Deployment Solution

OK -I have to admit to being pretty much stuck on this one. I have really been fighting the interface from the word go. From the top here's what I did.

1. Created a new folder in the tasks area
   Easy.
    
2. Created a new Install Windows OS task
   Was presented here with a Java window here to verify that I wanted to run a application whose signature had been verified. The application has a HUGE name (couple hundred character... more even??). I click the 'Run' box, and look forward to the day when silverlight is the only plugin ;-)
    
3. Import OS Files
   Here I had a few problems really. I know to add the i386 source folder, but the interface didn't make this clear. In DS6.x you were asked to locate the WINNT.EXE file which made it a bit clearer at what level you had to go. The interface will in fact allow you to take folder a level up from i386
   
   Once I selected the folder to add, the interface does NOTHING. The CPU goes mental with iexplorer using an entire core. After a minute (maybe more) I get the 'Copying Data' message from which point iexplorer settles down in CPU again.
    
4. Return to the Create Task Screen
   Here I admit to being confused. Having just added the source, I come back to a blank task screen. I thought -did it crash? Do I have to do it again? I clicked the drop-down for the source paths, and it was blank. Clicked again, and left the mouse still and in about a couple of seconds the source option appeared. Ah -so the answer is to be patient. Fair enough, but with a form with lots of drop-downs does this mean I really should rest at each one? Perhaps a 'searching...' entry while its waiting to populate would be clearer?
    
5. Product Key
   Similar issues with the interface. When adding a key I made a typo I really didn't know how to fix it. You cannot edit the licenses from here, or view them wholesale. Had to go to settings -> Deployment -> OS Licenses to resolve this. Which means leaving the interface.
    
6. Unattend Configuration Options
   Surprised to only TWO configuration options remain of the host which you could configure in DS6.x. But then, thinking in glass-half-full mode at least the two left are sensible -language and screen
    

After completing this and then fighting with PXE images for several hours, I then came back to the interface the next day to try and deploy the task on a new computer (I resorted to using Bootwiz to create a CD ISO).

Sadly when I now view the task I get the error "A Critical Error has occured on this page. Check the Altiris Logs for more information"

The Altiris Logs say,

 Module: w3wp.exe
Source: Altiris.TaskManagement.UI.AltirisPageInstanceCachePage.OnAltirisPageInstanceCachePageError
Description: Unhandled exception on page

Any help gratefully received 

Update: Cloning the task gives this the same error on both, so only resolution seemed to be to create from scratch.

Thinking on it -this happened after using the silverlight portal to drop the task onto a computer. Before that point the task was viewable and editable.