Deployment Solution

I first deleted aclient.cfg file if it's present in the computer this is to avoid the computer using the defualts values from computer you used to make the original image. that file will be generated new when you install the aclient again..
second is that I use firm.exe copy to place the aclient.exe and aclient.inp file in the new computer..
I didn't use the cmdlinest.txt file I instead place theat line in the sysprep.inf
sysprep.inf file
[GUIRunOnce]
"C:\altiris\Aclient\Aclient.exe C:\Altiris\Aclient\Aclient.inp -silent -install"
===run this in dos-mode===========
firm.exe delete PROD:aclient.cfg
firm.exe copy .\Agents\AClient\aclient.exe prod:"\Altiris\AClient\aclient.exe"
firm.exe copy .\Agents\AClient\aclient.inp prod:"\Altiris\AClient\aclient.inp"
I prefer using the aclient.exe over the altiris-aclient-6.9.176.X86.exe which is the same file just it has been extracted...

Have you checked your registry? If the Aclient has been installed previously, there are registry settings that might not be updated. Check HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Altiris. There are several entries that list the IP of the DS server. I have found that sometimes I have to uninstall all the agents on the computer. Delete the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Altiris entry and then reinstall the agents for things to work correctly. The uninstall of the agents does not seem to delete the registry settings.

We are working on our new XP image and I need to have the Aclient in the image. this way the new host reports to the DS after image deployment. In the 'Golden-PC' installation I installed the Aclient using initial settings: Use Multicast to report to the nearest DS. This is needed because our network has multiple sites with multiple Altiris servers in different subnets. When the new client reports to the DS, another job pushes the final INP file with the site dependent settings.
The multicast settings does not work proper. When I copy the image to another site and deploy it with that local DS, it reports back to our DS in the Netherlands (I always thought multicast did not go through routers??).
What am I missing here?
The important lines from the initial.inp file are:
MCastAddr=225.1.2.3
MCastPort=402
and these disabled lines
;TcpAddr=172.16.10.108
;TcpPort=402
Any suggestions anyone?
Thanks.

All of the settings for the scripted install are in the .inp file. This file lets you specify your DS server name and ip address, the install path, the clients password, and more.
Here is some more info on this subject:
https://kb.altiris.com/article.asp?article=24368&p=1

Do you have the cmd for a server OS or would it be the same, what about a Linux box?
-d

We actually prefer to embed the Aclient within the image itself. As our image is actually a VM (makes HAL and driver prep a bit easier plus the ability to snapshot before and after the sysprep really helps us keep a consistent image) and we keep the AClient loaded within there. Any update to the AClient will be done when our VM is brought online. This ensures our AClient is always there and is also available immediately after the OS is done. Since it is in the image we have one less thing to worry about.

I prefer to copy the latest version of the aclient from eXpress\agents and place it in the eXpress folder named "aclient.exe" and then as part of my driver injection I copy "eXpress\aclient.exe" to the "prod:\" (c:\). This way when a new aclient comes out, I simply replace the aclient.exe in the eXpress share with the newest version keeping the same name, and I don't have to adjust my cmdlines txt file.