Performing LTI Deployments

To deploy a computer using LTI, start the destination computer by running LiteTouch.vbs from the deployment share or by using the Windows PE boot image generated by updating the deployment share. Start the Windows PE boot image in any of three ways:

• Burn the .iso images to a DVD. This process is slow and tedious. These ISO image files reside in the \Boot folder of the deployment share.
• Copy the contents of the Windows PE boot image to a bootable USB Flash drive (UFD). This is far more convenient than DVDs, and most modern computers support booting from UFDs. For more information about creating bootable UFDs, see previous tutorial, "Preparing Windows PE."
• Add the LiteTouchPE_x86.wim or LiteTouchPE_x64.wim image files to the Boot Images item of a Windows Deployment Services server. The .wim image files are in the \Boot folder of the deployment share.

Before beginning installation, verify that the folders in the following list no longer exist on any drive on the target computer (MDT 2010 creates them on the drive with the most free space):

• MININT This folder is preserved through the deployment process and contains deployment state information (such as user state migration information and log files).
• SMSTaskSequence This folder contains state information specific to Task Sequencer.

The Windows Deployment Wizard creates and uses these folders (on the drive where the operating system is installed) during the deployment process. If a previous deployment terminates abnormally, these folders may still exist on the target computer, and if you don't remove them manually, the process will continue from the point where the process abnormally terminated instead of starting from the beginning. Be sure to remove these folders, if they exist, before initiating deployment.

To start an LTI deployment using Windows Deployment Wizard, perform the following steps:

1. Start the Windows Deployment Wizard using one of the following methods:
   • Start the wizard manually from an existing Windows installation by connecting to the appropriate deployment share (for example, \\servername\DeploymentShare$ \Scripts) and typing cscript litetouch.vbs.
   • Start the Lite Touch Windows PE image by using a bootable DVD, bootable UFD, or Windows Deployment Services. Any images created by Deployment Workbench automatically start the Windows Deployment Wizard.
2. If prompted by the Welcome To Windows Deployment dialog box, click Run The Deployment Wizard To Install A New Operating System and then click Next.
3. If prompted by the User Credentials dialog box, type the credentials necessary to connect to the deployment share (user name, domain, and password) and then click OK.
   The Windows Deployment Wizard starts automatically. You must use an account that has Read and Write access to the deployment share.
4. Follow the Windows Deployment Wizard instructions to choose a task sequence, answer prompts not skipped by CustomSettings.ini or the MDT 2010 database, and begin installation. The actual experience is based entirely on the customizations you made to CustomSettings.ini and the MDT 2010 database.

Note Windows 7 can use the new Offline Domain Join feature to join a domain without a connection to it. This process requires Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. First, you provision the computer account on the domain controller, which creates a metadata file containing the information required to join the domain. Then, you transfer the metadata to the joining computer. The computer performs the domain join without having connectivity to the domain controller. For more information, type djoin.exe /? on a domain controller running Windows Server 2008 R2.