Hp BLADESYSTEM BC1500 CCI Design & Implementation Guide

CCI Design & Implementation Guide

for a 100 Blade Deployment

Introduction......................................................................................................................................... 3

Scope ................................................................................................................................................ 3

Server Roles Overview ......................................................................................................................... 4

Active Directory – Group Policy............................................................................................................. 6

Policy Application ............................................................................................................................ 7

Remote Connection .......................................................................................................................... 8

Policy Function: Allow remote connection to the blade ...................................................................... 8

Computer Environment...................................................................................................................... 9

Policy Function: Prevent System Restore functionality ......................................................................... 9

User Environment ........................................................................................................................... 10

Policy Function: Redirects Specific Folder Locations To Alternate Network Location............................. 10

Policy Function: Turn Off Offline Files........................................................................................... 13

Policy Function: Remove Access to Windows Update...................................................................... 14

Policy Function: Remove Access to Local Hard Drives...................................................................... 14

Policy Function: Prevent Unauthorized Application Installation / Upgrades........................................ 15

Policy Function: Start Menu Lockdown........................................................................................... 16

Policy Function: Roaming User Profile Management........................................................................ 16

Troubleshooting ............................................................................................................................. 17

Blade Image ..................................................................................................................................... 19

Blade image checklist ..................................................................................................................... 19

ROM Version............................................................................................................................. 19

Operating System (OS) ............................................................................................................... 20

Blade PC Drivers ........................................................................................................................ 20

Remote Connection..................................................................................................................... 21

System Restore ........................................................................................................................... 21

Local Policy ............................................................................................................................... 21

Local Security Policy ................................................................................................................... 22

Required Services....................................................................................................................... 22

Required Services and Processes - Dynamic SAM Environment......................................................... 22

Unnecessary Services.................................................................................................................. 23

Optional CCI Utilities.................................................................................................................. 23

Optional Tweaks ........................................................................................................................ 24

Installed Software....................................................................................................................... 25

References..................................................................................................................................... 25

Networking....................................................................................................................................... 26

Server and Blade Infrastructure ........................................................................................................ 27

Static IP Address Assignment Summary............................................................................................. 28

IP Subnet Summary ........................................................................................................................ 29

Network Service Requirements......................................................................................................... 30

Interface IP Infrastructure ................................................................................................................. 31

DHCP Scope Infrastructure........................................................................................................... 32

HP PC Blade Enclosure Infrastructure ................................................................................................ 33

Ethernet Wiring Map .................................................................................................................. 34

Interface IP Infrastructure ............................................................................................................. 35

Considerations........................................................................................................................... 35

Session Allocation Manager (SAM)...................................................................................................... 36

Client login................................................................................................................................ 36

HP SAM Client........................................................................................................................... 37

HP SAM Blade Service................................................................................................................ 37

Using the HP SAM software in CCI .................................................................................................. 38

Creating an account ................................................................................................................... 38

Administrative rights ................................................................................................................... 38

Licensing ................................................................................................................................... 38

Administrative tasks with HP SAM Web Server.................................................................................. 39

Connecting with the PC Session Allocation Client............................................................................... 40

Connecting with the Internet Explorer Client ...................................................................................... 41

Considerations for the IE client ..................................................................................................... 41

Defining the HP SAM Registration Service Configuration File............................................................... 42

Thin Clients ....................................................................................................................................... 44

Appendix ......................................................................................................................................... 45

CCI user environment considerations ................................................................................................ 45

Recommended image capture and creation process........................................................................... 48

SAM terms .................................................................................................................................... 50

Introduction

This document provides a sample end to end Design and Implementation Guide for a 100

Blade Deployment. It is assumed that you have been through the HP CCI training classes and

understand the fundamental principles of CCI. Further it is expected that you are very familiar

with the design principles of Active Directory and knowledgeable of the Altiris’ management

system: Deployment Server or HP’s Rapid Deployment Pack.

All the suggestions contained herein are based on the current CCI product available at the

time of this writing. In the future, as the solution or its components change the suggestions and

recommendations in this document may need to be updated to take advantage of new

features or updated learnings from the field. Therefore, please ensure that you are working

with the latest revision of this document.

Scope

The scope of this guide is limited to the deployment of 100 blades into a single datacenter

with a basic Active Directory environment. While there are many different configuration and

deployment options for Active Directory this paper will focus on just a single implementation

configuration. This is NOT to say that the recommendations within this paper will fit every

customer which is why you will need to be able to adjust this design to meet your customer’s

needs. The following is a list of the main items that will be covered in this document.

9 Server Configuration Recommendation 9 Active Directory GPO Recommendations 9 Network Recommendations 9 Blade Image

Server Roles Overview

Within this guide the hardware server models have been identified as DL385 servers. This is

the hardware platform that was chosen for this implementation; however this is not to say that

this is the only server hardware allowed for the CCI solution. You are able to adjust the server

hardware as needed to best fit your customers needs, however it is recommended that you

start with the specifications listed below as a starting point. Severs in this implementation will

perform the following operations; Domain Controller (not PDC but a member server),

HP/Altiris Remote Deployment (RDP), Session Allocation Manager (SAM) (Primary) and

Session Allocation Manager (failover). This server will also contain the Microsoft SQL

database which will be used by SAM and RDP. It is assumed that the current environment will

have an existing Active Directory that will be leveraged for this CCI implementation. Figure 1

contains a high-level overview of the servers and their functions:

Figure 1.

Tape

5 5

Server Roles: User Profile Storage User Data Storage

Drive Configuration: (Drives 2 – 5) RAID 5

Tape

5 5

Server Role: RDP Image Volume Drive Configuration: (Drives 2 – 5) RAID 5

Tape

5 5

Tape

5 5

300GB 15k

Ultra 320

300GB 15k

Ultra 320

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Ultra 320

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Ultra 320

3 3

3 322

ch ch

300GB 15k

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Ultra 320

Server Role: Domain Controller (Member Server) Base Operating System:

Windows Server 2003 R2, Enterprise Edition

Drive Configuration:

Drives 0, 1 - RAID 1 (Mirrored)

146GB 15k

Ultra 320

146GB 15k

00 11

Ultra 320

Server Role: RDP Base Operating System:

Windows Server 2003 R2, Enterprise Edition

Drive Configuration:

Drives 0, 1 - RAID 1 (Mirrored)

00 11

Server Roles: SAM 1 Base Operating System:

Windows Server 2003 R2, Enterprise Edition Drive Configuration: RAID 1 (Mirrored)

00 11

Server Roles: SAM 2 (failover), SQL Base Operating System:

Windows Server 2003 R2, Enterprise Edition Drive Configuration: RAID 1 (Mirrored)

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

Ultra 320

36GB 15k

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ProLiant DL385

Memory

CPU

1GB (2x512MB)

RAM 376638-B21

1GB (2x512MB)

RAM 376638-B21

AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

1st CPU 2nd CPU

393830-B21

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1GB (2x512MB)

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AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

393830-B21

AMD Opteron 8000 Series Chipset

300GB 10K U320

U320 Disk/Tape Slot

Disk 350964-B22 300GB 10K U320

U320 Disk Slot

Disk 350964-B22 300GB 10K U320

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Disk 350964-B22 300GB 10K U320

U320 Disk Slot

Disk 350964-B22

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

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36GB 15K U320 Disk

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ProLiant DL385

Memory

CPU

2GB (2x1024MB) RAM 376639-B21

AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

1st CPU 2nd CPU

393830-B21

ProLiant DL385

2ch SmartArray 6i RAID

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PCI-X (100/133*)/64

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AMD O270 2.0GHz-

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PCI-X 133/64

* Slot 2 will run

at 133 if slot 1

is left empty

AMD Opteron 8000 Series Chipset

146GB 15K U320

U320 Disk/Tape Slot

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Disk 347708-B22 146GB 15K U320

U320 Disk Slot

Disk 347708-B22 146GB 15K U320

U320 Disk Slot

Disk 347708-B22

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

286776-B22

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

286776-B22

ProLiant DL385

Memory

CPU

2GB (2x1024MB) RAM 376639-B21

AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

1st CPU 2nd CPU

393830-B21

ProLiant DL385

2ch SmartArray 6i RAID

1 2 3

PCI-X (100/133*)/64

PCI-X 100/64

2GB (2x1024MB) RAM 376639-B21

AMD O270 2.0GHz-

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393830-B21

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* Slot 2 will run

at 133 if slot 1

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AMD Opteron 8000 Series Chipset

ProLiant DL385

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U320 Disk Slot

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U320 Disk Slot

286776-B22

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

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ProLiant DL385

Memory

CPU

2GB (2x1024MB) RAM 376639-B21

AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

1st CPU 2nd CPU

393830-B21

AMD Opteron 8000 Series Chipset

1 2 3

2ch SmartArray 6i RAID

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AMD O270 2.0GHz-

1MB Dual Core

393830-B21

PCI-X 133/64

* Slot 2 will run

at 133 if slot 1

is left empty

ProLiant DL385

U320 Disk/Tape Slot

U320 Disk Slot

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

286776-B22

36GB 15K U320 Disk

U320 Disk Slot

286776-B22

1 2 3

2ch SmartArray 6i RAID

PCI-X (100/133*)/64

PCI-X 100/64

PCI-X 133/64

* Slot 2 will run

at 133 if slot 1

is left empty

Active Directory – Group Policy

NOTE:

For more detailed information about Group Policy functionality, please see the white paper "Policy Implementation / Recommendation Guide for the HP Consolidated Client Infrastructure" (HP Part Number 379971-003)

The following polices are required for proper operation of the CCI environment and are strongly recommended. Before putting these policies in place, it is essential for the domain administrator to examine the current policies to ensure there are no settings that conflict with each other. Failure to do so could result in real problems for not only CCI users but other users in the domain. The policies listed below are not the only policies available to the CCI environment rather they are the minimum policies in order to create a dynamic CCI infrastructure.

Best Practice:

• In the CCI environment, create at least 2 OUs, one to include all the blade PC systems, at least one for users. This allows for tighter control of the Group Policy and is easier to manage.

• When naming GPOs, be as descriptive as possible. The name of the GPO should make it as easy as possible to identify what the GPO is applied to, e.g. a policy that applies to the Sales group should be named “Sales” or “Sales Department Policy”.

• Use OUs rather than permission restrictions to control who receives which policy. For example, a policy for an administrator would need to be more relaxed than a general user. Instead of using one policy and trying to filter who it is applied to, create 2 OUs, create one policy per OU and apply these to the respective OU.

• Deleting a GPO, Windows will no longer apply the GPO under any circumstances. Therefore, a GPO must never be deleted until certain it is not used anywhere else. Best practice is to disable the link to the applicable OU, site or domain, especially if the GPO applies to other Active Directory Containers.

• To keep a handle on GP complication, minimize the use of settings such as No Override and Block Policy Inheritance, and customize GPO ACLs (Access Control Lists) only when absolutely necessary. To keep it simple, use options visible on the GPO Properties, GP tab.

Policy Application

The polices described above must be linked to the appropriate OU. Below is a diagram indicating where the policies should be linked:

Figure 2. Policy Placement

Domain

Policies Applied:

CCI Blades

Allow Remote Connection to the Blade Prevent System Restore Functionality

All polices applied to the CCI Blades OU will automatically be inherited by any child OU below it in the directory tree.

CCI User Groups

Human Resources

(HR)

Marketing

Policies Applied:

Folder Redirection Turn off Offline Files Remove Access to Windows Update Remove Access to Local Hard Drives Prevent Unauthorized Application Installation / Upgrade Start Menu lockdown Roaming User Profile Management

All polices applied to the CCI User Groups OU will automatically be inherited by any child OU below it in the directory tree.

Remote Connection

Policy Function: Allow remote connection to the blade

Overview

These settings remove all control from the Remote Tab in the System Properties and open the appropriate ports for a remote connection.

Setting 1: Allow Remote Connection Using Terminal Services

This setting prevents any users, including Administrators, from clearing the “Allow users to connect remotely to this computer” box, ensuring remote access cannot be turned off:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Terminal Services > Allow users to connect remotely using Terminal Services –

Enabled.

Setting 2: Allow Remote Desktop Connection

This setting allows incoming RDP traffic on port 3389, but only

from the specified addresses or subnets. When set, no users, including Administrators, can change the scope or close the port:

Computer Configuration > Network > Network Connections > Windows Firewall > Domain Profile > Windows Firewall: Allow Remote Desktop exception – Enabled. (IP

address or subnet that the incoming requests are coming from, such as 172.16.1.0/24).

Note that by default, only Administrators are allowed remote access to the blade PC. Therefore, to set permissions to allow other users that same right, use either of the following methods:

At this point, enter the individual users or user security groups that you want to give access permissions to, such as. ccidomain\jsmith, ccidomain\cciusers).

NOTE:

The benefit of the previous method is that you can add specific users. However, maintaining individual user lists can significantly increase administrative overhead. Wherever possible, security groups should be used.

To assign permissions to groups, navigate as follows:

Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Restricted Groups

Right click on the Restricted Groups Icon and select Add Group… . Once selected, these groups can be added to various built-in groups. Using the Add… button next to the This group is a member of box, add the groups to the appropriate built-in group. For most users, this would be “Remote Desktop Users”.

Computer Environment

Policy Function: Prevent System Restore functionality

Overview

In a highly-managed environment such as a dynamic CCI implementation, System Restore has limited value, and allowing users to perform this action could create problems. As there is no personal data on the blade, administrators can simply restore the blade to the original image using Altiris or other image management solution. The use of System Restore in a static CCI implementation should be determined by business rules and network administrators. This set of policies replaces the System Restore tab in System Properties.

Setting 1: Turn Off System Restore

This setting turns off the System Restore function:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > System Restore > Turn off System Restore – Enabled.

Setting 2: Turn Off Creation of System Restore Checkpoints

By default, Windows XP creates System Restore Points when applications are installed. The following policy setting turns off this function:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Installer > Turn off creation of System Restore Checkpoints – Enabled.

Setting 3: System Restore Service

Even if the System Restore Service is already turned off, disabling the service removes any memory overhead that may still be used, even in the idle state.

Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > System Services > System Restore Service – Disabled.

NOTE:

This setting requires a system reboot.

User Environment

Policy Function: Redirects Specific Folder Locations To Alternate Network Location

Overview

In CCI architecture, folders holding user application data, desktop data, documents, and start menu data can be redirected to a Network Attached Storage (NAS) array.

NOTE:

Although common applications such as Microsoft Office support redirection, some applications do not. Therefore, testing this basic functionality with all applications to be used in the CCI environment is imperative.

Redirection saves space on the blade PC and allows users to access their information and programs from any access device and blade PC. Redirection is imperative in a dynamic CCI implementation, but optional in a static environment, where the blade PC is dedicated to a single user.

The four folders that can be redirected are found in the User node of Group Policy, as shown in Figure 3 below:

Figure 3. Group Policy window

To set the appropriate policy settings, perform the following steps:

1. Navigate to the appropriate folder using one of more of the navigational strings:

Setting 1, User Applications: User Configuration > Windows Settings > Folder Redirection > Application Data Setting 2, User Desktop:

User Configuration > Windows Settings > Folder Redirection > Desktop

Setting 3, User Documents:

User Configuration > Windows Settings > Folder Redirection > My Documents

Setting 4, User Start Menu:

User Configuration > Windows Settings > Folder Redirection > Start menu

2. Right-click on the folder to redirect. Selecting Properties from the drop down menu for the

My Documents folder (setting 3) will open the Window as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4. My Documents Properties window

3. Entered as a Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN). As an example, to redirect My

Documents, the path structure would appear as follows:

\\(Share Name)\(Parent Data Folder)\%USERNAME%\My Documents

Windows Server 2003 fills in the last two parts automatically, so all that needs to be entered is the Share Name and Parent Data Folder, (e.g. \\CCINAS\UserData\) and Windows will fill in the rest of the FQDN.

4. To control folder security and User Data movement, click the Settings tab. The settings

window for the My Documents folder appears as shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. My Documents Properties window

Checking the Grant the user exclusive rights for My Documents sets folder permissions so that ONLY the user set in the Root Path has access to the My Documents folder. No one else, including administrators, is able to access the folder.

Checking the Move the contents of My Documents to the new location, will, on the next boot, move the contents of the My Documents on the machine the user logged into (if they are stored locally) into the folder determined in the Root Path under the Target tab.

The Policy Removal section determines what happens if and when the policy is removed.

The My Pictures Preferences section determines if the My Pictures folder moves with the My Documents folder or not.

5. When finished, click OK.

Policy Function: Turn Off Offline Files

Overview

These policy settings affect the availability of offline files. These policy settings replace the Offline files tab in Windows Explorer.

Setting 1: Allow or Disallow use of the Offline files

The following setting turns off the Offline files function:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > Offline Files > Allow or Disallow use of the Offline Files feature – Disabled.

Setting 2: Remove “Make available Offline” feature

Enabling this setting removes the availability of offline files:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > Offline Files > Remove 'Make Available Offline – Enabled.

Setting 3: Prevent use of Offline files folder

Enabling this setting inhibits the use of offline files:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > Offline Files > Prevent use of offline files folder – Enabled.

Setting 4: Turn off Remainder Balloons

Enabling this setting removes the use of remainder balloons:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > Offline Files > Turn off remainder balloons – Enabled.

Setting 5: Redirected Folder Offline Availability

The system automatically makes redirected folders contained in Group Policy available offline, regardless of the existing Offline Files policy (settings 1-4). Enabling this setting prevents this action.

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Network > Offline Files > Do not automatically make redirected folders available offline– Enabled.

NOTE:

Offline folder synchronization takes up large amounts of network bandwidth, thereby slowing response times for other users. Unless absolutely necessary based on business need, folder synchronization should be avoided.

Policy Function: Remove Access to Windows Update

Overview

These policy settings affect Windows update operation. One of the keys in the CCI environment is uniformity, that is, all blades PC are the same. This ensures consistent performance. Allowing users to update machines at their own discretion may result in various problems such as program incompatibility, version conflicts, etc. Locking this function out secures uniform blade PC functionality.

These settings replace functions provided by the Automatic Update tab in System Properties tab, and the Windows Update menu items in the Start Menu in Windows Explorer.

Setting 1: Remove Access to Use All Windows Update Features

This setting inhibits the access to the Windows Update features..

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Update > Remove access to use all Windows Update features – Enabled

Setting 2: Windows Automatic Updates

This setting enables automatic Windows Updates.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Update > Windows Automatic Updates – Enabled

Setting 3: Remove Links and Access To Window Update

This setting inhibits access to Windows Updates. While settings 1 and 2 disable Windows update functions, this setting removes all links from the Start menu and taskbar areas so that the option is not even presented to the user.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Update > Remove links and access to Windows update– Enabled

Setting 4: Automatic Updates

Although the function of Automatic Updates has already been disabled, turning this service off has the added benefit of removing any memory overhead being used when the service is idle.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Update > Automatic updates – Disabled

Policy Function: Remove Access to Local Hard Drives

Overview

These policy settings work together and are appropriate for most installations since all necessary user-accessible information will be redirected to a network share. If business rules require the user to access the local hard drive (that is, a static configuration), these two policy settings must

Setting 1: Hide Specified Drives in My Computer

be disabled.

This setting removes the drive icons from Windows Explorer.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Explorer > Hide these specified drives in My Computer – Enabled; Restrict C drive only

Setting 2: Prevent Access to Drives from My Computer

This setting inhibits user access to the drives.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Win dows Explorer > Prevent access to drives from My Computer – Enabled; Restrict C drive only

Policy Function: Prevent Unauthorized Application Installation / Upgrades

Overview

These settings turn off most of the automatic updates that are related to various applications in Windows XP. This ensures that all applications will maintain the same version, reducing the possibility of problems that may arise from incompatibility or other issue.

Setting 1: Disable Automatic Install of IE Components

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer > Disable Automatic Install of Internet Explorer components – Enabled

Setting 2: Disable Periodic Check for IE Software Updates

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer > Disable Periodic Check for Internet Explorer software updates – Enabled

Setting 3: Disable Windows Installer

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Installer > Disable Windows Installer – Enabled; for non-managed apps only

Setting 4: Prohibit Rollback

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Installer > Prohibit rollback – Enabled

Setting 5: Prohibit User Installs

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Installer > Prohibit User Installs – Enabled; Prohibit User Installs

Setting 6: Prevent Automatic Updates

This setting prevents automatic updates to occur for Windows Media Player.

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Media Player > Prevent Automatic Updates – Enabled

Setting 7: Prevent Codec Download

This setting prevents a codec download to occur for Windows Media Player.

User configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Wi ndows Media Player > Playback > Prevent Codec Download – Enabled

Setting 8: Remove Add or Remove Programs Codec

This setting completely removes the ability to access the Add/Remove Programs page.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs > Remove Add or Remove Programs – Enabled

Policy Function: Start Menu Lockdown

Overview

These settings control user accessibility aspects of the Start menu.

Setting 1: Add Logoff to the Start Menu

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar > Add Logoff to the Start Menu – Enabled

Setting 2: Remove and prevent access to the Shut Down command

Unless specifically required by infrastructure/business rules, the user should never be able to shutdown the blade PC, since this setting will remove the hardware resource and prevent others from using it (in addition to forcing someone to physically power the blade PC on). This also removes the ability of the user to restart the blade, another ability the user does not require.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar > Remove and prevent access to the Shut Down command – Enabled

Setting 3: Remove Windows Security item from Start menu

This removes the ability of the user to lock, restart, or shutdown the blade, which in the CCI environment are functions reserved for the system administrator. The user is still able to lock their access device and screen saver timeouts are be affected by this setting.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar > Remove Windows Security item from Start menu – Enabled

Setting 4: Remove Balloon Tips From Start Menu

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar > Remove Balloon tips from Start Menu – Enabled

Setting 5: Remove Run menu from Start menu

This setting requires a good deal of consideration. Allowing the user to use the Run box opens the possibility of opening a DOS box, which could allow the user to bypass the local drive lock down by mapping the local drive. Removing the Run menu prevents the user from trying to bypass any application lockdowns by running through a command line. This setting also disables the Windows + R key combination.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar > Remove Run menu from Start menu – Enabled

Policy Function: Roaming User Profile Management

Overview

These settings control user accessibility aspects of the Start menu.

Setting 1: Exclude directories in roaming profile

By default, the folders listed below are included in each users profile, whether it is roaming or not. As the users' installed applications and documents grow, so does the profile. This results in large amounts of data being transferred at logon, which could extend the logon time by quite a few minutes. When any of the folders below are redirected, there is no longer any need to keep them included in the user profile, hence they can be excluded, thereby lowering the size of the user profile.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > User Profiles > Exclude directories in roaming profile – Enabled; My Documents; Application Data; Desktop; Start

Setting 2: Delete cached copies of roaming profiles

When a user starts a remote session, their roaming profile is copied down to the blade's local hard drive. Once the session is finished and the user logs off, the locally cached copy is left on the blade. While most of the data is written off onto redirected folders, there still may be some sensitive data in the temporary folders. This setting will delete the entire local copy of the profile from the local hard drive.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > User Profiles > Delete cached copies of roaming profiles – Enabled

Note:

Currently this setting works only sporadically and is under investigation.

Setting 3: Do not detect slow network connections

When a remote connection is made, Windows determines if the network connection is considered 'slow'. If it is slow, the locally cached copy of the profile would be used, the intent of which is to keep the user from having to wait to use the blade PC because of a slow loading profile. However, if the 'Delete cached copies of roaming profiles' is enabled, this setting must

be enabled as there are no stored profiles on the local machine.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > User Profiles > Do not detect slow network connections – Enabled.

Setting 4: Wait for remote user profile

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > User Profiles > Wait for remote user profile – Enabled.

Troubleshooting

Unfortunately, it is much easier to break the proper function of group policy than it is to set it up correctly. This section includes some troubleshooting aids that may be of assistance

Group Policy does not apply to blade PCs

Option 1:

Be sure that the blade PC is located in the correct Active Directory container. When any client computer is added to a domain, by default it is placed in the Computers OU. This is a generic OU that does not have any policy attached to it other than the default domain policy. Using Active Directory Users and Computers (an Altiris script can also be used), move the blade PC into the OU that has been set up to include all the blades. Once the blade PC is moved into the correct container it must be rebooted, after which the appropriate policies should be applied.

Option 2:

As a security measure each blade PC's clock is checked and compared to the Domain Controller clock before group policy is applied. If there is a difference of more than 5 minutes, policy is not applied to that blade PC and an entry is made in the event viewer on the blade PC. If policy is not being applied, check the clock and time zone set on the blade against the Domain Controller and adjust the blade time if necessary (Administrator rights are needed to perform this action).

Error when editing Group Policy

There is a known issue with Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Group Policy editors. When editing a GPO on a Windows 2000, Server 2003 or Windows XP Service Pack 1 machine the following error may appear: "The following entry in the [strings] section is too long and has been truncated.” A fix for this error has been posted on the Microsoft website:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;842933

using machines with Windows Service Pack 2 or Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 installed.

This does not occur when

After a remote session is initiated, the following error is received when the user tries to logon: "The local policy of this system does not allow you to logon interactively.” This error will occur when the user does not have the rights to logon to the blade PC. The user must either be added to the Remote Desktop Users group or given the rights to access the machine via Terminal Services. For more information, refer to Allow Remote Connection to the Blade in the Remote Connection Section of this paper.

Locally cached roaming profiles are not deleted upon user logoff.

Occasionally the user session is prevented from completely logging off due to system processes or applications that maintain connections to registry keys in the user profile. Hence, even though the user logs off, the session is not actually terminated. This prevents the locally cached copy of the roaming profile from being deleted from the blade, as it will not be deleted until it is completely terminated. Microsoft has provided a utility that remains memory resident on the blade PC and detects these connections and terminates them, thereby allowing logged off sessions to end properly. The User Profile Hive Cleanup utility can be found at the following site:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=1b286e6d8912-4e18-b570-42470e2f3582&displaylang=en&Hash=3HRVHTC

Blade Image

While HP supplies a default OEM blade PC image on each pc blade as it ships from HP. HP understands that many companies will choose to develop their own image internally, with settings and applications that are appropriate for their operational infrastructure.

It is important to realize that, when this action is taken, HP cannot be held responsible for the proper operation of this image. Individual images are very much like fingerprints, none are the same and each one has its own idiosyncrasies. That being said, HP will do what we can to assist the customer in assuring proper functionality of their image in the CCI environment.

This section outlines the settings that are needed to run an existing OS image within the CCI environment. It is important to note that there are some settings listed here that are best practices versus requirements; however HP still recommends that these settings be verified.

Blade image checklist

Below is a check list that can be used to verify the image. It is important to state that once the blade is introduced into a domain environment, various domain settings, scripts and policies may change the way the blade PC functions. As this is under the control of the Network Administrators at the customer site, you may need to verify these settings once the blade is added to the domain.

ROM Version

Result Details Comment



Open System Information (msinfo32.exe) Under ‘System Summary’ find BIOS Version/Date Does installed BIOS matches latest available BIOS

on the bc1500 blade PC

support website?

HP recommends keeping the blades updated with the latest available BIOS.

Operating System (OS)

Result Details Comment

Open System Information (msinfo32.exe).

 



Blade PC Drivers

Result Details Comment



Confirm the following:

Installed OS is Windows XP Professional?

Latest OS Service Pack is installed?

Connect the blade to the Internet, download and

install the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (found

(NOTE: In order to run properly, the MBSA must be

able to download the latest catalog from the Internet.)

Open Device Manager

No ‘banged-out’ devices?

(List any ‘banged-out’ devices below)

All drivers are the latest available from the bc1500

blade PC

(List any discrepancies below, both installed driver and

latest available, with version and date)

here

)

support website?

Windows XP is currently the only supported OS on blade PCs

HP recommends using Microsoft’s Baseline Security Analyzer to verify any image placed onto the blade.

HP recommends that the latest available drivers be installed for the latest bug fixes as well as optimal performance.



Open Add or Remove Programs

Look for any additional drivers or driver packages

that are not used by the blade PC.

(List these below)

Remote Connection

Result Details Comment

Open System Properties, select the Remote tab.



Is the “Allow users to connect remotely to this

computer” box checked?

Open the “Select Remote Users…” button.

 

System Restore

Result Details Comment



Local Policy

Result Details Comment

Does the local administrator have access rights?

Are there any user names or security groups in the

Remote Desktop Users window?

Open System Properties, select the System

Properties tab.

Is the “Turn off System Restore” box checked?

Users and groups may be added later, either manually, though an Altiris job or Group Policy.

By turning this setting off through Group Policy, all ability to turn System Restore back on from the local bladePC would be removed.



Run a Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP) for the local

machine, current user

No resulting Error Information (indicated by a yellow

exclamation triangle)

List any Error Information below

Review RSoP settings, compare to recommended

settings in CCI policy recommendation paper.

Note any significant differences below:

Local Security Policy

Result Details Comment

Open the Local Security Policy page, note any

unusual issues:



Required Services

The services in this section are required for proper blade functionality, regardless of environment, and should be considered as mandatory.

Result Details Comment

Open the Services snap-in (Start > Run > services.msc).

The following services should be Started:

Altiris Client Service



Required Services and Processes - Dynamic SAM Environment

The services listed in this section are required when the CCI implementation is using SAM as the Dynamic Allocation Engine

HP Watchdog Timer Network Connections Remote Procedure Call Server Terminal Services

Unable to completely verify issues as most of the Security policy page is in Chinese. All English entries are correct.

Result Details Comment



Open the Services snap-in (Start > Run > services.msc).

The following services should be Started:

DHCP Client DNS Client HP SAM Registration Service

Unnecessary Services

The services listed in this section are not part of the normal windows environment and are usually added by extra programs.

Result Function Comment

Open the Services snap-in (Start > Run > services.msc).

List any unnecessary services below:

Wireless Zero Configuration (Common Service) As the blades are not



Optional CCI Utilities

The processes listed below are provided by HP to improve CCI functionality. While optional, they are highly recommended to be used where appropriate.

wireless and do not need this service, HP recommends that this service be disabled to increase available system memory.

Result Details Comment

Open Task Manager, click on the Processes tab. The



following processes are optional utilities that are designed to make CCI function more effectively:

HPCCIST.exe (HP CCI Session Timers Software)

Specifically for a dynamic environment, this allows sessions that have been idle for a certain amount of time to be terminated and the blade returned to the available resource pool.

Uphclean.exe (User Profile Hive Cleanup)

Specifically for CCI implementations that use roaming user profiles, this utility actively looks for any profiles that did not close properly when the user logged off, which can cause profile corruption.

Optional Tweaks

To obtain optimal performance on the blade PCs, various tweaks have been made available on the bc1500 support website. While these are not required, they do significantly improve performance on blade PCs in the CCI environment.

Result Details Comment

Open Power Options control panel applet.



In the Power Schemes tab, Power Scheme should be set to HP_Power_Settings.

Under the Advanced tab, 'When I press the power

button on my computer' should be set to 'Shut Down'

This indicates the HP provided script has been run and all tweaks have been automatically set.



In the Hibernate tab, the 'Enable hibernation' box

should be cleared.

Open Device Manager; IDE ATA/ATAPI

controllers

All IDE channels should be set to 'DMA if available'

Installed Software

Result Function Comment

Open Add or Remove Programs Review installed programs. Look for any programs



that have not been tested with or supported in the current CCI configuration.

List these programs below:



Open the System Configuration Utility (Start >

Run > msconfig)

Review startup items, looking for anything running

that may not be supported in the CCI environment (program may not be listed in Add or Remove Programs)

List these entries below (using separate fields):

References

URL for HP bc1500 support page:

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/DriverDownload.jsp?&lang=en&cc=us&pname OID=1152416&taskId=135&prodTypeId=12454&prodSeriesId=1152415&lang=en&cc=us

URL for Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=4B4ABA06-B5F9-4DAD-BE9D7B51EC2E5AC9&displaylang=en

Networking

The HP CCI solution includes a rack mountable 3U (5.25 inch) HP PC Blade Enclosure that hosts up to 20 HP blade PCs. Each enclosure has a switch tray which includes an Integrated Administrator and redundant, hot-pluggable power supplies and cooling fans. Each blade PC is populated with two Broadcom 5705F Fast Ethernet Embedded 10/100Megabits per second (Mbps) network controllers. A fully populated HP PC Blade Enclosure can require up to five Ethernet connections, four of which can be either gigabit copper or fiber, and the fifth fast Ethernet copper only. A typical 42U rack can house as many as 14 HP PC Blade Enclosures for a maximum of 280 blade PCs. Without the HP PC Blade Switch, the number of Ethernet connections within this space can quickly become difficult to manage.

The following information is provided as a guide for the setup of a basic network environment for CCI. Much like Active Directory and GPOs there are as many different network configurations as there are customers. There for we will cover the basic fundamentals needed for a CCI environment and if you need to you can add additional options into your customers environment as needed.

NOTE:

For more detailed information about Network Considerations, please see the white paper "Network Considerations"

Server and Blade Infrastructure

Below is the network configuration for the servers and blades that we will be using as our starting point.

Figure 6

SW 1

Catalyst 3750

1234567891011

1X2X11X

SYST RPS MASTR STAT DUPLX SPEED STACK

MODE

1314151617181920212223

13X

12X

14X

SERIES

23X

24X

HP RDP Server

Domain Controller

HP SAM 01

HP SAM 02 / MS SQL

PCI-X

iLO

SCSI Port 1

UID

PCI-X

iLO

UID

PCI-X

iLO

UID

PCI-X

iLO

UID

Static IP Address Assignment Summary

Corporate Network

• Domain Controller iLo:

• Domain Controller NIC 1:

• Domain Controller NIC 2: n/a

• HP RDP iLo:

• HP RDP NIC 1:

• HP SAM 01 iLo:

• HP SAM 01 NIC 1:

• HP SAM 01 NIC 2: n/a

• HP SAM 02 iLo:

• HP SAM 02 NIC 1:

• HP SAM 02 NIC 2: n/a

• R1E1 IA:

• R1E1 Switch:

• R1E2 IA:

• R1E2 Switch:

• R1E3 IA:

• R1E3 Switch:

• R1E4 IA:

• R1E4 Switch:

• R1E5 IA:

• R1E5 Switch:

SW 1

Catalyst 3750

1234567891011

1X2X11X

SYST RPS MASTR STAT DUPLX SPEED STACK

MODE

1314151617181920212223

13X

12X

14X

IA Management

Corporate

SERIES

23X

24X

R1E5

R1E4

R1E3

R1E2

IP Subnet Summary

Corporate Network

Server Subnet

• VLAN ID:

• Network/CIDR:

• Broadcast:

• Gateway:

• Hosts:

• IP Range:

Blade Subnet 1

• VLAN ID:

• Network/CIDR:

• Broadcast:

• Gateway:

• Hosts:

• IP Range:

R1E1

• Device MGMT Subnet

• VLAN ID:

• Network/CIDR:

• Broadcast:

• Gateway:

• Hosts:

• IP Range:

Blade Subnet 2 (If used)

• VLAN ID:

• Network/CIDR:

• Broadcast:

• Gateway:

• Hosts:

• IP Range:

Network Service Requirements

The following are network requirements for data traffic when working in a routed environment. If you are working in a flat or single vlan environment you may not need to worry about opening these ports.

Corporate Network

Server Subnet (VLAN: x)

• DHCP – UDP 67 & 68

• DNS – TCP, UDP 53

• NTP – UDP 123

• SSH – UPD, TCP 22

• Telnet – UDP, TCP 23

• Remote Desktop Protocol

• Altiris Deployment Solution

o Server Agent – TCP 401 (Bidirectional) o Altiris File Transfer – TCP 1024 o MTFTP – 69

• SAM

o Web Service – TCP 80 o SQL Communication – TCP 1433 o Blade RPC – TCP 139 o Blade Service – UDP 47777

• Other Typical Corporate Services

Device MGMT Subnet (VLAN: x)

• Use Server VLAN

Blade Subnet (VLAN: x)

• DHCP – UDP 67 & 68

• DNS – TCP, UDP 53

• Remote Desktop Protocol

o 1380, 3360-4020 I/O o RDP Clip – UDP 1024 – 4900

• SAM

o Web Service – TCP 80 o Blade RPC – TCP 139 o Blade Service – UDP 47777 o Other Typical Corporate Services

Blade Subnet 2 (VLAN: x)

• If used

Interface IP Infrastructure

Domain Controller (Secondary DNS)

FQDN: iLo

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 1

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 2: n/a

HP RDP Server

FQDN: iLo

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 1

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 2

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

HP SAM 01

FQDN: iLo

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DNS:

NIC 1

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 2: n/a

HP SAM 02 / MS SQL

FQDN: iLo

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 1

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

NIC 2: n/a

Note:

• The HP RDP Server is multi–homed. When PXE server is installed, NIC 1 must be

selected. This is because the PXE service only supports one IP interface per installation. If there is a requirement for the PXE service to support multiple IP subnets, routing will be necessary.

• The secondary network interface controllers are not being used for the initial roll out

and may be reserved for future use. NIC Teaming can be considered for adding additional performance and/or various degrees of redundancy. Determining which type of NIC Teaming to use for each server should be based on traffic & needs analysis after the solution has been in operation for a reasonable amount of time.

DHCP Scope Infrastructure

Corporate Network

Server Scope

• n/a

Device MGMT Scope

• n/a

Blade Scope 1

Address Range: Exclusion Range: none DHCP Standard Options

• 003 Router:

• 006 DNS Servers:

• 015 DNS Domain Name:

• 060 PXEClient

Microsoft Options

• 002 Microsoft Release DHCP On Shutdown

Option: 0x1

HP PC Blade Enclosure Infrastructure

Figure 2.

SW 1

Catalyst 3750

1234567891011

1X2X11X

SYST RPS MASTR STAT DUPLX SPEED STACK

MODE

1314151617181920212223

13X

12X

14X

IA Management

Corporate

SERIES

23X

24X

R1E5

R1E4

R1E3

R1E2

R1E1

Ethernet Wiring Map

R1E1

• e42 –

• e43 –

• e44 –

R1E2

• e42 –

• e43 –

• e44 –

R1E3

• e42 –

• e43 –

• e44 –

R1E4

• e42 –

• e43 –

• e44 –

R1E5

• e42 –

• e43 –

• e44 –

Corporate Network

Interface IP Infrastructure

Corporate Network

Enclosure R1E1

Integrated Administrator

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Switch Mgmt Interface

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Enclosure R1E2

Integrated Administrator

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Switch Mgmt Interface

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Enclosure R1E3

Integrated Administrator

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Switch Mgmt Interface

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Considerations

• If the above data will be scripted into the IA command line, be sure that the first

command in the script is SET SCRIPT MODE ON

• Successful commands entered into the IA Command Line Interface (CLI) are

automatically saved.

Enclosure R1E4

Integrated Administrator

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Switch Mgmt Interface

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Enclosure R1E5

Integrated Administrator

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Switch Mgmt Interface

• FQDN:

• IP Address/CIDR:

• DDNS:

• NTP:

Session Allocation Manager (SAM)

SAM was developed specifically for the CCI solution and is designed to integrate into a customer’s existing Microsoft Windows server environment. SAM is comprised of three software modules:

¾ HP SAM Web Server ¾ HP SAM Client ¾ HP SAM Blade Service

Below is a step by step walk through of the client login process via SAM

Client login

1. The client sends an HTTP connect request to the SAM web service using port 80 as a default. The default port can be changed.

2. The SAM web service validates user name against Active Directory.

3. The SAM web service retrieves the user’s roles by connecting to the SQL database using port 1433. Port 1433 is the default post for Microsoft SQL. If a different port is used, the configuration must be updated for this change.

4. If the user is in more than one role, the user is prompted to choose a role.

5. The SAM web service returns a blade pointer (new or disconnected) to the client using port

80.

6. The client connects to the blade allocated using port 3389, which is the default, RDP port. The blade service sends usage activity (login, disconnected, logoff) back to SAM web service using port 47777.

HP SAM Client

The SAM client can be installed on a flexible range of hardware.

¾ HP Thin Client—with CE5.0 or Windows XPe (Win32-based) ¾ Desktop or Notebook—XP Pro, XP Home, or Windows 2000 with SP3 or higher. ¾ Remote Desktop Connection must be functional on the client access device.

For a comparison of the characteristics of the operating system on the HP Thin Client, review this table.

* Depending on when the Thin Client is ordered, after April 2006, for example, it will come

with the HP SAM Client software pre-loaded. If it is not pre-loaded or if a different access device is used, the SAM Client software can be downloaded and installed on the client. For a large-scale deployment, a Rapid Deployment Pack (RDP) job can be created to install the SAM Client on the access devices.

HP SAM Blade Service

The HP SAM Blade Service provides the means in which the Blade PC registers with and is enabled by the SAM Web Server database. The SAM Web Server database maintains usage information as well as the information on the role to which the Blade PC belongs.

• There will be a CFG file for each role that is defined for the CCI configuration.

• The CFG file will be part of the image that is defined for that role and deployed by

Rapid Deployment Pack.

• The CFG file can also be deployed manually.

The HP SAM Blade Service software requirements are:

• Windows XP Professional with SP1 or higher

• Terminal service enabled (Remote Desktop)

Using the HP SAM software in CCI

Creating an account

Prior to installing the HP SAM Web Server, the customer will need to create a domain user account to execute the HP SAM services on the local server.

• This account name and password should be changed as infrequently as possible to

minimize interruptions to HP SAM.

• The account must also be in the local server administrator group.

Administrative rights

In order to fully install HP SAM, you must have the following:

• Administrative rights on all computing resources (Blade PCs).

• SQL administrative level account and password—only needed during setup.

• Administrative rights on the HP SAM Web server.

Licensing

• The License key is a 5x5 format similar to other Windows-compatible products.

• xxxxx- xxxxx- xxxxx- xxxxx- xxxxx

• One key supports up to 255 seats and one environment can support multiple keys

By default which is, no license key entered, you can run up to100 Blade PCs. This is meant for evaluation purposes only. There is no expiration date for this evaluation software.

To license the Web Server, click on Enter New Key button to add new key to the HP SAM. Once entered, the system shows you the information encoded on the key. To delete the key from the system, check the appropriate key(s) and click the Delete button.

If at any time you get a license message on the HP SAM administrator console, go to this area to view the details of the license message.

The SKUs for the license packs are:

• 2-year — $26/seat ILP

• 4-year — $39/seat ILP

Upgrade to any release during the 2- or 4-year period.

Administrative tasks with HP SAM Web Server

Access the HP SAM Web Server console from an Internet Explorer browser. Internet Explorer is the only browser supported.

You will be required to enter a username and password.

From the console you can:

• Manage the user access lists to add and remove users and update the user roles.

• Add security or organizational units.

• Search for users and resources.

• Manage resources.

• Filter and view resource information and generate reports on capacity consumption

and utilization.

• Create or update policies for HP SAM Client settings by user roles.

• Configure link to Active Directory services for retrieving user account information.

Connecting with the PC Session Allocation Client

If the access device is a Thin Client, the user will locate and click the PC Session Allocation Client item.

An enhanced RDC screen will appear. The settings for connection can be set from the GUI or by editing the HPRDC.SAM file in Notepad as shown here.

Additional settings can be configured from the HPRDC.SAM file. The Gateway=webserverList and the MyRoles settings will need to be configured as well as the ServicePort configuration.

These are a subset of settings which can be configured. See the HP SAM Administrator User Guide for a complete list.

 Gateways—Edit or add HP SAM Servers.  DefaultPolicy—This is the policy that should be selected by default.  DefaultDomain—Edit this value which will to be loaded in the Domain dropdown box

displayed on the GUI. If this value is not specified, the program attempts to determine the domain from the user's login information, which may or may not be accurate.

 DefaultUsername—string value. If this value is not specified, the program attempts to

determine the user name from the user's login information, which may or may not be correct for the CCI solution.

 Failover—integer value. When set to 1, this enables the failover capability of the

client. If there are multiple Web servers defined, the client fails over to the next available computing resource when a connection to one fails. Turning this feature on limits the user’s ability to type in a new HP SAM server; the user still has the ability to choose between Web servers defined in the configuration file. Default value is 0 (off).

ConnectionPort—short integer value, in the range 1 to 65535. This is the port on which the remote desktop service (such as Remote Desktop) listens on. For Remote Desktop, if not specified, this value defaults to 3389. A value of 0 is ignored.

Considerations for connecting from the client include:

 Users with multiple roles can only connect to one role at a time.  Users with multiple roles can connect to one Blade PC per role.

Connecting with the Internet Explorer Client

To use the HP SAM IE browser-based client, enter the server name http://HPSAMservername in the Internet Explorer address bar.

If the access device is accessing the HP SAM server for the first time, the client needs to install two ActiveX controls (HP SAM Time Zone Download Control and Remote Desktop Client Control.) The installed location for these controls is in %SystemRoot%\Downloaded Program Files\ folder. There are other HP SAM Internet Explorer-based client configuration settings that you can control from the HP SAM Web server.

Considerations for the IE client

 HP recommends that the HP SAM Web server be added to the Trusted Sites list. To

do this, access the Tools  Internet Options in the Security tab on the client access device. If a firewall is installed, make changes to allow the HP SAM server client through. For example, if HP Sygate Security Agent is installed, add a rule to allow port 3389 for the application IEXPLORE.EXE.

 The HP SAM ActiveX controls are stored as source for distribution on the HP SAM

Web server during the Web server installation process. If the ActiveX controls are replaced on the HP SAM Web server during an upgrade, the HP SAM client is automatically upgraded to the newer version the next time the client access device connects to the HP SAM Web server.

 For the HP thin client running Windows XP Embedded, the installation of the ActiveX

components may be repeated every time the access device is rebooted, if it is not saved as part of the thin client image.

Defining the HP SAM Registration Service Configuration File

The HP SAM configuration file which is named hpevent.cfg is an INI text file as shown here. The HP SAM Registration Service tries to locate the configuration file in the order that the locations are listed.

[WebServerList]

The [WebServerList] section lists one or more HP SAM Web servers. Each HP SAM Web server (primary and failover) is listed, one per line. The service uses this list in the order provided. The first HP SAM Web server in the list is the one tried first; if it fails, the service proceeds to try the remaining HP SAM Web servers in order. If a successful connection is established, the remaining HP SAM Web servers are not used.

To modify the server line, change just the server1.yourdomain string to the appropriate server name. Use Web server DNS name or static IP address. For example:

 HPSAMservername  0.1.2.3

[RolesList]

The [RolesList] section lists one or more roles to which the Blade PC can belong. A role is a functional collection of computing resources (Blade PCs). The first role in the list is the blade PC’s primary role. All other roles, if any, are considered non-primary. Blade PCs are allocated to the user in the priority order below:

 Available blade PC assigned to this role only  Available blade PC assigned to multiple roles, with this role being primary  Available blade PC assigned to multiple roles, with this role being nonprimary

After the configuration file is edited, the service must be restarted for the changes to take effect.

The registration service can be started or stopped. It’s listed as HP SAM Registration Service in the Services list.

Thin Clients

HP has the most complete thin client product set in the industry and provides multiple ways to become trained on these products. Due to the multiple Operating Systems, platforms and the unique requirements of each customer we are not going to cover the thin client training in this document. However we will provide links to existing thin client training provided by HP.

Go to Learning Center at training.

• Sales

HP Thin Client Sales Fundamentals – Learn the key points of selling hp thin clients, target markets and valuable hp differentiators.

• Technical

CE.Net Thin Client Technical WBT with CE.Net operating system as well as learn to manage them in a deployment environment XP Embedded Thin Client Technical WBT solution with XP Embedded operating system as well as learn to manage them in a deployment environment Linux Thin Client Technical WBT Linux operating system as well as learn to manage them in a deployment environment

• Altiris Deployment Training

Altiris Deployment Systems Training for CE.Net and XP Embedded – go to

www.altiris.com/hptc ; register with your email address and then click on FREE CE.Net

or XPe training on side panel

http://h20181.www2.hp.com/plm/ and search for Thin Client

- Learn how to describe the Thin Client solution

- Learn how to describe the Thin Client

- Learn how to describe the Thin Client solution with

Appendix

CCI user environment considerations

General considerations when configuring the CCI user environment to support particular business applications include:

 Java support — Windows XP SP1a and newer does not include support for Java

from Sun Microsystems. HP recommends installing the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) as part of the deployed image.

 Antivirus tools — these tools must run with administrator privileges to enable

updates to their signature files. This must be managed at the system level because normal user accounts will not have the appropriate level of access to install these updates. Many corporate antivirus solutions provide a framework for this type of centralized management.

 Rapid Deployment Pack

o Altiris PXE boot support must be configured to support PXE boot clients on the

subnet that has NIC 1 configured to PXE boot.

NOTE:

The blade PC will PXE boot only to NIC 1.

 Each Altiris managed computer must have the Altiris AClient services installed. They

can be installed manually in the base operating system image or deployed through Deployment Server. AClient.exe can be found in the eXpress share on the Altiris server.

 Two PXE boot images are required: one for a new PC and one for a managed PC. A

managed PC is one that Deployment Server has already detected and has information collected in the database.

 The Intel UNDI NIC driver does not fully support multicast image deployment.

o For the HP bc1000 and bc1500 blade PCs, select the Broadcom NetXtreme

Ethernet driver. This driver is not included with Deployment Server. You must download this driver from www.hp.com\support and import it into Deployment Server. The instructions to import a driver into Deployment Server are in the Altiris Deployment Server User Guide.

NOTE:

Duplicate entries in Deployment Server may exist. Choose either entry.

 SAM Blade Service must be installed on every blade. This can be done using RDP or

having the service installed as part of the image.

 The SAM Blade Service configuration file must be configured and distributed to each

blade.

 If you have a firewall installed on the blade PC, enable the ports below. You can use

GPOs to configure this in Active Directory.

Incoming:

• From Web server (UDP/47777) to blade (UDP/47777)

• From Web server (TCP/ANY) to blade (TCP/139)

• From clients (TCP/ANY) to blade (TCP/3389)

Outgoing:

• From blade (TCP/ANY) to Web server (TCP/80—HTTP)

• From blade (UDP/47777) to Web server (UDP/47777)

 Deploying blade PC replacement images — There are two ways to support blade PC

replacement image deployment:

o Manually run the required Altiris events to configure the new blade PC

exactly as the removed blade PC. This is required only when a blade PC is to be replaced.

 Use one of the following server change rules to run the required Altiris events:

o Select blade PC Properties → Bay → Server Change rule → Re-

Deploy to redeploy the image when the blade PC is changed. This will

execute all the events listed as executed on the blade PC that requires the database history of jobs to deploy. This history is maintained to include only the deployment events that are required to rebuild the blade PC. The deployment history will be lost. This scenario requires maintenance of the deployment history database for all blade PCs.

 Select blade PC Properties → Bay → Server Change rule → Run a

predefined job to redeploy the image when the blade PC is changed. This

scenario requires maintenance of the redeployment job and scripts.

Recommended image capture and creation process

The following process details the method recommended by HP for creating and managing CCI images:

 Blade PC image

o Set the boot order to PXE boot first. This can be accomplished by setting the

boot order in the blade PC system ROM setup or with Integrated Administrator firmware 1.5 or later. The enclosure command is:

Set Bay Boot Always PXE 1 - 20

o Configure and test a blade PC image as desired for all users, including

installing all applications and Microsoft hot fixes.

o Install and configure the SAM Blade PC service. Optionally, supply a

configuration file.

o Configure and execute an Altiris event to capture the image from the

configured blade PC.

o Configure and execute an Altiris event to deploy the captured image using a

range of computer names and IP addresses. Deployment Server 6.1 and later can be configured to use the enclosure and bay location of the blade PC to assign the computer name and IP address. The deploy image event should include blade PC dependent settings such as:

 Computer name — Must be less than 15 characters  IP configuration for each NIC

o Configure and execute an Altiris event to join the blade PC to the desired

domain.

NOTE:

Application licensing requirements must be fulfilled.

 Thin client image

o Windows XPe

o Windows CE .NET

 HP recommends HP Compaq Thin Client t5700 XPe build .28 or

Later

 Thin clients with Windows XPe require users to log in because the

administrator account is required for Disk On Key (DOK) use to installing drivers for local printers and serial port devices at the thin client.

NOTE:

For more information, refer to the white papers available at: http://h200005.www2.hp.com/bc/docs/support/UCR/SupportManual/TPM_3399 93-001_rev4_us/TPM_339993-01_rev4_us.pdf

 HP Compaq Thin Client t5500  DOK is readable and writeable using the Windows CE .NET image

without any additional actions required by the user

SAM terms

Client—The access device which sends requests to the HP SAM Web Server to connect to a Blade PC.

Computing Resource—The Blade PC which provides the desktop session. Description (Blade)—usually given to the blade by the blade manufacturer. It can be changed in the HP Web Server console if necessary

Follow-me roaming—Capability for the user to connect and reconnect to the same session while using different access devices in different locations.

Gateway—Same as Web server. The Gateway is defined in the Client hprdc.sam file to present on the PC Session Allocation Client screen.

Global Policy—Sets all users' connection environment. It can be overridden by Group or Individual Policy assignments.

Group Policy—Sets connection environment for a group of users. This policy overrides Global but can be overridden by individual policy assignment.

Individual Policy—Sets connection environment for a specific user. This policy assignment overrides group which overrides global policy rules.

OU—Organizational Unit

Policy—The policy is the user experience as defined by the connection settings. It defines the appearance of the desktop, taskbar, command access, sound availability, and so forth. There are three levels of policy: global, group, and individual. The global policy defines the user experience for everyone. The group policy grants additional privileges and access. The individual policy grants still more privileges and access.

Public—A public role is one that is accessible to all users.

Resource—A managed computer inside the HP SAM configuration which can be provided to a client for the purpose of logging in via Remote Desktop Protocol. It is also the same as computing resource, desktop session, or blade PC.

ResourceID—Identification assigned to a specific blade PC by the hardware manufacturer. It cannot be changed.

Roaming profile—Collection of user settings in Active Directory which can be seamlessly shared between different blade PCs. It enables the user to have the same end-user experience when connecting to different blade PCs.

Role—A role is a category that defines a department or major group of users.

SAM—HP PC Session Allocation Manager. The software system described in this design document.

Session Persistence—Ability for the user to connect to the same session without having to log off.

UPN—User Principal Name. A user-friendly name in e-mail address format.

Web server—The HP SAM component responsible for managing the computing resource pool, providing an administrative user interface, and providing computing resource brokering services to clients. At the software level, the Web server is composed of an IIS 6.0 Web server and a SQL 2000 database that may or may not reside on the same physical server unit.

Hp BLADESYSTEM BC1500 CCI Design & Implementation Guide

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual