My last couple of blogs discussed how the new Network Access Protection service provided by Windows Server 2008 can help you keep client OS software up to date with the latest patches, antivirus signatures and security settings. So, it makes sense to spend a little bit of time talking about the Windows Deployment Services (WDS) provided by Windows Server 2008, which make it really easy to get network client computers up and running with a client OS. WDS enables you to install a client operating system (such as Windows Vista and Windows XP) using an image-based installation. The image for the client operating system is stored on the WDS server and WDS, by design, is used to install an operating system on a client that currently does not have an operating system installed on it.
WDS provides a couple important components that enable you to install an operating system over the network to a computer that has no operating system (and an unformatted hard drive). The Pre-Boot Execution Environment (PXE) server enables the WDS client to boot using Windows PE. The Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server (of WDS) enables the operating system image to be installed. To use WDS to deploy a client operating system, such as Windows Vista (or the Windows Server 2008 OS to multiple servers), you must configure a WDS server on the network. The Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) must also be available on the network, and you also need to have a DHCP server and a DNS server available. Because AD DS, DHCP, and DNS are all important services required for a domain, you basically need to have your domain infrastructure up and running before taking advantage of WDS.
Images used for installing operating systems to WDS clients must be stored on the WDS server on an NTFS volume. The first step in rolling out client operating systems (and server operating systems if required) is to add the Windows Deployment Services role to a server on the network running Windows Server 2008. This server can be a domain member server or a domain controller.
Once the WDS role has been added to the server, you must configure WDS using the Windows Deployment Services snap-in. You can run the WDS snap-in in the MMC or you can run it in the Server Manager. In the WDS snap-in right click the server (in the node tree) that you want to configure and then select Configure Server from the shortcut menu. The Windows Deployment Services Configuration Wizard will open. You use the wizard to configure the location of the RemoteInstall folder that will hold the boot and install images for your client operating systems. The WDS Configuration Wizard also helps you configure the PXE server settings including the type of clients that can contact the WDS server (such as only known clients or known and unknown clients).
Once you configured WDS all you have to do is add the OS images to the RemoteInstall folder. The last page of the WDS Configuration Wizard provides you with an option to open the Add Image Wizard (the check box is selected by default). You can add images immediately to your WDS configuration using the Wizard. To add boot and install images to the WDS server you will need the installation CD (or DVD) for the Windows client operating system you want to add. Although it is a little confusing the Add Image Wizard is used to add both boot and install images for an OS.
This process can be a little confusing in that the Add Image Wizard is used to add both boot and install images. When you launch the Add Image Wizard via the Boot Images node (in the WDS snap-in), the image added will be is a boot image. When you launch the Add Image Wizard via the Install Images node you will be adding an install image. You need both for a client operating system to be installed remotely. The boot image for Vista, boot.wim, is found in the Sources folder on the Vista installation media. The install image for Vista is install.wim.
Once you have the WDS server ready to go with boot and install images all you have to do is start up a client computer on the network and it will perform a network boot from the PXE-enabled network interface. The client will be assigned an IP address by the DHCP server on the network. If the network boot is successful, the WDS client will begins to load the boot image from the WDS server. The Install Windows utility will open on the client and all you have to do is select the OS that is to be installed and then sit and wait for the installation to complete.
DWS can make installing operating systems on network clients a much less time- intensive endeavor. With boot and install images for a number of desktop client operating systems stored on the DWS server, you can quickly get a new client computer up and running with any number of operating systems.
