Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Windows 7 at Griffith University Makian Robertson Staff SOE Team Client Technology Services Information & Communication Technology Services Information Services Griffith University

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Background Information 5 Campuses (Sites) within Brisbane & Gold Coast corridor 10,000 managed Windows PCs in total Two general categories of “SOE” within PC environment  Staff (5700 Windows, 800 OSX)  Student (4300 Windows, 400 OSX) Active Directory used for File, Print & Authentication Organisational Model - Centralised IT support (ICTS) Staff & Student “SOE” currently managed by separate teams Win 7 deployment process is different for staff and student

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Staff SOE: Software Environment Primary Management Tools - Windows SOE  SCCM 2007  WSUS  USMT  VMWare ThinApp  Symantec Endpoint Protection Vast majority of fleet running WinXP (no Vista) Identified only 50 non-standard apps current used by a group of more than 30 staff. Plus identified key Uni admin products. No known services that require IE6 Staff users have local admin access & local user profiles

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Staff SOE: Win7 Timing & Planning – Part 1 Official Win7 SOE deployment started June 2011 (after significant Development & Pilot Process) Existing SCCM infrastructure is being used for deployment plus latest USMT Decision made to only apply Win7 SOE to new/reimaged workstations at this time  Reduce risk associated with deployment.  Manual work still required for IT support team members to smoothly migrate staff PCs, IT staff resourcing issue.  Staff in general seem satisfied with WinXP on existing PCs  Four year PC replacement cycle (25% fleet rolled-over yearly)

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Staff SOE: Win7 Timing & Planning – Part 2 Decision made to only deploy a 64bit version of Win7 SOE;  Minimise the number of OS platforms to support.  In practice few compatibility issues were found with the 50 ‘most popular’ non-standard staff applications.  Enable use of the latest generation 64bit only applications.  Maximise performance on latest generation hardware. Decision made to enforce UAC through group policy  Just one aspect of the SOE configuration to help mitigate risks associated with users with local admin access.  Set to “Notify only when programs try to make changes – without Dimming”. Needed for SCCM Remote Control. Progress: 1000 Win7 SOE PCs currently deployed (17 % fleet)

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Staff SOE: Challenges & Issues Improving efficiency of the “user state” migration process !  Improved folder redirection and/or User Profile Mgt solution  Currently unable to migrate all relevant applications automatically  Printer deployment not fully automatic (e.g. Ricoh PIN code issue)  Other Issues related to users having Local Admin (Files saved to non-standard locations, freeware software etc.) Reducing software compatibility interventions  Fortunately hasn’t really been a “show stopper” problem for us.  IT Support staff have usually found a fix/workaround when needed. These documented and shared in knowledgebase.  Some old and/or specialised incompatible software has been found on a few occasions. Current ‘last resort’ options used for these; o Virtual WinXP SOE provided by VMWare Player within Win7 SOE o User stays with WinXP SOE on physical PC  Expected to naturally reduce over time

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Student SOE: Software Environment Fleet Management Tools  Symantec Ghost  Faronics Deepfreeze  VMWare ThinApp  Symantec Endpoint Protection  Custom Management Scripts & Utilities Around 30 “monolithic” ghost images currently maintained for use in various types of student labs. Most WinXP based at present. Custom solution currently used to deliver some course specific and ‘ad-hoc’ applications (in VMWare Thinapp or Ghost AI format) to student workstations. Some labs multi-boot Windows, OSX and/or Linux. VMWare workstation solutions for virtualisation also used for multi-OS.

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Student SOE: Win7 Planning and Timing Some specialised labs (e.g. multimedia) already upgraded with Win7 x64 during “Traditional” processes such as Ghost imaging were used to achieve this. Project currently underway to implement “VMWare View” VDI for “general purpose” student computing requirements Sem VDI solution is expected to be the primary vehicle for delivering a Win7x64 environment for most student areas. As part of VDI, student lab PCs will be progressively switched to a “thin” Win7 OS to provide the VMWare View Client.

Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University Student SOE: Issues and Challenges Normal issues related to implementing VDI solutions (software licencing, infrastructure design & costs, performance etc.) Application compatibility issues. Tend to have more older software (and multiple versions) needed in student labs. Some specialised labs not suitable for VDI will still require an upgrade to Windows 7 and ongoing management.

Thank You Windows 7 Deployment – Griffith University