Install an application, how do?

Goals: Reduce total average mouse clicks per day (MC/D)

Maximize free time to troll fb/slack off

Isaac Overcast

overcasi@evergreen.eduAcademic Computing

The Evergreen State College

TESC Imaging

• 4500 Students• ~350 Dual boot linux/Win7 in 12 labs and public

spaces across 2 sites• 2x base images

– 32bit vanilla and 64bit kitchensink

• FOG + post-flight config• Keyserver & DeepFreeze• Significant use of GP

Demo

• ev_client and ev_server

• AD Structure and Group Policy

Overture

So, say somebody needs you to install an application to a set of machines tomorrow bcz they forgot to tell you about it at the beginning of the quarter when they were supposed to.

Assumptions:* You have full control of the machines* This is real windows-y* You actually prefer free/open software or you are

just broke

How do?

Considerations / Tradeoffs

• Time allotted

• # machines

• Complexity of the install

• Licensing

• Image size/stability

• Expected duration of need

• Other priorities

Introducing Oc

A notation for the amount of work generated by any install as the number of computers you support tends towards a particular value of infinity.

The amount of time you spend on any task will inevitably rise as the number of machines you support goes up, but the question is “How steep is the incline?”

Bad Oc

LINEAR!

EXPONENTIAL!

# of CPUs

TIM

E

Good Oc

CONSTANT!

LOGARITHMIC!

Not ideal ways to do it

• One-off install

• Scripted mass install

• Other misc hax

• Update image and push

One-offsOc strict linear

+ You know it'll work

+ Keeps your student employees busy

- takes tons of time

- chance that you can screw it up on one or more, which sucks

- requires doing the same thing over and over, which is a mortal sin

- makes you feel bad because you can't / won't learn to automate

Scripted mass installOc non-deterministic

Like where you have a script on your server that reaches out and runs the installer on x,y and z machines

+ It is fast

+ Congratulations, you can automate it!

+/- It “sometimes” works

- Complicated and often homebrew (o_0)- Difficult to maintain

- It's a one off and it's not scalable

Misc HaxOc log + high admin penalty

• WPKGhttp://wpkg.org/

• Win-gethttp://windows-get.sourceforge.net/

• GetIThttp://puchisoft.com/GetIt/

+ Congratulations, you’re using tools!

+ Better than nothing- Needlessly complicated- Narrow focus/limited app set- Hackish

Update and deploy a new imageOc constant + admin penalty

+ You know how to do it, it's easy and reliable+ Easily control the default user experience (start menu

items, pesterboxes, registration, etc)- It's Slow (esp. w/ audit mode win7)- App installs EVERYWHERE!

(unless you only have 1 image per classroom/department/area, in which case you have bigger problems than this)

- If the app yr pushing has licensing restrictions then that could be a problemfor ex, what if you have an app that has 5 seat licenses and the lab size is 25? Just image 5 of them? Too weird.

- Unnecessarily complicates/crusts the imageNormally to be avoided, just for the sake of simplicity

Smart(er) ways to do it

• A cheat: VM + Remote Desktop• Reconceived Application Installation

– Silent Installers– Custom MSI packages– Virtual applications

• Reconceived App Deployment– GP Runonce/startup script– GP Assigned Applications– Virtualized App on the "Desktop"

VM + Remote Desktop Oc Linear + resource overhead

1) Make VM

2) Install your app

3) Remote Desktop

4) ???

5) Profit

+ Easy

+ Good for <5 installs

- Not scalable

- Resource intensive

- Annoying

App Hax: Silent Installers

Provided by vendor!: LoggerProhttp://www.vernier.com/til/1681/

Simple manuals: Firefoxhttps://wiki.mozilla.org/Installer:Command_Line_Arguments

Complicated manuals: Dragon NaturallySpeakingAdminGuide: http://bit.ly/LWecRW

+ Much faster than one-offs- Post-flight config is trickier or impossible

App Hax: Custom msi packages

Creation: AppDeploy Repackagerhttp://bit.ly/Kwx75F

Customization:

InstEd - http://www.instedit.com/

Orca – http://bit.ly/LEAI5g

+ More flexibility/customizability

App Hax: Virtualized Apps

Cameyo - http://www.cameyo.com/Thinapp (Useful but $$) - http://bit.ly/11GMib App-V ($$ & complicated) - Http://bit.ly/wbVVYB

+ Image agnostic+ Instant deployment+ Get creative

* Flash Drives* Email* Moodle site

- Config is tricky (GP?)

Demo

• Silent Installer

• Custom MSI & Config

• Virtual Apps

We have our apps, now what do we do with them?

GP Runonce/startup scriptOc Logarithmic

CPU/Policies/Windows Settings/Scripts/Startup

+ Our first 'real' way to do it, something you can feel good about

+ Better for complicated installs or if you still need to hack a bit (DeepFreeze)

+/- Permanently alters the system

- Requires a reboot

- Moderately hackish

GP Assigned ApplicationsOc Logarithmic

CPU/Policies/Software Settings/Software Installation

• CPU vs User GP

• Published vs Assigned

+ Maximum flexibility

+ Publish tons of apps and let users choose what they want

- Sometimes requires a reboot or logoff

- Tricky for licensed apps

Virtualized App on the "Desktop“Oc Constant!

Shared Desktops: User/Policies/Windows Settings/Folder Redirection/Desktop

+ Great for small/medium apps that can abide virtualizing

+ Super fast and flexible+ You can use it to manage licensed apps- Not ideal for tricky/huge apps (Adobe CS /

ArcGIS / Dragon)- Requires a little set up on the backend and you

have to stay on top of your computer accounts in your OUs (which you should be doing anyway!)

Demo

• Assigned Apps

• Published Apps

• Virtual App on Desktop

Wrap-up

• What does it mean to ‘install’ an application?

• Deploying an app means getting it in the hands of the user, however that may look.– Remote Desktop– Runonce installers– Assigned/published applications– Virtual apps

Q&A

Isaac Overcast

The Evergreen State College

overcasi@evergreen.edu