The purpose of MDT is to help automate the deployment of Windows operating systems and applications to desktop, portable, and server computers in the environment. At a high level, MDT automates the deployment process by configuring the unattended Setup files for Windows and packaging the necessary files into a consolidated image file that you then deploy to reference and target computers.

Figure 1 illustrates the high-level LTI, ZTI, and UDI deployment processes.

Figure 1. High-level deployment process

The high-level LTI, ZTI, and UDI deployment process is as follows:

1.   Collect the files necessary to perform an MDT deployment, including:

·     Windows operating system source files or images

·     Windows operating system language packs

·     Device drivers for reference and target computers

2.   Create the system images, configuration settings, and task sequences to be used in deploying Windows and applications to the reference computers.

3.   Deploy the system images to the reference computer and capture an image of the reference computer.

4.   Create the configuration settings and task sequences that will deploy the captured images of the reference computers to the target computers.

5.   Deploy the captured images of the reference computers to the target computers.

Related Topics

Planning MDT Deployments