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Endpoint Virtualization Community Blog

Showing posts tagged with Workspace Virtualization
Showing posts in English
Does Software Virtualization Solution Add to a System's Complexity?
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

Q:
Software virtualization -- I understand it helps with capacity, systems stability, and security -- but won't it add to a system's complexity?

A:
How does SVS stack up to effectively model the simplicity criterion? Let me count the ways.

  1. The purpose of virtualization is to simplify the view into your systems by regrouping IT assets into more logical units, thereby simplifying management of those assets. So, no, it won't add to a system's complexity—simplification is the goal.
  2. Previously, all software deployed to a box got thrown into one big, chaotic bucket. Businesses expend massive dollars and man hours every day reactively dealing with the result of that chaos – failed installations and uninstallations, apps breaking each other, users and malware breaking apps too easily because the legacy model is too complex and fragile. SVS is proactive simplification – it...
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Forbes - New Product Rollouts Could Boost Altiris
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

"Altiris is set to roll out its Software Virtualization Solution and Security Management Suite during 2006, along with enhancements to its Client Management product line. The upgrades figure to vault the Lindon, Utah-based company into a stronger competitive position against the likes of BMC Software and CA, Inc."

Read the Article.

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Installing a Service that Logs in as a User Account in a Layer
Jeremy_Hurren | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

For security reasons, layers don't store passwords. So, how do you create a layer that starts a service on activation that requires a password? Jeremy Hurren takes us under the hood for this workaround.

Because of the way that SVS virtualizes services, it does not store the password information necessary to log on as a service. So if you are installing software that has such a service into a layer, it will work the first time you run it, but after deactivating it and activating it again the service won't be able to start. The underlying technical reason is that SVS has to delete and create the service repsectively during the deactivation and activation. Because SVS doesn't want to expose any password information, it doesn't store that information in the layer, and therefore cannot use it to recreate the service during activation.

There are two different solutions that can work here. First would be to change the service you are installing to log on as one of the built-...

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Capturing Multiple Programs into a Single Layer Using Single Program Capture
Wm Jesse Foster | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

If you've been faced with the task of capturing several programs into a single layer, this tip, from support guru Jesse Foster, should get you going in the right direction.

There is at least one way way to capture multiple programs into a single layer using Single Program Capture. Here's the method I use.

  • In SVS Admin select File > Create New Layer
  • Select Install application. Click Next.
  • Give the Layer a name. Click Next
  • Select Single program capture. Under Program name, type (or browse to) the path for cmd.exe (C:\Windows\system32\cmd.exe on my computer). Click Next.
  • Click Finish.

Capture mode will start and a command window will open. Anything done from this command window will be captured in to the layer. So, start your installers from this window and the program will be captured in to the layer. Capture mode will end only when the command window and any child processes from your installers have exited...

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Delving Deeper into Layer Prioritization
Jared Payne | 29 Jul 2010 | 1 comment

Jared Payne provides helpful details on the priority values assigned by Fslx.sys to shed some light on the Layer Prioritization section of the SVS White Paper.

One of our readers wrote us that page 9 of the SVS white paper was confusing, with the chart displaying a Base request twice -- for example, with 2 different Default Priorities but no explanation as to why they are different, as follows:

By default, Fslx.sys assigns layers the following priority values:

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Why has Software Virtualization Solution Taken so Long to Release?
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

Q:
Rick asked: This product has been in beta for quite a while. Why has it taken so long to release?

A:
Hey Rick, thanks for the question. Hope this answer helps.

  1. The core of our virtualization technology is a file system filter driver. That is a very specialized area -- one of the most advanced concepts in the Microsoft architecture. It must be just right, and we took the time necessary to get it right.
  2. One of our key initiatives in 2005 was to increase customer satisfaction by improving product quality. We completely revamped internal processes, expanded our QA facilities, committed to deploying our own products internally before release, and increased the involvement of customers in the development cycle with longer betas involving more people. SVS is one of the first major releases from Altiris based on this new approach. We have over nine hundred registered beta participants for this...
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What's the purpose of the "launch application" checkbox?
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

Q:
Greg wrote: You know how when you do many current installations, at the end of the installation there is a checkbox that says "launch application"? Well, if you leave that checked, even though setup.exe, or whatever you used to do the installation, is done, SVS continues capturing system changes because you launched the program at the end. It still sees that as part of the setup.exe thread. Capturing doesn't stop until the application is closed.

A:
You are correct, Greg, and that is by design. A Capture by Process (or "Single Program Capture"), by necessity, must capture the entire process tree -- not just the executable you specify, but also any process called by it as well. That's how we ensure the capture gets everything, since installers often call other embedded or external installers, executables, services, scripts, and even batch files.

By running the application at the end of...

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Techworld - Altiris virtual software wraps apps to beat DLL hell
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

"This all means you can do otherwise impossible things, such as run Microsoft Office 2000 and 2003 on the same PC simultaneously. It also keeps the operating system clean, so badly behaved applications don't conflict with it or each other - the 'DLL hell' familiar to PC support techs - and it allows an application installation to be fully reversed if it causes problems."

Read the Article.

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How is a virtualized application deployed to the desktop?
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 1 comment

Q:
Can you please explain the process for installing new software with SVS?

A:
Sure, thanks for the question. Here are the steps:

  1. The Virtual Software Package (VSP) is copied to the target desktop. This can be done using Altiris Software Delivery Solution, another software distribution tool, or through manual methods such as a CD, USB drive, or network connection.
  2. On the client, the archive is extracted to the isolated, hidden section of the file system that is managed by the Filter Driver. At this point, the VSP becomes a file system "layer".
  3. The layer is then activated, which makes it visible to the system and user - everything appears to be in it's normal location, as if the application had been installed conventionally. Activation is nearly instantaneous.
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InfoWorld - Altiris shakes up Windows configuration management
Admin | 29 Jul 2010 | 0 comments

"No messy installation scripts that break under tightened security; no troublesome "artifacts" in the Windows Registry; no leftover files lurking in obscure folders on the local hard disk, waiting to trip up the next deployment. In the software deployment world according to Altiris, applications would materialize and/or dematerialize with the flick of a switch."

Read the Article.

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