This document summarizes key points about installing and managing workstations and client machines on a network. It discusses various methods for installing operating systems, such as locally, using Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK), or deploying images via the network or servers. Maintaining consistency across workstations is important. The document also outlines the life cycle of a workstation and challenges around configuring systems and addressing entropy over time. Integrating Linux clients is briefly addressed.

1. Lecture 4:
Clients &
Workstations
Network Design & Administration

2. Overview
• What are Workstations / Client machines?
• Anything that an actual user sits at!
• Potentially Windows 7 Professional / Ultimate,
Network Design & Administration
Vista Business / Ultimate, XP Professional, Linux
and OS X.
• Have to be able to communicate with Servers
and use their services – otherwise standalone.
• Much more likely to cause problems because
user is directly involved.
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3. New Workstations
• May already be bought with an operating system
on.
• Generally need to install OS if:
• Home version of OS – unsatisfactory.
Network Design & Administration
• Not corporate standard – e.g. Vista rather than
Windows 7.
• User preference – only if corporation allows
• Need multiple boot.
• Bought bare – will use volume licencing.
• Want to ensure consistency. i.e. starting from a 3
known state[1].

4. What do you get?
• Microsoft – basic versions of standard tools. E.g.
works, outlook express…
• Linux – full set of free standard tools.
• Apple – complete turnkey system.
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• Microsoft expect you to buy full Office suite and
use Exchange server if used within a corporate
environment.
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5. Life and Death of a
Workstation[2]
New
Rebuild
Update
Build
Entropy
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Initialise Unknown
Clean Configured
Debug
Retire
Off
• Computer is only usable in a configured state.
• Entropy occurs as workstation gets modified over time (failed
installs, malware, inappropriate software). 5
• Need to have processes / procedures to bring back to
configured state as efficiently as possible.

6. User Expectations
• A configured machine must:
• Have the corporate standard word processing
package, in the standard corporate setup (e.g. with
foreign language support if required by business).
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• Allow use of the standard email package with no
extra user initialisation.
• Have any business-specific software already
installed.
• Have any corporate purchased anti-virus, anti-
spam, malware software.
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• Have appropriate web access.

7. User Expectations
• The workstation must not:
• Force the user to do anything except log on to
start working.
• Allow the user to install their own choices of
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packages (unless authorised).
• Encourage the user to keep files locally. i.e. it
must, wherever possible, default to sending work
to file servers.
• It may be worthwhile to provide users with a do /
don’t list when they first get a new workstation. 7

8. File System Formats
Historical (nearly)
Still used
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Necessary for servers
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9. Hard disk geometry[4]
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• Hard disks usually have a number of platters contained within them.
• Each side of a platter is used and will have it’s own read/write head.
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• Each surface will contain a number of tracks and sectors.

10. Magnetic Disks[4]
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• Example of two sectors on a portion of a disk track
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11. File Allocation Table Example
Boot Sector FS Info FAT 1 FAT 2 Data
Directory
Table
Cluster Next Cluster Cluster size is usually between 2KB and 32KB
Start 2 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 2
autoexec.bat of file
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cmd.com 3 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 3
…
4 7 56 A3 AA 09 7C 32 C0 0C 8A … 4
5 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 5
6 FFFF C3 FA 77 09 4A 32 1A BB FF FF 6
7 10 3F 33 6E 23 5D 10 19 FB 84 … 7
8 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 8
9 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 9
10 6 56 33 77 09 77 32 11 00 84 … 10
11 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 … 11
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12 87 45 22 56 78 44 88 99 34 … 12
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12. Installing the OS
• There are a number of ways of doing this:
• Locally – by typing in parameters as prompted
during the process (media option)
• Using Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK)
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• Can deploy from:
• Media (unattended flash drive/ISO/DVD)
• Network (deploy image via a network)
• Server (deploy via a server)
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13. Windows Systems Image
Manager Architecture[3]
Network Design & Administration
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14. SIM Interface[3]
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15. Integrating Linux
• Easy to add Windows workstations to an Active Directory Domain!
• It is not so easy to integrate other Operating Systems (e.g. Linux)
Considerations for integrating Linux:
1. Authenticate against the AD server
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• Setup Kerberos package (install using apt-get)
• Configure Kerberos with realm for domain
• Configure key server and domain details
• Generate a new Kerberos ticket
2. Setup SMB file access (via Samba)
• Configure smb.conf with realm details
3. Configure nsswitch.conf
• Add WINS, DNS and BIND information
4. Join domain. 15
5. Still have to set up file shares etc!

16. Summary
• Many different methods of installation.
• Can depend on starting point (e.g. upgrade or
bare machine)
• More automation has more pre-requisites.
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• Increased automation reduces Total Cost of
Ownership (TCO)
• This is critical in a business environment.
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17. Next Time & References
• Corporate architecture
• Domains and Active Directory Domain Services
[1] “The Practice of System and Network Administration”, Limoncelli,
Network Design & Administration
Chapter 3.1.1.4
[2] “The Practice of System and Network Administration”, Limoncelli, p42,
Figure 3.1 (from Evard, 1997)
[3] Windows SIM architecture, Microsoft help file (WAIK)
(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc766157%28WS.10%29.aspx)
[4] “Structured Computer Organisation”, Andrew Tanenbaum, 2006
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