Windows 10 tablet setup using Windows Configuration Designer or "Setup School PCs"app

[disk]

We just purchased a number of Windows 10 tablets for our school. I am looking at using either the Windows Configuration Designer or the "Setup School PCs" app. So far, I have had nothing but problems. I created a config in each of the apps. WCD has all the options I would like (setup two local accounts, name devices, setup wifi) while the app only allows wifi and naming. I turned on a tablet and allowed it to present the OOBE screen. At this point, when I connected the flash drive that contained my WCD config, it was not recognized. The flash drive that contained the config from the app was recognized immediately, but after running, it said that it had encountered an error.

 

These tablets are running Windows 10 Home. I also read that the config should be ideally created on the same build version of Windows 10. I am running this on Windows 10 Enterprise Build 1703. The tablet was updated to 1703 and then reset to get the OOBE screen.

 

Anyone out there have any luck with this kind of scenario? Any pointers would be greatly appreciated! I'm also open to alternatives if there is a better, more reliable way of going about getting these devices deployed.

[FreelanceX]

Yeah have fun with this. Tried this week to setup some tablets I have on 1511 currently. Updated them to a clean 1703 (just ran setup.exe from MDT share which has been through NTLite) and that was easy.

 

I used the WCD to create a package to try out this SharedPC/School mode as it sounded amazing and exactly what I needed.

 

First of all, it didn't apply my wifi profile. Left me with a local only device. Thought, no problem... Ill just add wifi, log in and remove the partly installed profile. Nope. What I didn't know (and do not see noted anywhere) is SharedPC mode completely removes access to the C Drive. For ALL users. Even full administrators. Wouldn't let me remove the profile as it couldn't find the provisioning tool because it had locked the C drive (Blocked by School!).

 

I had to manually add it to the domain and use the domain admin account to remove the profile. Domain admin also had C: locked down. This makes ZERO sense to me.

 

So went back over my provisioning file, fixed the wifi profile and noticed I had enabled the restrict local drive access. Slapped myself around the face. That's why! Still doesn't make sense it applies to admins I thought, but oh well. I don't need it enabled anyway. My GPOs take care of that... So I disable it and reapply the profile.

 

Nope... Slapped myself too early. Still completely removes access to the C drive for all users.

 

On top of that, it wasn't removing the provisioned apps like I had asked it to (like xbox, feedback, 3d builder etc).

 

So at that point I thought, stuff it.

 

Its a nice idea in principal, but flip me its useless.

 

Therefore, I went back to the way I normally do it. Customised a wim inside NTLite (reg/service tweaks, remove UWP apps, slipstream updates, unattend.xml to skip OOBE etc) and just ran it from my MDT share. Added back to domain, ran my installers from PDQ and let my GPOs take care of the rest.

 

At some of my other schools I have SCCM and I would use that instead of MDT/PDQ as it supports building over Wifi.

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If you want some advice, Id use the WCD to add a wifi profile (that worked in the end. That was my fault), reset it to clean state (that also worked, got rid of all OEM stuff) get it to put it on the domain and let your management software of choice do the rest.

 

I find my current setup does almost everything I needed from the SharedPC/Setup School thing. Only thing I really wanted from it which I cant easily do otherwise, is the account management and "edu" mode.

 

If you get it to work, or if anyone else does, id be happy to listen how.

 

Edit: A properly configured SCCM system with a good LOOSE GPO system, Windows 10 works great for school scenarios in general. I don't use MDM on Windows or log in with AzureAD to devices, so take that in to consideration when considering my opinion.

Edited May 26, 2017 by FreelanceX