.

Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator (MAP) MAP is essentially a database application based on Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express, a scaled-down, free version of SQL Server 2005. MAP can run on the 32-bit version of the following operating systems: Windows Vista Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2 Windows Server 2003 R2

Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator (MAP)

The Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator Setup Wizard

The Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator Console

The Create or Select a Database To Use Dialog box

The Select Reports and Proposals Page

The Choose Computer Discovery Methods Page

The Specify Active Directory Options Page

The Use the Windows Networking Protocols Page

The Import Computer Names From a File Page

The Scan an IP Address Range Page

The Inventory Account Dialog Box

The Assessment Wizard Status Window

The MAP Console

The WS2008 Proposal File

The WS2008 Hardware Assessment File

The WS2008 Role Assessment File

Windows Deployment Server Microsoft provides a variety of tools that enable network administrators to deploy the Windows operating systems automatically, using file-based images. Windows Deployment Services (WDS) enables you to perform unattended installations of Windows Server 2008 and other operating systems on remote computers, using network-based boot and installation media.

Windows Deployment Server The client computer must have a network adapter that supports a preboot execution environment (PXE). In a PXE, the computer, instead of booting from a local drive, connects to a server on the network and downloads the boot files it needs to run. In the case of a WDS installation, the client downloads a boot image file that loads Windows PE (Preinstallation Environment) 2.1, after which it installs the operating system by using another image file. The client computer must support PXE and must be enabled in the BIOS.

Installing Windows Deployment Services To use WDS, you must install the Windows Deployment Services role, configure the service, and add the images you want to deploy. WDS is a standard role that you can install from the Initial Configuration Tasks window or the Server Manager console. The Windows Deployment Services role includes the following two role services: Deployment Server Transport Server

Windows Deployment Services Prerequisites Windows Deployment Services role, but the role has several other prerequisites, as follows: Active Directory — The Windows Deployment Services computer must be a member of, or a domain controller for, an Active Directory domain. Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) — The network must have an operational DHCP server that is accessible by the WDS clients. Domain Name Service (DNS) — A DNS server must be on the network for the WDS server to function. NTFS — The WDS server must have an NTFS drive to store the image files. You will need plenty of disk space to hold the images.

The Windows Deployment Services Console

The Remote Installation Folder Location Page

The DHCP Option 60 Page

The PXE Server Initial Settings Page

The Configuration Complete Page

Image Files Windows Deployment Services requires two types of image files to perform remote client installations: Boot image Install image

Boot Image A boot image contains the files needed to boot the computer and initiate an operating system installation. The Windows Server 2008 installation DVD includes a boot image file called boot.wim, located in the \Sources folder, which loads Windows PE 2.1 on the client computer. You can use this boot image file for virtually any operating system deployment without modification.

Install Image Contains the operating system that WDS will install on the client computer. Windows Server 2008 includes a file named install.wim in the \Sources folder on the installation DVD. This file contains install images for different operating system editions. You can apply these images to a new computer to perform a standard Windows Server 2008 setup, just as if you had used the DVD to perform a manual installation.

The Image File Page

The Image Metadata Page

The Image Group Page

The List of Available Images Page

Custom DHCP Option When you are using another computer as your DHCP server, you should clear the Do Not Listen on Port 67 and Configure DHCP Option 60 to ‘PXEClient’ checkboxes on the DHCP Option 60 page of the Windows Deployment Services Configuration Wizard. When you are using an external DHCP server, you must also configure it manually to include the custom option that provides WDS clients with the name of the WDS server.

The DHCP Console

The Predefined Options and Values Dialog Box

The Option Type Dialog Box

The Server Options Dialog Box

Creating Image Files An install image is basically a snapshot of a computer’s hard drive taken at a particular moment in time. The image file contains all of the operating system files on the computer, plus any updates and drivers you have installed, applications you have added, and configuration changes you have made. Creating your own image files is essentially a matter of setting up a computer the way you want it and then capturing an image of the computer to a file.

Creating Image Files You can use several tools to create image files, including the ImageX.exe command line utility Microsoft provides in the Windows AIK, which is available from the Microsoft Downloads Center at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads. To use ImageX.exe, you must boot the target computer to Windows PE and run the tool from the command line. The Windows Deployment Center console provides another method for creating image files, using the same WDS infrastructure you used to install images.

The Create Capture Image Wizard

Using Answer Files WDS by itself enables you to perform a standard operating system installation, but the setup process is still interactive, requiring someone at the workstation. To perform an unattended installation using WDS, you must use answer files, sometimes known as unattend files. An answer file is a script containing responses to all of the prompts that appear on the WDS client computer during the installation process. To create answer files, Microsoft recommends using the Windows System Image Manager (Windows SIM) tool in the Windows AIK.

The Client Tab of a WDS Server’s Properties Sheet

The Image Properties Sheet

The Select Unattend File Dialog Box

Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) A set of tools and documents that enable network administrators to plan, create, and deploy operating system image files to new computers on the network. Windows AIK is not included with Windows Server 2008. Must be downloaded from Microsoft.com.

Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) ImageX.exe Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE) Windows System Image Manager (Windows SIM)

Sysprep.exe Strips away unique elements such as Computer name, Security Identifier (SID) and Driver Cache. Used on reference computer before image is taken. Sysprep is included with Windows Server 2008.

Deployment Process Build a lab environment. Create an answer file. Build a master installation. Create an image. Deploy the image.

Installing the Windows AIK

The Select Installation Folder Page

Creating an Answer File Once you have installed Windows AIK, you can use Windows System Image Manager to create the answer file for your master computer installation. The master computer will be the template for the image file you capture later. You are essentially building the computer that you will clone to all of the other new computers you install later.

The Windows System Image Manager Window

The Select an Image Dialog Box

Windows System Image with Windows Image Added

Windows System Image Manager Window with New Answer File

Windows System Image Manager Windows with a Settings Added to the Answer File Review some of the options in the Unattended Windows Answer File Settings (Table 1-5 and Table 1-6).

Summary When planning a server deployment for a large enterprise network, the operating system edition you choose for your servers must be based on multiple factors including the hardware in the computers, the features and capabilities you require for your servers, and the price of the operating system software.

Summary Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator (MAP) is a new tool that is capable of performing a hardware inventory on computers with no agent software required on the client side and adding information about the hardware to a database. MAP can then evaluate the hardware information and create reports that specify which computers are capable of running Windows Server 2008.

Summary Windows Deployment Services (WDS) is a role included with Windows Server 2008 that enables you to perform unattended installations of Windows Server 2008 and other operating systems on remote computers using network-based boot and installation media.

Summary The Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) is a set of tools and documents that enables network administrators to plan, create, and deploy operating system image files to new computers on the network.

Summary An unattend file is a script containing responses to all of the prompts that appear on the WDS client computer during the installation process. To create unattend files, Microsoft recommends using the Windows System Image Manager (Windows SIM) tool in the Windows AIK.

Summary You can use several tools to create image files, including the ImageX.exe command line utility Microsoft provides in the Windows AIK. To use ImageX.exe, you must boot the target computer to Windows PE and run the tool from the command line.