Custom task sequence with user selection

[bocky]

Hello,

 

I would like to develop a single task sequence where the user can select what faculty they belong to (from a drop-down box or similar) and the appropriate Operating System / Software will be installed (I'm developing a self-service imaging solution which needs to be user friendly and I'm sick of having too many task sequences). My thinking was - each OS/Software install step in the TS would be dependent on a custom variable %FACULTY% (set by user as mentioned).

 

Essentially we would like the imaging experience for the user to be as follows...

1. User presses F12 upon startup to PXE boot
   
2. User enters password for authorization (already done)
   
3. User selects their faculty from a drop-down box
   
4. Appropriate OS/Software is installed according to faculty selection
   

 

The two things I'm unsure of is..

1. How to add custom HTA page (for user selection) to boot wim
   
2. Create and then refer to custom TS variable
   

 

Thanks a lot

[anyweb]

have you seen this ?

[adamb]

thats an excellent link. thanks heaps for that!

 

just one thing, how do I get a task sequence to start automatically so that if I PXE boot, a task sequence starts straight away? I know in MDT you can specify which TS you would like to run in CustomSettings.ini but what about in SCCM?

 

(in the task sequence I will advertise to all systems, the first step will be to show a custom HTA where they can choose which OS etc)

 

cheers!

[adamb]

Making the advertisement mandatory works however our machines now automatically PXE boot which is bad... they should only PXE boot upon F12

 

Looks like this has already been discussed in this forum

 

In a nutshell, is there a way to make a task sequence automatically run when the user presses F12 (apart from F12, COMPLETELY ZERO-TOUCH)?

[Lucid]

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but.... In a nutshell, "no". Pressing F12 is the boot operation, and is OS independent, and so the only way to do that would be able to have it PXE boot and automatically kick off the OS task sequence for the corresponding resource object; which you said you don't want.

 

I saw in your original note that you use "OS/Software". Well, if you're booted into WinPE, you can't install software to the user's OS because you're not running it...