Windows 7 and Office 2010 Deployments
As a lot of my customers are deploying Windows 7 and Office 2010 I thought it timely to summarise some of the key tools and useful bits of information available.
Microsoft has a variety of tools and resources to help in the upgrade to Windows 7, from XP or Vista. The tools automate a lot of the key tasks to make things quicker and easier, saving you time.
The following are some of the free, downloadable pre-deployment and deployment tools that help you automate common project-related tasks:
- Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit This tool inventories hardware and devices.
- Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) version 5.5 This tool inventories applications, analyses compatibility, and creates compatibility fixes for applications.
- Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) This tool helps you create images and automate the OS and application installations, data migration, and desktop configuration process.
Of course, for larger organisations, Microsoft System Center is also available to buy. This is a family of products that provides end-to-end deployment and management support.
If you’re keen to get your hands dirty right away try the free JumpStart Proof of Concept Kit. It’s a self-contained, self-service kit (VHD) designed to help you complete a Proof-of -Concept (PoC) at your organization, allowing you to quickly evaluate the new Microsoft desktop technologies, including Windows 7, Office 2010 Pro Plus, Internet Explorer 8, and Application Virtualization with Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack technology App-V. It includes the free tools mentioned above, trial images, and more. Check it out here: https://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=26301cd1-cc72-4dd8-819e-12ef48322743
If you’re after some learning resources it’s worth checking out the Windows 7 Deployment Learning Portal. It’s designed to help you identify the strengths and gaps in your knowledge around Windows 7 deployment and provide some targeted learning. You can access it here: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/ff470986
Not to forget about Office 2010 – there is also a wide array of tools available to help you upgrade. You can find a raft of information here: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/ff519674.aspx But, a couple of the key freely available tools for download include:
- Microsoft Office Migration Planning Manager 2010: A tool to assess binary files and macros and optionally convert files to the Open XML format.
- Office 2010 Compatibility Inspector: Compares existing (legacy) code against the Microsoft Office 2010 object model to identify possible code issues.
- Office 2010 Environment Assessment Tool: A comprehensive environment scanning tool which identifies Office add-ins and applications.
- Microsoft Office 2010 Deployment Kit for App-V: Enables Office 2010 client products to be sequenced and deployed with Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V).
There’s a wealth of information, tools and resources available to help you to deploy – the ones I’ve listed above are just a few – so head to microsoft.com or technet.com and have a look around. Not to mention your Microsoft NZ account team will be more than happy to discuss your deployment plans with you and identify ways that we can help.
Happy deploying. 