10 #1 best practices for OS Deployment with ConfigMgr 2012 R2

Here’s a quick list of the links from my TechEd Europe session this morning.  More info to follow over the next few weeks!

“KISS—start simple, and work your way toward complexity.” – Rob Marshall

“Automate process to import drivers and create driver packages.” – Kent Agerlund and “Automate, Automate, Automate. Manually building images is not what anyone should be paid for. It’s a waste of money and time.” – Jason Sandys

“Add CMTrace in the path statement for WinPE, and essential files to your boot.wim.” – Mike Terrill

“Access hidden task sequences on-demand.” – Niall Brady

“Use MDT Lite Touch to build your reference image.” – Johan Arwidmark

“Implement a Pre-Flight Checklist.” – Troy Martin

“Restrict TS to reduce risk. Configure deployment for only boot media and PXE.” – John Marcum and Todd Hemsell

“Always use MDT integration with the Validate step to prevent the ultimate oops.” – Tim Mintner

“Be patient, and think before you act.” – Aaron Czechowski

“Please, test on one system first.” – Michael Niehaus

Honorable Mentions

• Use RBA to reduce risk – Greg Ramsey
• Use Maintenance Windows to reduce accidental required TS deployment – Mike Terrill
• Use PowerShell Scripts to fill in the gaps in OSD Process – Trevor Sullivan
• Use VM snapshots to speed testing – Bill Moore
• Listen to Johan – Multiples. . .
• Continue on Error is not your friend – Greg Ramsey
• PnP only works at Contoso – Mikael Nystrom