Sequencing

The sequencing process consists of three different wizards, you can not use the wizards but why? If you ego tells you "we work in IT - we are computer experts, we don't use wizards! Besides what if someone saw us!?" Ignore those thoughts, if you were an expert at sequencing you wouldn't bother reading this! Trust me use the wizards until you are an expert and even then it is probably easier than doing it manually, and eventually it will be built into SCCM so it will be a set of tasks then like everything else.

After you start a new package (CTRL+N or File -> New) you are presented with the first wizard.

Settings for Package Information

(I am sequencing Adobe Acrobat Reader 8)

Suite Name is left over from days before 4.x, this should NOT contain any spaces.

Acrobat8

Title can be what ever your heart desires.

Comments - You should include a description of your sequencing environment, including the OS and SP you sequenced on, the application and version, the block size, anything you can think of. This information gets stored into the OSD file and can be handy for troubleshooting or just figuring out what a package is.

Server URL - In your OSD file this is the <CODEBASE HREF> line and it consists of the settings you specify in the Host Name which is the name of the SoftGrid server that is going to host the application, by default this is set to an environment variable, unless this variable has been set on all your clients, you should change this to a host name, FQDN, IP, etc. Server URL is also built by the port number you specify, by default this is set to match your choice you specified when choosing the Protocol. You can choose RTSP or RTSPS (encrypted). If you choose the default of RTSP the port number is 554, for RTSPS it is 332. The last part to make up the Server URL is the path. The Path is something you should keep track of. The path is where you SFT file is going to be located and should be the name of the folder under your Content directory. If you don't get this right you will have to edit the OSD file to fix it.

SoftTricity recommends setting the Path to the same as Suite Name, and I would say I agree!

Server URL = http://hostname:port/path

Next….

Operating Systems

This creates the <OS VALUE> tag list in the OSD file. You should select the OS's that you want the app to run on. If you remove this list from the OSD file it will run on any OS. This really only controls what OS the shortcut will appear on, not really run on so by removing the tag in the OSD file you will allow it to display the icon on any OS.

Select the OS's of your choice click the arrow to move them over to the right and lets move on to the next wizard.

Installation Phase Wizard

During this phase we install and configure the application.

Sequencing Parameters

The compression algorithm, this will compress the package but the more you compress it the longer it will take to open the app, but it will stream to the client faster, you can pick which is more important and then adjust it accordingly. The Block Size controls how much data is sent to the client when they request additional blocks after the FB1 (Feature block 1 - later). Just leave this at 32 KB.

And away we go! Once you click the Start Monitoring, the sequencer window will minimize to the tray and you should start your install, but before doing that lets cover some more ground rules.

While it is monitoring you should make sure that you configure the app as you want the users to get it, I will turn off the auto updating feature in reader, I always start the app at least three times, do not click on the desktop or start menu shortcuts to launch the app, use the start -> run q:\Acrobat8\.....while we are on the subject, to head off problems that you may encounter later on it is a good idea to use the 8.3 naming convention when specifying your install path. It is kind of like using Q, it is really more to do with the app than with running an app virtualized.

So if you have you app copied locally to your C drive or have a mapped drive, make sure you close any open windows or apps that (not the sequencer) and then we are ready to start the install, I also do this by using start ->run.

During the install make sure that you change the installation directory to Q:\Acrobat8

Let you program install….you shouldn't wonder too far, you should monitor the install.

If it asks to reboot click Yes, and the sequencer will catch the reboot, stop it , and then stop the monitoring so you can reboot without breaking the sequencing process.

If it has one of those checkboxes to launch the app after the install uncheck it, you do not want to read the README either if it asks.

Now you should start the app, use the Start - Run to navigate to the app's exe, configure the app as you want the users to get it, remove toolbars, accept any EULA, etc. Close the app, open it make sure your changes took, close it open it, check again. I don't recall where I read you should open it three times but it seems to work well for me.

If you are happy with the configuration and testing of your app and it is closed, bring the sequencing app back up and click Stop Monitoring.

After that you will have to specify the root folder for your installation. It will then collect all the files that have been added or changed since the monitor started.

In the next window you can add files that you want included that are not part of the install. You could have also done this during the monitoring but it is not recommended. For this install I am going to let it add in the Microsoft Installer files, you could choose Do nothing and it would not add any additional files.

In the next wizard you can manipulate the shortcuts and also to modify the name as it appears to the user and also as it is in the OSD file. At minimum you should change the name of the OSD file name to have no spaces. Highlight the app, select Edit and then in the OSD File Name field change it to something that doesn't have any spaces and the Name field to something that the user will recognize.

You can also mange the shortcuts here, it will capture any shortcuts the app install made, but if you want to add it to the Send To menu or something else, then you can add that here.

In the next window you will launch each application and build the FB1 (feature block 1), this is what is streamed to the user on the first execution of the app. So you should use the application as you would expect the user to use it, but don't go overboard here.

After you have started each app and they have closed click next and it will "sequence" the app.

See what you did!?

This is the point where you get to see the output of your hard work! This means that you can see all the Files that will be laid down when the user gets the app on the Files tab, the only thing to really make use of on this tab is to set a file as user or application, if you choose user then each user will get their own copy of the file to change, where application designated files are shared between all the users. On the Properties tab, which is first you can see the settings for things like launch size (FB1), file version, date created, etc. The Virtual Registry tab is the changes that were captured during the sequencing and will be the virtual registry for the app. You can make changes, additions, deletions, anything you like to this, say you don't want the Adobe Speedlauncher to start and it was based on the Run registry key, you could delete it here. The Virtual File System tab show you the files again, but here you can add or remove files if you like. The Virtual Services tab would list any services that were going to be virtualized. The last tab will allow you to edit the OSD file in a GUI, you could use Notepad or any other text editor as well.

Finally!

If you are happy with your sequencing and have made any changes you would like now save the program to the desktop in the folder with the same name as what you supplied for the path name, in this case Acrobat8. Save the project with a name that matches your naming convention or something you will remember, don't leave it at its default.

Okay we are done! Yeah right, now you have to import the app into the SoftGrid server and….

This is the end of the sequencing part, and this is the part where most errors happen from what I have seen and read.

I Recommend These Books!
SMS 2003 Administrator's Reference: Systems Management Server 2003 SMS 2003 Recipes: A Problem-Solution Approach Microsoft SMS Installer (Book/CD-ROM package) Pro SMS 2003 Professional MOM 2005, SMS 2003, and WSUS Start to Finish Guide to Distributing Software With Systems Management Server 2003 Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 Administrator's Companion

Regards,

Anthony

Anthony Clendenen | System Engineer | 1E Inc.

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Tags: SoftGrid Sequencing Microsoft Application Packaging SCCM Books