Share via

ConfigMgr 2007: The %SMSDP% variable is not available in SCCM 2007 OSD Task Sequences when Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008 is integrated

  • Article

Here's another cool tip on OSD Task Sequences that Frank Rojas made me aware of.  Is there anything he doesn't know about these things?  If there is I don't know what it is.

========

Issue: When using SMS 2003 Operating System Deployment with Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) or Business Desktop Deployment (BDD), a variable called %SMSDP% was available for use in Task Sequences that pointed to the local Distribution Point (DP) for the PC that the OSD Task Sequence was running on. However, in SCCM 2007 OSD with Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008 (MDT 2008) integrated, this variable does not exist and is not available to be used in Task Sequences.

The %SMSDP% variable was not originally part of MDT 2008. However, this variable has been added as part of MDT 2008 Update 1. By upgrading to MDT 2008 Update 1 and integrating it into SCCM 2007, the %SMSDP% variable can be used in SCCM 2007 OSD Task Sequences as long as the Use Toolkit Package and Gather tasks are run before a task that attempts to use the  %SMSDP% variable.

Please note that in SCCM2007 OSD with MDT 2008 Update 1 integrated, the %SMSDP% actually points to the DP where the Boot Image is located that the PC used as part of the SCCM 2007 OSD Task Sequence. Although this DP is usually a local DP, there may be times that it may not be a local DP. Please keep this in mind when using the %SMSDP% variable.

To force the %SMSDP% to be a local DP, protected DPs and PXE Service Points may need to be set up and configured.

========

Thanks Frank!

J.C. Hornbeck | Manageability Knowledge Engineer

Comments