office 2k rollout 1

[JamesNash]

hi all,
we have a 300 machine network in our firm. i am just about to rollout office 2k pro and whilst running a few tests i have noticed that after a new user logs in, office asks for the cd. i have copied the cd to the server but would like to find out how this process of pointing to the cd location could be automated.

thanks in advance.
james.

 

[ReddLefty]

You must install Office with the "Run all from Computer" option. The default install will not install all of the components and when it comes time to launch it on a new users, it will look for some components.

Also, if you apply service packs for Office, the whole thing starts over and your new users will end up getting a window saying it's looking for DATA1.MSI.

You can setup Office to install using Group Policies. I won't go into details because it's alot of work to explain, but here are the big steps with MSIEXEC (Windows Installer):

- Setup Office as an Administrative Install (/a command)
- Run the patches on the Administrative Installation (/p command)
- Run the Office Administrative Kit (download it from MS) and create the .MST (Transform) file with the kit. This will premit you to enter the Company info and serial numbers and to do a FULL install.

The Office Administrative Kit will give you the command line to launch the Office installation unattended with the transform file. You can use all this info to place it in a Group Policies and use your Active Directory to push the installation with the Software Deployement that's built-in to Windows 2000 Server.

Hope this helps




"In space, nobody can hear you click..."

 

[JamesNash]

Hey ReddLefty, thanks for your help... you did solve one of my other problems, and i did install office with "run all from computer" option originally and it still asks me for a cd and yes you are correct in saying that it starts all over again once i apply a service pack. i was hoping someone could tell me how to do this with maybe a script at login, i did see someone do it once before but that was a long time ago...

thanks for your help,

cheers,

james.

 

[ReddLefty]

The problem is that the moment you apply the service pack and a new user creates a profile, you'll get the CD prompt for DATA1.MSI. Since Office 2K won't be getting anymore service packs, you can do the administrative install and get the Office Resource Kit (ORK) (not admin kit.. I made a mistake). Run the Office Patches 1a and 3 on top of the Administrative Install of your Office installation using the MSIEXEC.EXE /P OFF2KSR1A.EXE. On a PII -400 it too about an hour per patch. It then created a huge 800M backup file (which I forget the name) in the Office Installation root which you can toss since it's for backup only. Then run the ORK and make your MST file. You can then use the command line to install Office 2000 SR3 directly and you'll no longer need to worry about the DATA1.MSI being different then the original.





"In space, nobody can hear you click..."