Now, a very very nice new feature added to MDT 2012 that really makes your life easier and secure!
Have you ever had the funny guy that messed up a machine during deployment and ever since your never put your eyes anywhere else until the deployment finishes?
Now, in MDT 2012, just had the parameter HIDESHELL=YES to your customsettings.ini what and the explorer shell you’ll be hidden until the end!
Simple, easy and clean feature! :)
I new nice feature of MDT 2012 it’s the GPO Packs features.
This feature add the ability to apply GPO Packs previously created using Microsoft Security Configuration Manager (SCM).
MDT already provides 4 default GPO packs that are applied by default during deployment. The correct GPO will be applied based on the operating system that is deployed.
All this GPO Packs are stored in the Templates folder within the Distribution Share.
If you don’t want to apply any GPO Pack just edit your customsettings.ini and add the parameter ApplyGPOPack=NO
To know more about the GPO Packs just go here:
The Deployment Guys - MDT 2012: New Features - GPO Packs
This is finally the first tip on Windows 8 Tips Series!
It seems that everyone using Windows 8 on a desktop will use more keyboard shortcuts than before.
I’ve notice that the new UI its faster to use this shortcuts than using your mouse so, here are some of the keyboard shortcuts, some of them already used on previous Windows editions:
| Keys(s) | Function |
| Windows Key + Spacebar | Switch input language and keyboard layout |
| Windows Key + O | Locks device orientation |
| Windows Key + Y | Temporarily peeks at the desktop |
| Windows Key + V | Cycles through toasts |
| Windows Key + Shift + V | Cycle through toast in reverse order |
| Windows Key + Enter | Launches Narrator |
| Windows Key + PgUp | Moves Metro style apps to the monitor on the left |
| Windows Key + PgDown | Moves Metro style apps to the monitor on the right |
| Windows Key + Shift + . | Moves the gutter to the left (snaps an application) |
| Windows Key + . | Movers the gutter to the right (snaps an applications) |
| Windows Key + C | Opens Charms bar |
| Windows Key + I | Opens Settings charm |
| Windows Key + K | Opens Connect charm |
| Windows Key + H | Opens Share charm |
| Windows Key + Q | Opens Search pane |
| Windows Key + W | Opens Settings Search app |
| Windows Key + F | Opens File Search app |
| Windows Key + Tab | Cycles through Metro style apps |
| Windows Key + Shift + Tab | Cycles through Metro style apps in reverse order |
| Windows Key + Ctrl + Tab | Cycles through Metro style apps and snaps them as they are cycled |
| Windows Key + Z | Opens App Bar |
A new nice feature on Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2012 (MDT) it’s the LTI Deployment Process Monitoring.
This allows administrators to remotely monitor a LTI deployment through the Deployment Workbench console.
To enable the LTI Deployment Process Monitoring follow these steps:
The monitoring it’s now enable. If you go again to the Deployment Share properties and select the Rules tab, you’ll notice that EventService property has been added to the CustomSettings.ini file.
Microsoft launched at 18/06/2012 an updated Microsoft Deployment Toolkit version.
This solution accelerator has the following changes:
To get more info and download this new version of MDT go to:
Microsoft Downloads - Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2012 Update 1
Sooner or later you’ll start to install your Windows Server 2012 and start deployment Windows 8 images for your clients. So…it’s important to know what’s new in WDS 2012, but it’s also important for new people that starts now their incursion through deployment, to have a little help.
Microsoft published a new “Getting Start Guide” for WDS 2012:
Technet - Windows Deployment Services Getting Started Guide for Windows Server 2012
Well, it’s now available to everyone my own hash tag for twitter.
To follow my tweets and all the FrontSlash blog posts just click on ‘Follow’ button on the right menu of the blog or click here: Follow@DiogoCSousa
4th September it’s the scheduled date for the official launch of Windows Server 2012. With a lot of new things and a more “cloud base” O.S., today I would like to focus a little bit in one of the features that I used a lot on Windows Server 2008 R2.
Windows Deployment Services (WDS) it’s one a product that helps IT Administrators to deploy Microsoft Windows and got a real boost with Windows Server 2008 where the product really got better and easy to use.
There are a lot of new things on the 2012 version and I’ve choose some of the has the “most important”:
ARM Architecture Support
Has expected, WDS 2012 will now support the image deployment for ARM clients which is an improvement in addiction to x86 and x64 architectures.
Standalone Server Mode
This one it’s a GREAT improvement. Finally the dependency on Active Directory was removed!
It still requires DHCP and DNS services but AD DS it’s over!
Expected Deployment Results Wizard
This is a modeling model that enables users to predict the results of a configuration change and how it impacts deployments.
Troubleshooting Enhancements
This on it’s also really welcome! The tracing with plain text it’s over and has now passed to ETW logging which enables a really better and efficient logging.
To know more detailed information about what’s new in Windows Deployment Services 2012 visit:
Technet - What's New for Windows Deployment Services
