SMSINST: Guidelines for Using SMS Installer

ID: Q180918

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Systems Management Server Installer version 1.0

SUMMARY

Systems Management Server Installer is not appropriate for many system upgrades, configuration changes, and some application installations. This article provides information on tasks that are not appropriate uses for the Systems Management Server Installer.

MORE INFORMATION

Microsoft Technical Support provides guidelines for Systems Management Server Installer use, repackaging, and installation, but can not provide installation scripts testing or installation validation. When using Systems Management Server Installer to deploy applications, adequate testing in a lab environment on hardware and software client configurations similar to that in your production environment is a prerequisite for a successful rollout.

Guidelines

Do not use Systems Management Server Installer to repackage operating system service packs or operating system upgrades.

Do not use Systems Management Server Installer to upgrade or deploy Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 (IE 4.0). Internet Explorer provides an automated setup with custom configuration options instead. Refer to the IE 4.0 documentation for more details.

Do not use Systems Management Server Installer to install applications that make changes on a computer hardware- or software-specific basis. An example of this would be network configuration changes that require bindings to be reviewed and re-applied after the desired changes are made. A programmatic method should be used instead.

Avoid using Systems Management Server Installer to repackage an application if the original setup program makes any modifications to shared or network files.

Do not use Systems Management Server Installer to add printers, change video display, or add/change/modify hardware or device drivers.

For additional information about Systems Management Server Installer, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q168776
   TITLE     : SMSINST: Using the Repackager Successfully

   ARTICLE-ID: Q176990
   TITLE     : SMSINST: Installer Does Not Install Printers

For more information on automating network and printer configuration tasks, or installing or reconfiguring drivers programmatically, see the Microsoft Software Development Kit (SDK) and Driver Development Kit (DDK) documentation.

Additional query words: prodsms rules guidelines guideline limits limitations limited extra above beyond boundary policy

Keywords          : smsinst 
Version           : Windows:1.0
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: September 16, 1998