This is part two of a three part series of articles covering two great WMI tools, the first tool being Microsoft's free WMI Code Creator.

WMI Code Creator is a tiny (300KB) Microsoft tool available here. To demonstrate its features, the code snippet below is for querying a machine’s model and gives us enough info to start using the tool.

strComputer = "."
Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
strQuery="SELECT * from Win32_ComputerSystem"
Set col=GetObject("WinMgmts://" & strComputer & "/root/cimv2").ExecQuery(strQuery)
For Each WMIProperty in col
PCModel = WMIProperty.Model

First, I need to select the CIMV2 namespace and then find the win32_computersystem class in the class drop-down box. Without reference to a huge book or the internet, you would struggle to discover the properties in the class without perhaps writing a script. Code creator makes this trivial, with the click of a single button which lists all properties. The model is just one property of many, as you can see in figure 2 below:

(more…)

Rate this tool: (2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

 Loading ...

Submit a free admin tool | Free admin tools index | Browse free admin tools

This is the first part of a series of three articles covering two great WMI tools, introduces how System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) uses WMI in OS deployment task-sequences.

SCCM task-sequence

Recently I had to use SCCM to deploy a Windows XP image with support for seventeen models. To achieve this aim, a major requirement was to check the target hardware was indeed one of the seventeen models supported before pushing a 6GB image to it.

Briefly, SCCM performs OS deployment by preparing a blank disk, writing an image to the disk and injecting appropriate drivers using a template of commands in sequence. Microsoft cunningly calls this a task-sequence. To provide filtering logic, each step within a task-sequence has an options tab where you can add a WMI query. This allows you to use WMI queries which let you target machines very easily but you need to discover the exact model string for the query to work.

(more…)

In this article you will learn what the Internet Explorer Administration Kit (IEAK) is, why it is useful, and how to install the software in Windows Server 2008.

Regardless of whether you love or hate the Internet Explorer Web browser, one thing is for sure: Microsoft sure gives us administrators plenty of flexibility in how we deploy and manage the application. In Windows Server 2008 R2 we have over 1,000 Group Policy settings to customize IE behavior.

NOTE: In Windows Server 2008 R2, the Group Policy paths to the Internet Explorer maintenance settings are Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Internet Explorer and User Configuration\Windows Settings\Internet Explorer Maintenance

Some of the representative IE customizations that Windows administrators may want to specify include the following:

• Enforced HTTP proxy settings
• Corporate branding
• Remote access connection profiles
• Enforced security settings

(more…)

This second part of the review of the Windows software deployment tool PDQ Deploy Pro covers the scheduling and targeting features.

The deadline for this contest is May 27, 2011. If you want to have a chance to win one of eight PDQ Deploy Pro licenses, each worth $249 USD, please send an email with the subject “PDQ Deploy Pro” to .

In my last post, I described PDQ Deploy Pro’s Installers, which are essentially software deployment packages. Today, I will cover three other important PDQ Deploy Pro concepts: Schedules, Targets, and Deployments.

(more…)

PDQ Deploy Pro is a Windows software distribution tool for small- and mid-sized organizations.

Admin Arsenal is raffling eight PDQ Deploy Pro licenses of their Windows software distribution tool, each worth $249 USD. The deadline is May 27, 2011. If you want to take part in this raffle please send an email to .

(more…)

ABC Deploy is a free software deployment and Windows client maintenance tool. It can distribute all types of management tasks to computers as well as to end users.

Submitted by Flemming Varmer

ABC Deploy allows you to install any type of software to your client systems, and also to create and maintain user profiles for that software. The free tool supports all Windows 32 and 64 bit versions since Windows 2000.

Task definition is made real simple. In most cases installing software like Adobe Acrobat Reader only requires you to name the task, and supply the path to a .MSI file. Error handling and logging activity is fully automated. You can also monitor client activity in real-time.

(more…)

Rate this tool: (6 votes, average: 3.50 out of 5)

 Loading ...

Submit a free admin tool | Free admin tools index | Browse free admin tools

This part of the SC Configuration Manager v.Next review focuses on User Centric Management (UCM), on the Applications concept and the new deployment types.

Many systems administrators are familiar with Microsoft’s Systems Center Suite, relying on its various components for their day to day jobs. Operations Manager keeps tabs on the health of your infrastructure, Data Protection Manager makes sure all your (Microsoft) workloads are safely backed up, Virtual Machine Manager keeps your virtual servers and hosts in check and Configuration Manager keeps track of computer hardware and installed software.

Systems Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) 2007 was recently updated with an R3 release which added power management and a few other tweaks. In this article I’ll give an overview of the next major release of SCCM, currently called “v.Next” and explain where Microsoft is taking SCCM. This article is written on beta1; beta2 is expected in January 2011 with RTM possibly sometime mid next year.

(more…)

The DPInst.exe utility from Microsoft allows you to pre-install device drivers. It is only officially available as part of the Windows Driver Kit.

From time to time I encounter the situation where I need to install device drivers onto a system when the hardware isn’t physically available. The DPInst.exe utility from Microsoft allows you to do this, by performing a driver pre-installation. It is only officially available as part of the Windows Driver Kit (free 619MB ISO), although some creative googling might help you find it without rinsing your bandwidth so much. You’ll also find it included in many driver packages already as an installation mechanism.

In the past I have used this utility to push out drivers to all systems on my network ahead of rolling out new hardware (e.g. portable printers) to some mobile users, so that when the users get the hardware, they can just plug it in and it works. This is especially good when your users don’t have any local admin privileges. You could also make a CD containing all your device drivers with a single, simple, installation interface.

I passionately hate the unnecessary rubbish that comes bundled on the discs with many device drivers! You might find the Microsoft Update Catalog useful if you are a fan of small and simple driver packages. It is basically a directory of all the drivers that are available to the Windows Update system. You can also search by hardware ID, which is nice for that ‘unknown device’.

(more…)

In my last post, I outlined four ways to stop a shutdown or reboot process. These tricks are the last resort to prevent Windows from shutting down. However, Windows offers a few configuration options that can help to minimize the number of required reboots. Today, I will cover the restarts that are caused by third-party applications. In my next post, I will examine automatic restarts initiated by Windows Update.

Deploy updates during off-hours

The main reason why third-party applications may initiate restarts is because an update has to replace open files. If users are currently working with an application while you deploy updates, the likelihood is high that you will interrupt their work. Hence, I recommend using a software deployment solution that supports scheduled software updates and WAKE-ON-LAN so you can boot-up computers before the deployment process starts. (more…)

In my last post, I gave an overview of the advantages of a P2P OS deployment. Today, I will outline how OS deployment works with DistriBrute. More information about this contest can be found at the end of this article.

If you are already familiar with Windows deployment, then you will have no difficulty understanding how DistriBrute works. Even though P2P deployment is technically quite different compared to the centralized approach of conventional OS deployment solutions, the steps you have to perform to prepare an OS image and distribute it to desktops are quite similar.

(more…)

4M88 ICT Solutions, the publisher of DistriBrute, a P2P desktop deployment solution, is raffling two 250-seat licenses worth 3750 euro (ex. VAT) each. More information about this contest can be found at the end of this article.

Note that 4M88 ICT Solutions also offers a software deployment solution called DistriApps that allows you to use the P2P network to deploy and install MSI packages. Although the DistriApps functionality is included in DistriBrute, I will mostly focus on the OS deployment features in this review.

Also note that DistriBrute is not a desktop management solution; that is, it has no inventory or remote management capabilities. However, you can use DistriBrute’s P2P functionality together with desktop management software such as Microsoft’s System Center Configuration Manager. I will say more about this in my next post.

Since you’re an IT pro, you are most likely familiar with peer-to-peer (P2P) technology. BitTorrent and Skype are currently the most prominent P2P solutions. BitTorrent is used by many big companies for offering large downloads. DistriBrute is desktop deployment software that works in a similar way.

(more…)

PDQ Deploy is a free software deployment software from Admin Arsenal. The freeware tool allows you to remotely deploy MSI, MSP, MSU, EXE, and batch installers to multiple Windows computers simultaneously.

A wizard guides you through the configuration process of the very easy-to-use tool. First, you have to configure the installer where you specify the installer file, the return codes, and the command line parameters.

(more…)

Rate this tool: (7 votes, average: 3.43 out of 5)

 Loading ...

Submit a free admin tool | Free admin tools index | Browse free admin tools

I suppose, most organizations use Microsoft’s Key Management Services (KMS) to activate Vista/Windows 7 and Server 2008/R2 machines. The Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) is usually used by smaller organizations which prefer to activate Windows with MAK or retail product keys. However, even if you work with KMS, VAMT can be useful to keep track of your Windows activations. KMS still only has a command line interface and VAMT has a nice GUI which gives you a good overview of the activation status of all Windows machines. In this post, I will summarize the enhancements of VAMT 2.0 compared to VAMT 1.2. VAMT 1.2 is part of the WAIK and already supports Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. VAMT 1.1, which is available as a separate download, only supports Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. Please note that VAMT 2.0 is still in beta. For an introduction to VAMT please read my review of VAMT and my article about proxy activation with VAMT.

(more…)

In my last article, I listed all important features of Microsoft’s free Sysprep tool. Today, I will explain why I think that unique SIDs are still necessary, even though, Mark Russinovich debunked the machine SID duplication myth.

I have no doubts that Mark’s analysis that Windows networks don’t require unique SIDs is correct. Actually, this corresponds to my own experience. I have been cloning machines long before Microsoft introduced the Sysprep tool. At that time, Microsoft warned about using cloning tools. The main argument was that SID duplication can cause problems. This didn’t really convince me because my tests showed that these problems don’t exist. When I first tried a cloning tool, I was baffled as to how this technology was superior compared to unattended installations. Thus, I decided to ignore Microsoft’s warning and embrace OS cloning. I don’t remember SID duplication ever causing a problem.

(more…)

In response to my article about Microsoft’s free OS image preparation tools, a reader claimed that as a result of Mark Russinovich’s famous SID duplication myth article, Sysprep would no longer be required. Mark argued in detail why SID duplications are, contrary to a widespread opinion, no problem in Windows networks. Since Mark is such a famous figure, I believe many admins have read his article and came to the same wrong conclusion that the Sysprep tool has now become obsolete. I think that this a big misunderstanding. Thus, it is important to get a few things straight about the System Preparation tool.

First of all, those who read Mark’s article to the end will have noticed that he still recommends using Sysprep. The problem is that his article is quite long and, I guess, many admins missed that part. Second, I disagree with Mark that duplicate SIDs are not an issue. I will provide my arguments in the next article. Today, I will explain why sysprepping your master image is essential even if we assume for a moment that unique SIDs are not required.

(more…)