Wednesday, 04 December 2019 21:04

An alternative ESU MAK Activation Solution

Written by

image

This blog post was shared with me by a colleague of mine, Daniel Dorner, a Microsoft Premier Field Engineer. It’s a really an interesting one because it highlights the creativity of my colleagues - a very, very broad range of personalities that have one thing in common: an absolute dedication to customer's success.

image

Automated reference image creation became common as IT professionals use tools like Microsoft Deployment Toolkit or System Center Configuration Manager. In most cases, creating a Windows reference image is fairly straightforward if you follow established best practices. However, there are still issues out there that may catch you off guard and you will suffer the consequences.

Thursday, 21 June 2018 08:11

Automating Dell BIOS Configuration Using MDT

Written by

image

It’s been a busy couple of weeks for me, so I’m slowly going through a backlog of things to cover. The push to get modern continues with the third part of my series on automating the process of transitioning from BIOS to UEFI using MDT. Today's blog post discusses the process of configuring BIOS settings on supported Dell Inc. enterprise systems.

Tuesday, 19 June 2018 09:54

Configuring HP BIOS Using MDT

Written by

image

This is the second post in my series that explores one of the most common questions I’ve been asked from folks who are migrating to Windows 10: "How do I go about transitioning from BIOS to UEFI?". So naturally, I’m addressing this question. This time, I am going to discuss automating firmware configuration on supported HP (Hewlett-Packard) notebook, desktop, and workstation models. Now, it's not as if it's been no-man's-land before. I am fully aware that there are blogs out there that talk about doing this kind of thing and I’ve tried a few of the solutions with various rates of success. Still, the feedback I've been getting over the past few weeks has been that I should share my approach when working with the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT), so, here's my attempt to do precisely that.

Monday, 11 June 2018 17:08

BIOS to UEFI - The Easy Way: MBR2GPT

Written by

image

This article is the first blog post in a series I'll write over the coming days that will provide a comprehensive overview that explains how you can automate the process of transitioning from BIOS to UEFI during "wipe-and-load" OS deployment scenario. To be able to migrate from BIOS to UEFI effectively you need to understand how to configure firmware settings, such as secure boot, legacy support, and TPM device configuration, as well as how to use the MBR2GPT tool. Unfortunately, though it seems like a relatively straightforward process when using Microsoft Deployment Toolkit, based on questions I received as well as threads posted on TechNet over the past few weeks, there is still some confusion around this in the Windows technical community. Converting a device to UEFI comes with quite a few benefits including the ability to make full use of Windows 10 modern security features, so I thought it would be worth taking a few minutes to share my approach to dealing with BIOS to UEFI conversions.

Page 1 of 3

Recent Posts

  • Windows 10 21H2 Built-In Apps: What to Keep
    The development of the Windows 10, version 21H2 is finished and the update will soon be available for download from…
    Written on Wednesday, 20 October 2021 11:41
  • Group Policy Changes in Windows 10 21H2
    As Windows 10, version 21H2 update development winds down, Microsoft is now preparing for the final release of the Windows…
    Written on Wednesday, 20 October 2021 07:20
  • Group Policy Changes in Windows 10 20H1 Preview
    As Windows 10 Vibranium Update (20H1) development winds down, Microsoft is now beginning the phase of checking in the final…
    Written on Tuesday, 14 January 2020 04:51
  • An alternative ESU MAK Activation Solution
    This blog post was shared with me by a colleague of mine, Daniel Dorner, a Microsoft Premier Field Engineer. It’s…
    Written on Wednesday, 04 December 2019 21:04
  • The Case of Missing UE-V Templates
    My customers often deal with unexpected Windows behavior and this case is no different. This particular one is especially interesting…
    Written on Tuesday, 03 September 2019 12:20
  • The Case of Changing Default Printer
    While I sometimes long for the day when I no longer have to deal with unexpected Windows 10 behavior, there’s…
    Written on Wednesday, 14 August 2019 20:36