SCCM 2012 OSD Strategy & Planning
OSD is one of the most popular and complex feature of SCCM deployed in Enterprise environment. Building a robust OSD in SCCM is a dream of every SCCM admin. OSD consists of 3 Phases Planning ,Implementation, Deployment.
From my experience I have tried to put each and every detail that is required to build a Robust OSD in SCCM. Planning phase is key to Success of Robust & Effective OSD .
Planning
a) What is need of SCCM OSD in environment ? What is Current pain area/challenge in current OSD process
b) What is client expecting at the end of Successful implementation ? Shorter Build Time, Centralized Administration of Build, Reduce Network Bandwidth, Build Standardization etc
c) What is current state of Image? Is it one golden image or multiple images? Is there a scope to bring it in one once centralized image?
d) How many HW models are we supporting in OSD
e) How many sites will be using OSD
f) Are there any customizations required in terms of different locations or departments or business units
g) Different locations do they have different domains & OU’s for AD object
h) Application Windows,Office and Adobe Language packs do they need to be in Standard build
i) List of Core Apps to be installed in Standard build
j) Are there any customization in apps depending on Locations
Based on information collected above a strategy should be defined to finalize the way of deployment Below table provides info about what type of Deployment and its benefits . Decide on basis of per client environment, requirement & expectation
Driver Deployment Planning
Once the way of Deployment is decided next major milestone is to finalize on HW models & their Driver profiling
SCCM is widely used as a OSD tool across globe by multiple organizations. HW manufacturers like Lenovo,Dell & HP have recognized the effort that is required to build a successful OSD. They have released utilities for integration with SCCM and also individual driver packs helping SCCM admins to reduce down the effort required to setup HW drivers in SCCM
Dell :
Integration to SCCM-http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/b/techcenter/archive/2013/05/01/new-dell-client-integration-pack-dcip-3-1-for-configmgr-2012-sp1-is-now-available
Lenovo :
Drivers Packs - https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/documents/ht074984
HP :
Integration to SCCM - http://www8.hp.com/us/en/ads/clientmanagement/microsoft.html
Driver Packs - http://www8.hp.com/us/en/ads/clientmanagement/drivers-bios.html?jumpid=va_r11260_go_clientmanagement_sdm#softpaq-download-mng
These packs can be used in MDT & SCCM to create Driver packages and then use them in task sequence with appropriate WMI conditions for deployment
Below are the benefits of Driver deployment method . It will help you to decide on which method is best for you
Image Planning
Key Points to remember
ü Try to avoid multiple images of same OS
ü Different images for Different architecture eg 32 bit & 64 bit
ü Avoid injecting any drivers to WinPE
ü Avoid adding any heavy applications in image like Lotus notes, MS office . Add them as Apps in task sequence
Keeping Image up to date
SCCM provides you an amazing feature to keep your images up to date with security patches and updates its called as Offline Servicing of image .
Define a process to keep your image up to date . Usually most organizations prefer to do it Quarterly. From a security compliance point of view its one of the key factor. Depending on client requirements and expectation strategize. For technical step by step process follow below article from technet
Domain & OU Planning
Some organizations will have multiple domains and multiple OU structure depending upon location or business unit or department.
Key Points to remember
ü Collect information about multiple domain & OU structure as per location/BU/Department
ü Collect subnet/default gateway/Naming standard of systems depending on location
Strategy for implementing
ü Use built in Task sequence Action variables. For OSDDomainName, OSDDomainOUName & OSDJoinAccount Refer- https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/Hh273365.aspx
ü Define custom variables & scripts depending on information available and set actions to them Refer for customizations - http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/28549.sccm-2012-how-to-customize-computer-name-domain-joining-and-moving-to-right-ou-during-osd.aspx
ü Use Dynamic variable list in case of data available for default gateways/subnet to set a Location and then use that location to move machine to respective OU and domain
Core Applications in Build
Key Points to remember
ü Collect standard apps names
ü Collect info on versions & dependencies
Strategy for implementing
ü Keep the Application Set lite
ü Avoid apps which need updates from vendor website or network share during installation
ü Create groups like Security Apps, Admin Apps , Adobe Apps ,MS Apps,VPN apps,Laptop apps,Desktop apps etc to categorize and avoid confusions
ü Test packages manually before setting it up in build. To capture return codes and understand restart behavior use the same in Task sequence to avoid build failures
Customizations
Key Points to remember
ü Collect list of customizations required
ü Categorize in terms of App custom,User profile custom,System custom etc to define strategy
Strategy for implementing
ü Define method of customization.
ü Categorize way of customization like Vbscript, Group policy, Local Policy , Batch file etc
ü Test scripts manually and check for desired output before adding in TS
Infrastructure Planning
Key Points to remember
ü Collect info on site from where systems will be physically built
ü Remote sites which have lower network bandwidth
ü Network Ports are opened . Refer- https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/Hh427328.aspx
Strategy for implementing
ü Setup PXE & WDS roles where ever required .
ü Remote sites less than 25 user doesn’t need dedicated DP unless client specifically mentioned it as required
ü From Industry standard only Office Location where systems will be physically built need DP with PXE & WDS
ü Remote site Locations with limited bandwidth can use USB standalone media as deployment method
User Interface Planning
Choose the right Deployment Strategy for OSD depending on customer requirement & expectation
Putting Planning Pieces Together
Putting all the planning pieces together will give you a OSD deployment strategy
For implementing OSD classify entire process in to different buckets for making it easier to administer and maintain moving ahead
Now its just matter of time to setup your task sequence and start testing it . Happy OSD implementation