New deployment scenarios in windows 8

The deployment strategies that the previous section describes are traditional. You install an
operating system on a physical PC. However, desktop virtualization enables new deployment
scenarios that can streamline and simplify Windows 8 deployment.
Windows To Go
Windows To Go offers a new alternative to traditional operating system deployment.
 Windows To Go is a Windows 8 Enterprise feature that enables users to boot and 
run   Windows 8 from a USB drive. It provides a flexible way for workers to access their 
personal desktop on any PC. The article “Windows To Go: Feature Overview” at 
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh831833.aspx provides additional  information
about Windows To Go as well as step-by-step instructions for preparing, securing, and
 managing Windows To Go devices.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure
Microsoft Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) is an alternative desktop delivery model that
gives users secure access to centrally managed desktops running in the datacenter. VDI is
powered by Remote Desktop Services (RDS), which is a server role in Windows Server 2012.
It provides a single platform to deliver any type of hosted desktop, and RemoteFX provides
a consistently rich user experience. RDS enables organizations to choose the deployment
method that works best for them—all by using a single platform.

•    Session-based desktops  Session-based desktops provide users access to

 applications, data, and shared desktops centralized in the datacenter from a webpage,
through a SharePoint portal, on a local desktop, or over the Internet.

•    Pooled virtual machines (VMs)   Pooled VMs give users access to high-performance

desktops from any connected device. VDI assigns VMs on demand from an existing
pool to users. When they log off a VM, VDI returns it to the pool for use by another
user.

•    Personal VMs  Personal VMs give users access to a personal, high-performance

 desktop over which they have full administrative control.
With all three VDI deployment methods, user state virtualization maintains users’ data
and settings across physical and virtual sessions. VDI empowers enterprises with unified
 management of centralized desktops and corporate data by using System Center 2012. IT can
extend existing management tools and processes to the VDI environment.
Partner technology, such as Citrix XenDesktop, adds value to VDI by offering additional
scale and flexibility to enterprises. With Citrix technologies, users can access their Windows
environment even from non-Windows devices.
Chapter 11, “Windows 8 virtualization,” provides more information about Windows 8 and
VDI. You can also learn more on the Desktop Virtualization website at  http://www.microsoft
.com/dv .

Client Hyper-V
On PCs running Windows 8, Client Hyper-V provides a robust virtual platform for  d evelopers
and IT pros. It supports a broad range of devices and leverages the driver ecosystem of
 Windows 8 to run on the broadest range of 64-bit PCs. Client Hyper-V provides a rich user
experience, including multimedia, touch, and USB support. Because Client Hyper-V is a core
part of Windows 8, it leverages all of that operating system’s security and management
 features.
Client Hyper-V requires the following:
  ■ A 64-bit system
  ■ 4 GB of RAM is required
  ■ Support for Second Level Address Translation (SLAT)
SLAT unloads from the processor the process of mapping physical memory to  v irtual
memory. For intensive graphics, it provides significant performance improvements. It
is   r equired for Hyper-V on Windows 8, because most systems have extensive graphics
 capabilities. It’s only required for Windows 8 Server when enabling the RemoteFX role service.
For more information, see the article “Client Hyper-V” at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/
library/hh857623.aspx.

Deployment strategies in Windows 8

Microsoft recommends a few targeted strategies for deploying Windows 8. These strategies
range from manually configuring Windows 8 on a few computers to using automation tools
and technologies to deploy the operating system to thousands of computers.
The following list describes the four recommended deployment strategies:

•    High Touch with retail media   This is a hands-on, manual deployment, where you

install Windows 8 on each client PC by using the retail installation media, and then you
manually configure each PC. Microsoft recommends this strategy if your organization
does not have dedicated IT staff, and it has a small, unmanaged network with fewer
than 100 client computers.

•    High Touch with standard image  This strategy is similar to the High Touch with

retail media strategy, but it uses an operating system image that includes your
 customizations and application configurations. Microsoft recommends this  strategy
if your organization has at least one IT pro (with or without prior deployment
 experience) on staff, and a small or distributed network with 100–200 client PCs.

•   Lite Touch, high-volume deployment   This strategy requires limited interaction

during deployment. Interaction occurs at the beginning of the installation, but the
remainder of the process is automated. Microsoft recommends this strategy if your
organization has a dedicated IT staff, and it has a managed network with 200–500
client computers. Prior deployment experience is not required, but it is beneficial for
using this strategy.

•    Zero Touch, high-volume deployment  This strategy requires no interaction

 during deployment. The process is fully automated by using Configuration Manager.
 Microsoft recommends this strategy if your IT organization has experts in deployment,
networking, and Configuration Manager, and it has a managed network with 500 or
more client computers.

User state migration in Windows 8

Operating system deployment always involves user state migration—the process of migrating
users’ documents and settings from one operating system to another. Even when you don’t
migrate user state during deployment, users can spend countless hours trying to restore their
preferences (such as desktop backgrounds, screensavers, and themes). Because this manual
process reduces user productivity and usually increases support calls, you might choose to
migrate some portion of user state to Windows 8 as you deploy it

User satisfaction is another reason to elevate the importance of user state migration in
your project. Users are simply more satisfied and feel less overwhelmed when they sit down in
front of a new operating system and they don’t have to recover their preferences. Unsatisfied
users can have negative consequences for future deployment projects

The primary tool you use to migrate user state during a high-volume Windows 8
 deployment is the User State Migration Tool (USMT). Version 5.0 is the most recent version of
USMT supporting Windows 8 migrations. USMT is part of the Windows ADK (see Chapter 5, 
“Deploying Windows 8”). USMT can perform complex, repeatable migrations of user state
data between earlier Windows versions and Windows 8.

There are a few different ways to use USMT:

•    Script USMT.

•    Run it as part of a Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2012 Update 1 Lite Touch

Installation (LTI).

•    Run it as part of a System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Zero Touch Installation

(ZTI).

•    Run it directly at the command prompt.

 Running USMT in MDT 2012 Update 1 or Configuration Manager task sequences is
 probably the simplest way to use USMT. (System Center 2012 Configuration Manager with
Service Pack 1 is required for Windows 8.) Both include built-in support for running USMT
pre-deployment (to gather user state) and post-deployment (to restore user state). This   ability
allows you to focus on planning for and customizing the USMT to migrate the data and
 settings required in your organization.

Common compatibility problems in Windows 8

The following list describes common sources of compatibility issues for Windows 8,
 particularly when using an application originally designed for Windows XP.

•   User Account Control (UAC)  In Windows 8, by default, all interactive users, including

members of the Administrators group, run as standard users. UAC is the mechanism
through which users can elevate applications to full administrator privileges. Because
of UAC, applications that require administrator rights or check for administrator 
privileges behave differently in Windows 8, even when run by a user as administrator

• Windows Resource Protection (WRP)  WRP is designed to protect the system in a

read-only state to increase system stability, predictability, and reliability. This will affect
specific files, folders, and registry keys. Updates to protected resources are restricted
to the operating-system trusted installers (TrustedInstaller group), such as Windows
 Servicing. This helps to protect components and applications that ship with the
 operating system from any impact of other applications and administrators. This can
be an issue for custom installations not detected as set up by Windows 8 when they try
to replace WRP files and registry settings and check for specific versions and values.

•    Internet Explorer Protected Mode (IEPM)   In Windows 8, Microsoft Internet

 Explorer 10 processes run in IEPM with greatly restricted privileges to help protect
 users from attack. IEPM significantly reduces the ability of an attack to write, alter,
or destroy data on the user’s computer, or to install malicious code. This could   affect
 ActiveX controls and other script code that tries to modify higher integrity level
 objects.

ACT 6.0 improvements In Windows 8

ACT 6.0, the most recent version of the toolkit, adds support for Windows 8. The following list
describes ACT:

•    Support for Windows 8  ACT 6.0 adds support for Windows 8.

•    Runtime-analysis package  The runtime-analysis package gathers compatibility

information. You install it on PCs running Windows 8 for compatibility testing. Data
from the runtime-analysis package replaces data from issue detectors that attempt to
forecast compatibility issues by running on a previous version of Windows.

•  Streamlined inventory collection   Limiting the inventory-collector package to

inventory collection reduces data collection overhead. The redesigned inventory-collector package does not cause application conflicts because it does not interact with
applications, so you do not have to schedule the inventory-collector package to avoid
conflicts.

•   Application grouping  The application reports in Application Compatibility Manager

(ACM) group multiple versions of an application together under a single parent entry.

•    Restructured ACT documentation  ACT 6.0 includes streamlined documentation to

help you find information more quickly and conveniently.

•    Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (Windows ADK) integration  ACT is  

now part of the Windows ADK. The Windows ADK (see Chapter 5, “Deploying 
Windows 8”) consolidates the assessment and deployment tools in one place.

•    Focus on Operating System Deployment  ACT 6.0 focuses on operating system

deployment. It no longer includes update compatibility

Application compatibility in Windows 8

The overall compatibility of Windows 8 with existing apps is very high. However, some
compatibility issues are possible because of innovative new features, tightened security, and
improved operating system reliability.

IT pros planning for application compatibility should consider the “Windows 8 Release
Preview and Windows Server 2012 RC Compatibility Cookbook” available from the Microsoft
Download Center at  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id= 27416  to be
essential reading. This document describes changes in Windows 8 and Microsoft Windows
Server 2012 that could break an application, how those problems manifest themselves, and
how to mitigate those problems. Although this document is targeted primarily at   developers
working on the compatibility of their apps, it offers a glimpse into potential compatibility
 issues. (The large size of the document does not necessarily mean that there will be numerous
problems.)

The compatibility cookbook is theoretical, but you will need empirical data from your
 environment to assess and mitigate your applications. The Application Compatibility  Toolkit
(ACT) helps you inventory and test applications, devices, and PCs for compatibility with
Windows 8. You can get compatibility information from Microsoft and independent software
vendors (ISVs), identify compatibility issues in your environment, and share compatibility
data with other ACT users. ACT provides tools that can help you analyze and mitigate the
 compatibility issues that you discover in your organization.
Application compatibility resources for IT pros include:
  ■ Application Compatibility TechCenter on TechNet at http://technet.microsoft.com/ 
en-us/windows/aa905066.
  ■ Compatibility Center for Windows 8 Releas e Preview at  http://www.microsoft.com/ 
en-us/windows/compatibility/en-US/Comp atCenter/Home.
  ■ Windows 8 Release Preview and Windows Server 2012 RC Compatibility Cookbook
available from the Microsoft Download Center at  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/
download/details.aspx?id=27416.

Preparing for deployment in Windows 8

Deploying any new operating system requires careful planning, and Microsoft
 Windows 8 is no exception. Successful operating system deployment includes
 automation, application compatibility testing, user state migration, and hardware
 readiness. To that end, Microsoft deployment tools and technologies can help streamline
operating system deployment, improve the user experience, and reduce support costs.
The good news is that IT pros comfortable with Windows 7 deployment will be just
as comfortable with Windows 8 deployment. That is because Windows 8 deployment is
based on the proven tools and technologies they used for Windows 7 deployment 
(see Chapter 5, “Deploying Windows 8”). Although the tools are familiar, there are other
elements of deployment that you need to consider when deploying Windows 8. This
chapter describes those considerations. After introducing you to the stock keeping
units (SKUs) available for deployment, it provides guidance for evaluating application
 compatibility, migrating user state, and choosing a deployment strategy.

Windows 8 SKUs
Not only did Microsoft reimagine the Windows 8 user interface, but it also reimagined
the available SKUs to make choosing the right one simpler. Of course, all of the SKUs
offer the same fluid experience—on a variety of devices—using touch, a keyboard, or a
mouse.
For PCs and tablets powered by x86 or x64 processors, Microsoft offers two editions:
Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro. For consumers, Windows 8 is often the best choice. On
the other hand, Windows 8 Pro edition is the best choice for enthusiasts,  technology

Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8

Windows Server 2012, formerly code-named Windows Server 8, is the most recent release
of the Windows Server operating system. Windows Server 2012 offers features unlike any
 Windows Server operating system before. It is optimized for use with Windows 8 clients.
Windows Server 2012 shares features and management tools with Windows 8, such as Server
Manager, which allow remote server management for IT administrators. These features
 depend on a Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8 environment to function. Additionally,
Windows Server 2012 supports multiple installation options: Server Core, Full, and Minimal
Server Interface, which is similar to a server with a GUI installation but does not include
 Internet Explorer 10, Windows Explorer, the Desktop, or the Start screen. This customization
allows administrators to pick and customize their interface layout.

Virtualization
Virtualization offers many benefits to an organization. Some of these benefits include greater
agility, improved cost efficiency, and expanded flexibility. To meet the changing demands
of today’s business environment, combining virtualization with the infrastructure and tools
needed to provision a cloud environment is essential. Windows Server 2012 makes this
expansion possible through integrated tools like Hyper-V. For more information on how
 virtualization can improve your environment, see Chapter 11, “Windows 8 virtualization.”

ReFS
Resilient File System (ReFS) is a new file system available in Windows Server 2012 and
 Windows 8. ReFS is an improvement on NTFS that has major feature upgrades. Below is a
quick description of the primary file system upgrades found in ReFS:

•   Robust disk capabilities  ReFS vastly raises the upper limits for the following: file

size, volume size, number of files in a directory, and number of directories in a volume.
The new available maximum file size is 16 Exabytes and the maximum volume size is 1
Yottabyte. These storage capabilities provide immense future scalability

Resiliency to disk corruption  To minimize disk corruptions, ReFS has  built-in
 features that minimize the need for tools such as chkdsk. ReFS metadata is
 check-summed and stored off-page to allow real-time corruption, miswrite, and bit rot
detection. This new option, known as  integrity streams , ensures that preexisting data is
not lost due to the new written data.

•    Compatibility with existing technology   ReFS supports many of the existing

 Windows and NTFS features such as BitLocker, Access Control Lists, junction points,
mount pints, etc. without requiring new system application programming interfaces
(APIs). This makes ReFS easy to implement into existing data structures.

•    Storage Spaces  Storage Spaces is the new storage virtualization pool technology

which offers the joining of different-sized storage drives into virtual drives. It also
 allows users to select parity and mirroring features on a folder-by-folder basis

Summary
Windows 8 offers a wide variety of targeted improvements while keeping its standard
 usability and functionality derived from Windows 7. With reimagined system applications,
simple configuration, vast customization options, a redesigned NTFS health model, and new
features such as windows PowerShell 3.0, networking enhancements, and Client Hyper-V,
Windows 8 is the most improved Windows operating system yet. Its design integrates the
best of Windows 7 and improves specific applications and features that make your life as an IT
pro easier

Remote Server Administration Tools in Windows 8

Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) for Windows 8 includes Server Manager, Microsoft
Management Console (MMC) snap-ins, consoles, Windows PowerShell cmdlets and providers,
and command-line tools for managing roles and features that run on Windows Server 2012.
To fully use these tools, Windows Server 2012 is required.

The new Windows Server Manager, found in RSAT for Windows 8 and Windows Server
2012, facilitates management of all remote servers running Windows Server 2012  from one
centralized console. In some cases, these tools can be used to manage roles and   features
on running on Windows Server 2008. Remote management capabilities of Windows
 Management Instrumentation (WMI), Windows PowerShell, and Distributed Component
Object model (DCOM) are used to manage the servers. Windows Server Manager removes
the necessity to remote into each server to change roles or update policies and empowers
administrators with these management tools on their desktop. Windows Server Manager also
hosts links to nearly all other tools found in RSAT, including the MMC snap-ins.

IPv6 Internet support In Windows 8

Most currently implemented networks have the ability to connect to the Internet via IPv4.
However, IPv4 has address limitations that are beginning to show strain and cannot keep up
with the quickly expanding Internet. Currently, network address translation (NAT) is used to
share addresses in residences around the country. This technology allows each home to have
one IP address but multiple devices connected to the Internet. With IPv4 addresses quickly
depleting, NATs may be used on a broader scale, hindering location based services such as
Bing and degrading the P2P application experience.

To remedy these issues, IPv6 was created with unimaginable scale, offering 3x10^38
available IP addresses (enough for every person to have billions to themselves). In addition
to offering an immense address range, IPv6 also offers new security features such as IPsec,
which provides security at the packet level. During the transition from IPv4 to IPv6, dual stack
topologies will be implemented. This allows devices to be configured with both IPv6 and IPv4
addresses. In Windows 8, if an IPv6 address is present, it will automatically take   connection
priority over the IPv4 address. Also, not all applications will support IPv6  immediately.
 Windows will automatically select the correct connection for applications to properly
 communicate by using a method called  address sorting.  These advanced Windows features
indicate that Windows 8 is fully capable of supporting the IPv6 Internet.