Setting Up Windows Deployment Services

Windows Deployment Services running on Windows Server 2008 or later operates in native mode, in which only Windows PE boot environments and Windows image files are supported. Your Windows Deployment Services server must be either a member of an Active Directory domain or a domain controller in an Active Directory domain. Your network also must have Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) servers and Domain Name System (DNS) servers.

To install Windows Deployment Services on a server running Windows Server 2008 or later, follow these steps:

1. Start Server Manager by clicking the related option on the Quick Launch toolbar. In Server Manager, select the Roles node, and then click Add Roles to start the Add Roles wizard.
2. In the Add Roles wizard, click Next. On the Select Server Roles page, select Windows Deployment Services, and then click Next. Read the overview of Windows Deployment Services, and then click Next again.
3. On the Select Role Services page, the Deployment Server and Transport Server roles are selected for you automatically. You need both roles. Click Next, and then click Install.

After you install Windows Deployment Services, you must register the deployment server and configure it by completing the following steps:

1. Start the Windows Deployment Services console by clicking Start, pointing to All Programs, Administrative Tools, and then clicking Windows Deployment Services.
2. In the console tree, expand the Servers node. If you are logged on to the deployment server, the server should be listed automatically. If the server isn't listed, right-click Servers in the console tree, and then click Add Server. In the Add Servers dialog box, choose the server to add to the console, and then click OK.
3. In the console tree, right-click the Server, and then click Configure Server. When the Configuration wizard starts, review the Before You Begin tasks and ensure that the network is prepared as specified. You need a DHCP server with an active scope and an active DNS server. You also need to be sure that the server has a partition formatted with NTFS.
4. On the Remote Installation Folder Location page, enter the path for the image store, and then click Next. The folder must be a partition on an NTFS drive, and in most cases it shouldn't be the same partition as the one containing the system files. If you chose a folder on the system partition, click Yes when prompted to confirm that you really want to do this.
5. On the PXE Server Initial Settings page, choose one of the following options to specify which clients the server will respond to:
   • Do Not respond to any Client Computers Choose this option if you don't want the server to respond to any client computers.
   • Respond Only to known Client Computers Choose this option if you want the server to respond only to known clients that have been prestaged. Prestaging a computer requires that an administrator create a managed computer account in Active Directory before booting the client so that it can be installed over the network.
   • Respond to all Client Computers Choose this option if you want the server to respond to unknown clients as well as known clients. An unknown client is a client that hasn't been prestaged. By default, if you allow responding to unknown clients, the security settings on the Windows Image file determine who can install clients. You can limit this to administrators by also selecting Require Administrator Approval For Unknown Clients.
6. When you click Next, the wizard configures the server. Before you click Finish, consider whether you want to set up images now or later. You must have at least one install image and one boot image on your server before you can boot a client using the PXE and install an operating system.
   • If you want to set up images now, insert the Windows 7 distribution media into the DVD-ROM drive, and then click Finish. Continue with the rest of the steps in this procedure.
   • If you want to set up images later, clear Add Image Files, and then click Finish. Skip the rest of the steps in this procedure.
7. The Add Image Wizard starts. On the Image File page, enter the path to the root of the installation DVD that contains the images you want to add, such as E:\ to access the E drive. Alternatively, click Browse to select the root path. Click Next.
8. An image group is a collection of images that share common file resources and security. On the Image Group page, specify a name for your first image group, and then click Next twice. The wizard will then add the boot and install images from the distribution media.

Tip You can modify the way the server responds to clients at any time. In the Windows Deployment Services console, right-click the server, and then click properties. In the properties dialog box, select the response technique you want, and then click OK.