[sccm 2012] Help/advice needed with rebuilding to new domain CC4 >> Vanilla

[TheGoodGuy]

Hi guys,

 

If anyone is kind enough and patient enough to help me it would be much appreciated.

 

I have a new server that I installed with Server 2012 and SCCM 2012 SP1. I had to keep the servers separate due to a virus but I have exported the users to the new domain. The problem is that I need to rebuild all the pcs now and I am not sure about the best way to do it. Time is very limited. I thought that SCCM discovery would find all the machines and I could rebuild that way, but it only found 5.

 

Any advice on rebuilding the pcs? I think the difficulty is that they were on the old domain and this is a new domain.

 

I am really struggling here any help is appreciated.

 

Paul

[5tu]

Setting up SCCM from scratch is a project in itself. Sorry to disappoint you but it won't give you simple plug and play functionality. I suggest you start working through these guides to help you... http://www.windows-noob.com/forums/index.php?/forum/103-configuration-manager-2012-release-candidate/

 

Although these guides are for the release candidate they should also apply to SP1.

 

SCCM is a fantastic product which can automate an incredible amount of work once it's setup. But setting it up well is the key which takes time I'm afraid.

[psydii]

Can you bring across the five that it does find? i.e. to they build using your new software image (I'm not an SSCM guy.. so this might not lead anywhere useful)

 

If yes, then the problem might be:

client side firewall

required services not started

bugs

group policy/software restrictions.

 

 

Anecdote: Long ago I moved a network over to vanilla from a similar set up to the one you have. I found that lots of basic windows stuff just did not work reliably on the old build, and in the end I had to walk the site and pxe boot the machines by hand. Lesson: If machines are affected by policies and settings from the old system which block remote access to them, while at the same time they are not able to communicate with the old system, your only option is to physically touch each one.

 

If the machines you can discover don't automatically rebuild, and in the absence of better advice... resign yourself to having to go round and touch every machine to get it to pxe boot against your WDS/SSCM environment (light-touch). If you are trying to get this done for the start of next week test a PXE boot machine or three right now... you need to know this plan b is going to work (and how long it is going to take) before you can make a sound judgement on how long to spend pursuing your plan A.

Edited August 29, 2013 by psydii

[TheGoodGuy]

Ok thanks for the advice guys. Looks like PXE booting will be the way to go. I am hoping I can schedule something to turn on the PXE bootloader on the SCCM and then magic packet the computers to turn them on and let them PXE boot for the installation, that way it could be done overnight so as not to disrupt people.

 

I have been trying to keep people working whilst I am sorting things, it's a challenge but I am managing. The hard part is that I start teaching again from next week so then I will only have an hour a day for working on things.

[psydii]

It take 20-50 minutes to PXE boot a typical school IT suite into a state where all the machines are pulling down a new image, depending on the BIOS config when you start. Then you've got to wait for the image to come down and all the post os installation tasks to complete.

 

You might have some long days ahead of you if you really have to get it done for the start of term.

 

Be mindful of the risk in pushing forward and getting yourself into a worse state than you were in at the end of the summer term. Better to postpone that have six weeks/months of hell because nothing works properly.

 

Keep your line manager in the loop.

[TheGoodGuy]

Ok well I am following the windows noob guide.. but it requires you to know the mac address of each machine? How can I know the mac address if I can't login?

[sparkeh]

Ok well I am following the windows noob guide.. but it requires you to know the mac address of each machine? How can I know the mac address if I can't login?

Oh? Which bit do need MAC addresses for?

I'll take a guess at PXE booting and OS deployment? However, since SCCM 2007 (SP2 I think?) there has been support for unknown machines, so you can advertise OS deployment tasks to the unknown computer collection so that you can PXE boot machines that aren't known to SCCM and install an OS. You used to have to know MACs but not anymore.

 

TBF I haven't played around with 2012 yet but I assume that hasn't been removed.

Edited August 30, 2013 by sparkeh

[TheGoodGuy]

What if devices aren't being discovered though? Everything was on the old domain so active directory discovery doesn't work. I setup subnet discovery but it is annoying because sometimes it is finding devices more than once? Edited August 30, 2013 by TheGoodGuy