SOLUS 3 and Laptops Old Version

[ITGURU]

Hi

Looking for some advice/suggestions here!

 

I have always liked SOLUS 2 for updating SIMS - updating the server, then any client can double click SIMS, runs the update then login and continue as normal - ALL GOOD!

 

I had the SOLUS 3 agent on all desktops PCs and rolled out the Autumn 2015 update using SOLUS 3 interface only. usually I would run SOLUS 2 to update the system, then run SOLUS 3 so that laptops that aren't always connected to the network can update when launched. This worked reasonably well.

 

I asked staff that use their laptops for SIMS to bring in and been ignored! So now I get staff coming in to say why won't SIMS work as when they launch it says 'incompatible database'. I can then deploy the solus 3 agent, do a check for updates, and then it will install the new release.

 

HOWEVER, even if I do a manual re-install of SIMS it appears to only update to the SUMMER release which is the last one I ran through SOLUS 2 AND Solus 3.

 

I would have thought that if I was installing SIMS onto a new workstation that the installations files should be up to date?? If not, does this mean that any computer that will run SIMS HAS to have the agent installed to push the SIMS update to the PC rather than installing through the simsinst.exe

 

Thanks in advance!

[dapaulio]

in solus 3 you have the option to extract the update. never had to use it.

 

When I first deployed Sims through S3 (summer 2015) it was busy with laptops obviously as you are experiencing not being able to deployed to but now I have managed to deploy the solus 3 agent to all laptops with SIMS, its a lot easier. I made a simple instruction email to all staff in the event of an incompatible database error occurring teaching them how to use the agent. My Autumn 2015 release went a lot smoother after with a grand total of 0 complaints

[ITGURU]

in solus 3 you have the option to extract the update. never had to use it.

 

When I first deployed Sims through S3 (summer 2015) it was busy with laptops obviously as you are experiencing not being able to deployed to but now I have managed to deploy the solus 3 agent to all laptops with SIMS, its a lot easier. I made a simple instruction email to all staff in the event of an incompatible database error occurring teaching them how to use the agent. My Autumn 2015 release went a lot smoother after with a grand total of 0 complaints

 

Yes, I sent instructions to staff about how to use the solus 3 agent to check for updates if the computer was off at time of the update so desktops are fine.

 

It's just the laptops...is there a guide somewhere about deploying the agent through GPO...and I assume you would have to add the laptop to the UI first as unlike WSUS it won't auto-register the computer against the SOLUS 3 interface?

 

Whats the easiest solution for me, other than waiting for staff to complain then having to manually deploy the agent then update..

[dapaulio]

is there a guide somewhere about deploying the agent through GPO...

 

That is a question which frustrates a lot of technicians and answers are few and far between. make reimaging workstations very difficult as you have to remember to go back and redeploy the agent manually. I have seen somewhere on edugeek someone published a cool looking piece of script which deploys the agent but couldn't tell you first hand whether it works and how well it works however it is third party scripted, not capita approved. (is my understanding)

 

the way i understand s3 is unfortunately the way S3 deploys and links to the management console is based on its own unique id in SQL database and this script looks up the ID in SQL and is deployed with the agent.

 

As for the laptops i admit it is not easy the first s3 update was a nightmare with sims on laptops complaints for days however that allowed me to install the s3 agent on the laptops which needed it. the autumn update was easier as the update queued on the laptops that were not online. once the laptop became online it takes roughly 5 mins for the updater to run or the staff can force the update using the agent instruction sent in the email.

 

like I said I had 0 complaints after the autumn update regarding laptops and sims

 

Good luck

[dapaulio]

not ideal I know but the best we got so far.

[ITGURU]

not ideal I know but the best we got so far.

 

So basically the use of the SIMSINST.exe is now redundant even on new installs? New way is to deploy the agent and SIMS that way?

 

SOLUS 2 was so much better!

[dapaulio]

I agree I liked the idea of sims being pulled by the client when needed rather than pushed from the server when complete. but S2 had its quirks like S3 does. impatient teachers who use to quit the update before it complete which completely killed sims on that computer caused me so many issues despite numerous email asking staff to be patient. they never listened.

 

In hindsight with S3 I admit I feel more in control with knowing with a single button press FMS, Discover and SIMS will deploy to all my devices I have registered, and gives me a detailed after upgrade report so you can pre-empt complaints and possibly rectify before the end users notice rather than wait for them to arise. although it has its own quirks with a little more work lets hope capita improve on this feature in subsequent updates.

although it seems more of a hassle for the little extra work you feel more at ease knowing what to expect.

 

I want to add I was not paid by capita to say any of those things.

[mrwoberts]

@ITGURU

 

Reading your op, I can see similarities of my frustration a while back, which now seems to have gone away when I remember these few steps.

1. Make sure the Solus 3 copy of SIMS.ini and Connect.ini are the same across all computers - I had a few that wouldn't upgrade etc that were solved by copying the correct ini files to their respectful places. This should be the same one that the S3 Deployment UI is pointing to.

2. My SIMS.ini file points to the Solus (extracted) folder for the setups path. That way, even if I do manually update SIMS myself, usually because the agent is daydreaming, at least I'm using the same setup files everywhere - possibly remove/rename the old simshare\sims\setups folder.

3. Make sure the sims setup files are actually accessible on the network - so you can at least run them manually if you needed to.

4. Any freshly imaged PC I always script the install of the latest sims components first, then install the agent (along with the firewall script!!) afterwards. followed by a restart and slap on the back of the DS

 

Apologies if you've already done, or know all this - it's late and I'm a bit tired.

Edited January 5, 2016 by mrwoberts

[Banjo]

We use Solus 3 on servers but don't deploy the agents to the workstations. The Servers will upgrade overnight when we release the upgrade and the clients upgrade on first use the next day using the same process as Solus 2. For new client installs we do have the option of running the install setups manually or installing an agent and running in a mixed environment. Seems to work for now.