HP Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack--Windows Edition 315379-008 Supported Deployment Mechanisms

Supported Deployment Mechanisms

The Altiris Deployment Solution has several mechanisms for deploying target servers. All methods use the Altiris Deployment Agent for DOS. Table 5 displays a matrix of supported target servers and the supported deployment mechanisms available for each server.

Preboot eXecution Environment

Target servers can connect to the Deployment Server by performing a Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) boot and receiving a boot image over the network. The boot image is analogous to a boot diskette. PXE provides the most automated, hands-free bootstrap method for server deployment.

All newer ProLiant servers ship with PXE-enabled embedded NICs or PXE-enabled stand-up NICs. Some older servers that do not have PXE support can obtain support with a PXE-enabled stand-up NIC. Refer to Table 2 for a list of stand-up NICs with PXE support.

Table 2: Stand-Up NICs with PXE Support

NIC Model	Minimum Option ROM Version
NC1020	N/A
NC31231	N/A
NC7170	1.2.11
NC77702, 3	3.2.2
NC77713	6.2.11

1You must flash NC3123/Rev. I to enable PXE support. The IBAUTIL.EXE utility that updates the PXE firmware is available in SP23495.exe.

2Only NC7770/Rev. E or later is flash upgradeable. You must move the EPROM WRITE jumper on the board to enable. A firmware update is available in SP24987.exe.

3For Wake-on-LAN (WOL) support with stand–up NICs, WOL must be enabled on the NIC by the driver and ROM-Based Setup Utility (RBSU).

Some servers require a firmware upgrade to use PXE in the Rapid Deployment Pack. Refer to Table 4 for details on required upgrades.

The boot images used by the Altiris PXE Server are DOS-based. By default, these images use the Universal Network Driver Interface (UNDI) driver for network connectivity. The UNDI driver functions with any PXE-enabled NIC.

It is possible to re-create the boot images so that they use an NDIS2 driver. However, these images only function with servers in your environment that have NICs supported by that NDIS2 driver.

IMPORTANT: HP strongly recommends that you use the default UNDI driver in your PXE boot images.

8 HP ProLiant Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack—Windows Edition Support Matrix