Acronis Snap Deploy

New Features

What's new in Acronis Snap Deploy 4?

• Easier to use - improved wizard-driven user interface and installation helps to save time and minimise the risk of errors
• Per-machine configuration - configure machine settings such as name and IP address for each machine before deployment
• Post-deployment customisation - customise Windows machines after deployment by changing computer name, network settings, domain/workgroup, the Secure Identifier (SID), user accounts or running any custom scripts, plus reboot or shut down after the master image is applied
• New platform support - full support for Windows 2008 R2 and Windows 7
• 'New Machines' list - displays the progress and status of each machine (machines can be added manually via MAC address or imported from a file)
• VHD support - compatibility with Microsoft Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) as master image for deployment
• Linux or WinPE media - choice between creating Linux or WinPE media for deployments
• Better hardware support - add drivers to WinPE media to ensure compatibility with new hardware
• New Deployment Licence option - a new Deployment Licence option is cost-effective and allows one deploy operation to a PC or a server.

Features

Top Features

High-Performance Dispatch

From a central administration point, you can deploy a master image – including Operating System and applications – to multiple PCs or servers across your network simultaneously, via multicast or unicast. It’s fast and easy.

Hardware Versatility

If you need to deploy your image to PCs with different hardware architectures, no problem. Acronis Universal Deploy 4 ensures that your new systems boot up correctly even if they’re running on dissimilar hardware.

Flexible Deployment Options

Deploy on your own terms! Acronis Snap Deploy 4 gives you plenty of options, including manual, automatic, user-initiated and scheduled deployment. Additionally, Wake-on-LAN automatically boots powered-off machines. And standalone image deployment lets you deploy an image even if your network is down.

Machine-Specific Configuration

You can assign individual settings to each PC or server to ensure they all receive an appropriately tailored configuration. The new list of machines allows monitoring of progress and status, as well as pre-configuration of new machines identified by their MAC address.

Post-Deployment Customisation

As soon as you finish a deployment, Acronis Snap Deploy 4 allows you to easily modify Windows settings, such as computer name, IP configuration or SID, in order to offer your end-users optimal customisation and ensure unique names on your network.

Boot Up on Your Own Terms

To be ready for deployment, you can boot your machines from customisable media such as CD, DVD, flash drive, or from Acronis PXE Server with network boot. Acronis Snap Deploy 4 lets you choose between both Linux and WinPE bootable environments. And it allows you to add necessary drivers to WinPE media to ensure it works on your new hardware.

Deployment Options

Acronis Snap Deploy 4 offers you several deployment modes to suit every need, all managed from a remote centralised-management console.

• Manual or automatic deployment can be started manually or performed automatically when a specified number of machines are ready.
• User-initiated deployment lets users trigger image distribution to their own systems by themselves.
• Standalone deployment lets you easily reconfigure systems that aren’t attached to your network.
• Scheduled deployment distributes or redistributes the master image at a specific point in time. This is especially usefully when you want to reimage a machine during fixed maintenance hours, like every night or over the weekend.

For each deployment, you can benefit from various options:

• Deployment templates. Deployment settings are saved, so you can reuse them for other tasks.
• Multicast and unicast. Choose multicast to reduce network traffic and save time by deploying images to multiple machines simultaneously. Or unicast to reduce the load on your network and minimise compatibility issues with network equipment.
• Wake-on-LAN (WoL) and WoL Proxy. These standards allow you to automatically power on machines remotely. WoL proxy is included to ensure that WoL works across network segment boundaries.
• Compression and splitting. You can compress your master image to save disk space, or split it into multiple volumes to fit on CDs or DVDs.
• Encryption. Components of Acronis Snap Deploy 4 communicate with each other via Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), the industry standard for high-end data security.
• Password protection. You can protect your master image with a password to prevent unauthorised deployment. You can also set a password for booting into Acronis Snap Deploy 4 bootable environment to make sure users don’t accidentally access it on their own.
• Disk resizing. Even if the disk on a target machine is larger or smaller compared to the master machine, Acronis Snap Deploy 4 can resize it to occupy all of the target machine’s disk capacity to ensure efficient usage of the available disk space.
• Network bandwidth throttling. Limits network utilisation by specifying maximum throughput.
• VHD format support. Both Acronis image file (.tib) and Microsoft Virtual Hard Disk (.vhd) can be used as a master image for deployment. Acronis Snap Deploy 4 even supports images created by Acronis True Image, Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 and Acronis Backup & Recovery 11.
• Command line and scripting. Acronis Snap Deploy 4 Command-Line Utility is included in a WinPE bootable media and can be used to perform imaging or deployment in the command-line mode or to execute scripts.
• Configuration management. After deployment completes, multiple parameters such as name and domain membership of the target machine may be changed to ensure that the machine is properly configured.

Configuration management

With Acronis Snap Deploy 4, you can count on effective configuration-management tools to perform post-deployment tasks that simplify deployment and ongoing maintenance of your Windows systems.

• Perform changes to machine configuration. You can specify individual settings for every machine or use wildcard to generate names automatically: Machine name, Domain or workgroup membership, TCP/IP properties, Add user accounts, Change security identifier (SID)
• Shut down or restart the target machine
• Transfer new files to the target machine
• Run applications or scripts on the target machine.

System Req.

Acronis Snap Deploy 4 can be installed on:

• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 / 2008 R2
• Microsoft Windows Server 2003 / 2003 R2
• Microsoft Windows 7
• Microsoft Windows Vista
• Microsoft Windows XP

The following Operating Systems are supported for deployment:

• Microsoft Windows 7
• Microsoft Windows Vista
• Microsoft Windows XP
• Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional (cannot change configuration after deployment)
• Microsoft Windows 98/ME/NT (cannot change configuration after deployment)
• Microsoft Windows 2000 Server (cannot change configuration after deployment)
• Microsoft Windows Server 2003 / 2003 R2
• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 / 2008 R2
• Linux (cannot change configuration after deployment)

Storage - master image

• Local folder (HDD)
• Network share
• Removable storage devices such as CD/DVD or flash drives

Storage - file systems

• FAT16 / FAT32
• NTFS
• Ext2 / Ext3 / Ext4
• RaiserFS
• Raiser4.

Note: the PC version can deploy images of workstation Operating Systems only. Additionally Acronis Snap Deploy 4 supports deployment of images with any file system in sector-by-sector mode.

Support

Acronis Advantage - Corporate Support Options

Acronis Advantage Standard

• 12x5 support, Monday through to Friday via chat, phone and email
• First response time for critical errors within one business day
• Unlimited support within subscription period
• Includes software updates and upgrades to new versions during the term of the subscription
• Includes general online training sessions.

Acronis Advantage Premier

• 24x7 support via chat, phone and email
• First response time for critical errors within one hour
• Unlimited support within subscription period
• Includes software updates and upgrades to new versions during the term of the subscription
• Includes general online training sessions, private sessions available.