Additional Study Topics: Utilities | Groups | Migration Issues | RIS
I.
What is Remote
Installation Service? (RIS)
RIS is an
optional component and service which is part of the Windows 2000 Server, Advanced Server,
and Data Center product lines. RIS allows for automatic configuration of workstations with
Windows 2000 Professional and a number of preconfigured applications.
A. Client system
prerequisites
1. PXE and
supported hardware
a. PXE-based
remote boot ROM version .99c or later
i.
PC98-compliant
computers
ii.
Net PCs
b. PCI-based
plug-and-play network card supported by the RIS remote boot disk
i.
RBFG.EXE used
to create remote boot disk, which will automatically load the needed network card drivers
and find the RIS server to begin OS load
ii.
Disks only
really contain one file, which is not modifiable via text editors to add support for other
network cards.
iii.
RBFG supports
25 of the world’s most common network adapters, though many other adapters may be
based on this technology and would therefore be compatible with the utility as well (very
common with OEM network cards).
B. How RIS
works
1. Clients
booted via ROM or boot disk
a. Network
card initialized and driver loaded
b. DHCP-configured
IP information, including DNS and gateway information
2. BINI
(boot information negotiation layer)
a. Added
to server during the RIS installation
b. Responsible
for most communication to the RIS clients
3. RIS
server sends CIW application to client to allow for logon and the initial OS installation
process
a. User
information checked by Active Directory
b. User
permissions applied
4. User
presented with a choice of all images and options available, assuming total number is
greater than one
5. User’s
permission checked to ensure it is sufficient to add a new system account to the domain,
if the client was not prestaged
6. File
transfer and installation begin, with the remaining process being completely hands-off
C. RIS components
1. Remote
Installation Setup (RISetup.exe)
a. Prepares
an RIS server for use by partitioning and formatting a non-system hard drive
b. Creates
the first CD-based image and answer file
2. Single
Instance Store (SIS)
a. Allows
for multiple images to be stored on the same server in the least amount of space
b. All
common files shared by multiple images are only stored on the server once, with each image
containing pointers referencing these files and their proper location.
3. Remote
Installation Preparation Wizard (RIPrep.exe)
a. Runs
from the source computer
b. Dumps
the contents of the boot partition to the RIS server as a RIPrep image
4. Remote
Boot Disk Generator (RBFG.exe)
a. Allows
machines without PXE-enabled BIOSs to be supported by the RIS server
b. Creates
on disk with support of 25 major network adapters
5. Client
Installation Wizard (OSChooser.exe)
a. Sent
to client machines during the initial phase of the process
b. Allows
users to log on to the network and interact with AD servers
c. Allows
users to select the proper OS and options (when multiple choices are present)
II.
Creating an RIS
server
A. Prerequisites
1. DHCP
a. Can
be a preexisting service or added with RIS server install
b. Related
to the need to activate the RIS server in the AD domain
2. DNS
3. 2GB
of space on a non-system or boot partition
a. Must
be formatted NTFS
b. Must
have enough room to hold all of the server image files created for the organization
B. Installing
RIS: RIS is a Windows 2000 component and is therefore installed through the Add/Remove
Wizard.
1. Choose
Add/Remove Windows Components
2. Select
Remote Installation Services, follow a few prompts, and RIS is installed
III.
Authorizing an
RIS server
A. Why
authorize an RIS server?
1. The
authorization process
a. Authorization
really just authorizes the DHCP service.
b. Only
necessary if the RIS server did not have an active DHCP server service authorized with the
AD tree before the installation process began
c. Prevents
unauthorized servers from dispensing IP addresses to the network workstations
2. Requires
enterprise administrator level of authority to the Active Directory to authorize a new
server within the tree
3. Process
accomplished through the DHCP Manager
IV.
Configuring an
RIS server
Once the RIS
server and service have been installed and configured, the process of building and
managing the applications used begins.
A. Two types of
images
1. CD-based
a. Uses
answer files to customize an otherwise normal Windows 2000 installation process which is
launched from the Windows 2000 Professional source files
2. RIPPrep
image
a. Used
to create images of freshly installed Windows 2000 workstations, including applications
B. Running
RISetup
1. Be
sure drive requirements are met
2. Put
the Windows 2000 Professional CD in the CD-ROM drive
3. Decide on a
name and description for the first image
4. Run
RISetup.exe
5. Initial
CD-based image has to be created and installed, regardless of whether it will ever be
used.
C. Modifying
CD-based images
1. CD-based
images are configured through answer files (like unattended installation for previous
members of the NT family).
2. Modifications
to the answer file will produce different installations through the configuration of
desktop options.
3. Permissions
are modified through the NTFS permissions assigned to the image itself.
D. Computer account
creation
1. All
Windows 2000 based systems have to be added to the domain so that a specific computer
account is added and created for each computer system at the time of its installation.
2. Two
main methods used to create the necessary computer accounts within the RIS process
a. Default
installations: Users require administration authority within AD to create a computer
account
i.
Not advisable
for standard users
ii.
Group can be
created to add computer accounts which users are added to and removed from as needed
b. Prestaging:
Involves the use of a number called a GUID (globally unique ID), which is unique to each
piece of hardware
3. Default
installation and computer naming
a. Computer
naming scheme must be predefined
b. Predefined
placement of all computer IDs within the AD need to be assigned
c. User
account used to start the RIS process on the client machine has to have permission to add
computer accounts to the domain
i.
Not advisable
for standard users
ii.
Group can be
created to add computer accounts which users are added to and removed from as needed
4. Prestaging
client computers
a. All
computer accounts are created by the administrator ahead of time.
b. Prestaged
accounts are associated with a particular machine’s network card (MAC address) or
BIOS.
i.
GUID is
assigned to all PXE-based devices and is usually located on a sticker somewhere on the
computer or inside the case.
ii.
When using
non-PXE systems, use 20 zeros and the computer’s MAC (network card GUID) address to
substitute for the GUID.
c. Also
allows for the efficient use of multiple RIS computers to be used during mass installs
V.
Troubleshooting
RIS
Due to the mass
of configuration options and choices involved in setting up an RIS server, the most common
troubleshooting steps and solutions involve simply double-checking the RIS server and
computer object configurations.
A. Common
errors
1. Most
errors are traced to misconfiguration of unsupported hardware.
2. The
failure point of the RIS process is normally sufficient to identify which issue is the
most likely cause.
B. Troubleshooter
tool
1. Like
most other services within Windows 2000, an issue-based troubleshooter program is built
into the Windows 2000 server service.
a. Client
computer cannot boot to the RIS server.
b. Clients
get a BootP message, but goes no further.
c. Clients
get a DHCP message and then stop.
d. Clients
get a BINL message and then stop.
e. Installation
options or images not available to user.