Microsoft Steady State (replacement for Shared ToolKit)

[Oakie]

Microsoft Steady State

I have used the Shared Toolkit for 3 years now. Does the job of Faronics Deep Freeze, but it's free. Free in dollars, but costly in learning curve , implementation and management.

Steady State is the new replacement. Let's hope this one actually does what it says on the tin.

Here's what it says on the tin:

Keep your shared access computers running smoothly with Windows SteadyState
Note: If you already use the Shared Computer Toolkit, upgrade today to Windows SteadyState.

Get SteadyState now
Are you ready to download Windows SteadyState for your genuine Windows XP computer? There's no cost. Download it now, or look around and learn more.



See how easy it is to use
Not an IT professional? That's OK—it can be easy to manage shared computers that are hardened by Windows SteadyState for multiple users.



Lock down your user interface
Users sometimes go places and do things they shouldn't on shared machines. Now you can help protect sensitive locations and restrict user access to features such as Control Panel.



Ever wish you could undo everything?
You can't always prevent problems during a user session, but now you can undo the whole session. Learn how Windows SteadyState can return your computer and hard disk to its exact condition before the user touched it, simply by rebooting.

[Quackers]

I installed and had a play as we use the Shared Computer Toolkit too, and i think i prefer the Shared Computer Toolkit, i cannot find any of the scripts for this new one for turning disk protect on or off.

[Oakie]

That's too bad, I use the turn off script quite a bit when I do remote software installs. I also use the .adm file on my server to restrict what the users can do.

There is a quite a bit of talk on their support forums regarding scripts. It appears that there is supposed to be a wmi interface that will allow some control of the program. That management interface is not available at the present time. In my opinion, Steady state is not ready for it's intended audience of schools and libraries unless it's functionalities can be managed remotely. Steady State Support Forums