Creating a VMware Tools Package for WDS Deployment with MDT 2013
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In part III of this series, we will bring MDT to life by creating a VMware Tools package for our WDS deployment. We will start by creating a local user account on our MDT server with the necessary privileges to access the deployment share. Then, we will build a package by adding the source files to the deployment share and providing a command line for the unattended installation.
Creating a Local User Account
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Before we can install the VMware Tools during the deployment, we need to create a local user account on our MDT server with the necessary privileges to access the deployment share. To do this, right-click on the menu item “Application” and choose “New Application” from the context menu. Select the “Standard Server Task Sequence” template and click “Next”.
Selecting an OS Image
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We need to select an OS image for our WDS deployment. Since we want to deploy a Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard, we will select the appropriate image. Click “Next” to continue.
Creating a VMware Tools Package
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Now we are ready to create our VMware Tools package. We will start by building an application by adding the source files to the deployment share and providing a command Line for the unattended installation. To do this, select the “Install Applications” option from the task sequence tab and browse to the location of our VMware Tools application.
Updating the Deployment Share
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Before we can deploy our first server, we need to update the deployment share. This process builds the boot images and creates the applications on the deployment share. To do this, right-click on the deployment share in the Deployment Workbench and select “Update Deployment Share”. Follow the wizard to complete the process.
Adding Windows PE Images to WDS
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Now we can add the Windows PE images to our WDS. Start the server manager or start the MMC, right-click on “Boot Images” and select “Add Boot Image”. Choose the image you want to import and simply accept the default name. Repeat this process for the 32-bit image if necessary.
Deploying Our First Server
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Create a new VM using a standard W2K8 R2 VM with 1 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, VMXNET3 NIC and VMware paravirtual SCSI controller for our tests. Start the VM and wait for the DHCP response. Press F12 if offered and choose the x64 Windows PE environment. Now the boot images are transferred from the WDS server. Because we skipped most of the wizards during the deployment wizard, we only need to choose a task sequence. Select the W2K8 R2 Standard sequence and start the deployment.
In the WDS MMC, you can watch the transmission process of the image. After several reboots, you should see a shiny new W2K8 R2 standard VM with VMware Tools. The whole deployment from the start of the VM until the VM is ready to use took on my HP Micro Server round about 15 minutes.
Conclusion
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If you have any further questions, just leave a comment.