We held our fourth in our series of "How-to" webcasts for Ghost Solution Suite 3.0 on July 15. Topics included overview of job options UI, Boot Disk Creator, creation of a WinPE Ghost Disk to use for one-off ghosting operations.
- Download or playback the Webcast here:
- Download the slides from the Webcast
- See attached pdf (scroll to the very bottom of this post)
- Q&A
- full transcript available below
Bruce T - 11:03 AM
Q: How do we know when an update is available?
A: The best way to get updates is to follow the Endpoint Mangement News blog on Symantec Connect. We're also looking at options like bringing back LiveUpdate in the longer term to make this process a little more proactive.
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Debbie S - 11:08 AM
Q: Can this product be installed on Windows 7 64 bit? Or does it need to be on Server 2012 r2?
A: Right now we have only certified on server operating systems but we're looking to spend the cycles to certify on desktop operating systems. We know from a resource perspective there wont be any problems but we anticipate there will be some technical issues .
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Aaron C - 11:10 AM
Q: We can not use PXE, becasue it is used by another service in our SUBnets. Can you create one like teh Legacy Disk Creator.
A: We already have some local automation boot options out of the box and we're also currently working on restoring the one click virtual partition type functionality that was in GSS 2.5.
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Raphael S - 11:11 AM
Q: Is vpartition back ?
A: We are hoping to add this in an upcoming hotfix
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Mike K - 11:12 AM
Q: Will the Web Console be available as well as the 32-bit console?
A: We have this as one of our next items to look at. We have a couple of options on the table, either restoring the web console we have in DS 6.9 or hosting something in our new unified cloud platform. We'll announce updates as we have them.
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Skip M - 11:15 AM
Q: When I try to click Intenet to add drivers it fails to connect to www.altiris.com. Is there a different URL?
A: This was highlighted as a bug and I think it has been fixed. The best option for drivers today is to grab them directly from the vendor. I'm in discussions about how we can revolutionize the way we provide drivers. I think it's a key problem to solve.
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Jeffrey K - 11:17 AM
Q: Is RDP available on the boot disk? It's sometimes handy to RDP to the server from the client. If I am in the middle of my lab and want to kick off the imaging, it is handy to be able to go to one of the clients and RDP into the server so I can send the image out.
A: This was highlighted as a bug and I think it has been fixed. The best option for drivers today is to grab them directly from the vendor. I'm in discussions about how we can revolutionize the way we provide drivers. I think it's a key problem to solve.
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Matt K - 11:24 AM
Q: So to easily use Multicast, I need to create my boot disk using the GST Boot Disk Creator?
A: Multicast is most easily managed withint the console using an image task, it is not dependant on the boot image though and can be controlled by command line.
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Jeffrey K - 11:21 AM
Q: Yes, if I am in the middle of my lab and want to kick off the imaging, it is handy to be able to go to one of the clients and RDP into the server so I can send the image out.
A: We don't add it to WinPE by default and I think there is a licensing issue with doing that as WinPE is intended for preboot administration onlyy. I can take a quick look though.
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Mike K - 11:24 AM
Q: Will Symantec be providing the LinuxPE driver files in .ko format? LinuxPE driver files for HDD Controllers on new desktops, like RAID controllers etc. The Manufacturers do not provide the Linux in .ko format. For instance, HP z420 machines have a HDD controller that is not supported in the Linux kernel provided by Symantec.
A: We have the capability to add drivers to the Linux kernel, instructions are here: https://support.symantec.com/en_US/article.HOWTO110211.html
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Mike G - 11:24 AM
Q: Is it possible to convert a boot disk to an executable that can be used to boot into the Ghost environment from a remote system's desktop? I seem to remember this being an option in the days of
PowerQuest.
A: We haven't carried this over to GSS 3.0 as there is an assumption that the agent can be installed on the machine. We are looking at ways to make this easier and this is on the list.
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Shawn S - 11:24 AM
Q: Should also be noted to install the standard tools to a different location if you have 2.5 already installed. The standard tools will break your 2.5 install if you install the 3 standard tools to the ghost folder .
A: Good point Shawn...thanks
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Dwight B - 11:32 AM
Q: Can we use any linux kernel we want, or is this restricted?
A: Some customers have created their own boot disk images with a custom kernal but we don't support that by default. We look at the kernal version we use with every release we put out to keep it as up-to-date as possible.
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Mike K - 11:33 AM
Q: FOr instance, HP z420 machines have a HDD controller that is not supported in the Linux kernel provided by Symantec.
A: Thanks Mike, I'll have the team take a look.
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Mike K - 11:36 AM
Q: Also, will the LinuxPE kernel support NTLMv2 authentication? This was a customization we had to have backline Engineering provide to us as a custom ATRS.tar file.
A: We’ve narrowed this down to a bug in the kernel and are updating it in the next version.
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Mike K - 11:52 AM
Q: What are the recommended max concurrent GSS Consoles that are open connecting to one GSS server?
A: This is dependent on several factors including network speed and hardware specification. We do not set a logical limit and have customers using many consoles. We are working on some scalable web console options to help with deployments.
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Brian R - 11:54 AM
Q: We currently use GSS 2.5 installed on laptops to image on local Lans without the need to have traffic accross WAN on different subnets and enables onsite managment. We use windows 7. So this new solution only runs on server operating system?
A: Right now we have only certified it on server OSs but we do have customers using our technology on desktops. We're working on it.
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Adam H - 11:58 AM
Q: The hyperlinks aren't clickable from the slide, because it's a screen slide. Can you please put the hyperlinks in the transcript / document that gets emailed to us?
A: Yes, here are those links: