Select the Method for Grouping Computers

Different methods can be used to group client computers. After determining how to group the computers, select the appropriate properties to help group them.

Using the processing rules in MDT, group computers based on any property that might be applied to a group of computers (such as Make, Model, or DefaultGateway). Table 155 lists methods of grouping computers, a description of the method, and the properties that can be used to group the computers.

Table 155. Methods for Grouping Computers

Grouping method	Description	Properties
Geographically	Group configuration settings based on resources located within a geographic region (such as a shared folder on a computer within a geographic region).	DefaultGateway
Target computer hardware attributes	Group configuration settings based on hardware attributes (such as the make of the computer or processor architecture of the target computer).	Architecture CapableArchitecture Make Model HALName
Target computer software attributes	Group configuration settings based on hardware attributes (such as the operating system version of the target computer).	OSVersion
Default attributes	Apply configuration settings to all target computers when the properties are not in other sections.	Default

In most instances, computer groupings can be nested. For example, you can use the DefaultGateway property to designate the IP subnets on which a computer resides within a geographic location. Define locations using the user-defined properties in the [DefaultGateway] section, as shown in Listing 11.

Note A variety of methods can be used to group computers by hardware configuration, and the script will search for the substituted value regardless. For instance, if you specify Priority=Make, the script substitutes the value for Make that it determines through a Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) call and will look for the corresponding section—for example, [Dell Computer Corporation].

Example: Computer Groupings Selected by Woodgrove Bank

Listing 11 shows an example of how the fictional company, Woodgrove Bank, used [DefaultGateway] to designate the configuration settings for a specific location. Three subnets (172.16.0.3, 172.16.1.3, and 172.16.2.3) reside within the NYC location. A separate section, [NYC], includes the configuration settings specific to the NYC location. Similar sections exist for the DALLAS and WASHINGTON locations. This is a special case that allows multiple default gateways to point to the same section. In many environments, a one-to-one mapping might be expected between the [DefaultGateway] section and a corresponding section.

Listing 11. Using [DefaultGateway] to Designate Location-Specific Configuration Settings

[Settings]

Priority=DefaultGateway

[DefaultGateway]

172.16.0.3=NYC

172.16.1.3=NYC

172.16.2.3=NYC

172.16.111.3=DALLAS

172.16.112.3=DALLAS

172.16.116.3=WASHINGTON

172.16.117.3=WASHINGTON

[NYC]

UDShare=\\NYC-AM-FIL-01\MigData

SLShare=\\NYC-AM-FIL-01\Logs

Packages1=NYC00010-Install

Packages2=NYC00011-Install

Administrator1=WOODGROVEBANK\NYC Help Desk Staff

[DALLAS]

UDShare=\\DAL-AM-FIL-01\MigData

SLShare=\\DAL-AM-FIL-01\Logs

Administrator1=WOODGROVEBANK\DAL Help Desk Staff