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Designing a Test RIS Environment

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Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Before implementing a full scale RIS deployment in your organization, you can create a RIS test environment to facilitate preliminary RIS configuration and testing. After confirming that the test environment produces the desired results, you can begin your RIS rollout. For more information about creating a test environment, see "Designing a Test Environment" in Planning, Testing, and Piloting Deployment Projects of this kit.

The RIS test environment enables you to create and configure your RIS server, generate operating system images, and perform test deployments of RIS images to clients outside your production environment. You can also use the RIS test environment to run tests on uniquely tailored answer files and custom CIW configurations to assure proper functioning prior to introducing them in your network. You might also use your test environment to do a preliminary test run of the BIOS information, prestaging and boot file name scripts to become familiar with them before running them on the network. In addition, you can use the RIS test environment to acquire baseline performance indications for your RIS server. For more information about RIS server performance, see "Planning RIS Server Performance" earlier in this chapter.

To create the RIS test environment, you need a minimum of two computers. You can set up one computer as a domain controller with multiple roles, including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and RIS, and a second computer that serves as a master computer from which you create custom file system images using Riprep. After you configure one or more images and place them on the RIS server, you can use the second computer as a client on which you install the image. Also, if you want to create CD-type operating system images in your test environment and you have the operating system CDs, you can run Risetup on the RIS server.

Alternatively, you can use a three-computer configuration such as the following:

  • One domain controller with Active Directory, DNS, and DHCP.

  • One member server on which you install RIS.

  • One combined master and client computer running the operating system you want to image, such as Windows XP.

If you have additional computers, you can break up the combined master and client configuration and provide separate computers for each. This simplifies things because you can avoid repeated installations of operating systems on the master computer after performing test installations on the client with RIS.

Important

  • In your production environment, strongly consider not having your domain controller share multiple roles. Instead, you can configure separate computers with unique roles such as domain controller with DHCP, member server with Active Directory and DNS, and member server with RIS.

For this part of your design process, use job aid "Designing a RIS Test Environment" (ACIRIS_10.doc) on the Windows Server 2003 Deployment Kit companion CD (or see "Designing a RIS Test Environment" on the Web at https://www.microsoft.com/reskit) to record the configuration of your test environment and the tasks you intend to carry out there, including any of the following:

  • Configuring your test RIS server.

  • Testing-run scripts for prestaging, getting client UUIDs, and changing startup file names.

  • Creating operating system images using Riprep and Risetup.

  • Testing answer files and CIW configurations in trial deployments.

  • Analyzing RIS server performance.