Deployment

You may have seen that SQL Server Management Studio 2017 automatically bubbles and asks for updates. But your users do not have permission to install updates and you maintain updates via WSUS. SQL Server Management Studio 17.x is available via WSUS.

Microsoft has for unknown reasons moved this setting into HKEY_CURRENT_USER. How stupid is this... Software is deployed per machine and not per user. Software is only deployed by idiots per user.

Now you have two options:

1. Walk to every users and uncheck the Tools > Check for Updates > Automatically check for updates for SQL Server Management Studio setting. Not really an enterprise solution.
   

   

There exists an annoying bug in Windows 7 with GPOs and RODCs that makes your users waiting 20 minutes until the computer starts installing software via Active Directory.

The infrastructure has a central site with 2 DCs 2008 R2 and several branch offices with Read Only Domain Controller located on every office. The problem is that when some changes are done on the Group Policies in the central site (modify old GPOs, create new ones, most often install software like Flash player) after the restart (or gpupdate /force) when the new settings are applied it take about 20 minutes for the client to boot.

Windows boots and show a throbber with "Applying software installation policy..." for about 20 minutes (10 minutes per machine + 10 minutes for user GPO timeout). This happens only after you have changed a GPO and only once. It doesn't matter if this is a software policy or any random setting. The setting get's applied and all other future reboots are fine, until you change anything again inside a GPO.

With version 15 Google seems to have published the very first version of Google Chrome for Business that at least starts up/opens in an Enterprise environment with Roaming Profiles and redirected AppData folders. Yes - You have read correctly - they are at version 15 and this is the first version that may work. They claimed in december 2010 with Version 11 that Chrome is Ready for Business. The only thing that was ready - was a very limiting MSI wrapper that is not a full-fledged MSI setup. These version 11 was not ready for Business and the only important functionality was the installation to %ProgramFiles% folder, but this does not make Chrome ready for Business. It's still only a suxxx MSI wrapper around the normal installer and as one example - it does not allow you to customize the icon folders.

If you's like to install software via Active Directory it may fail with Error: %%1274.

Symtoms:

• You can reboot as often as you'd like and your deployed Software always fails with Error %%1274
• Eventlog entry:
  • Source: Application Management Group Policy
  • Event ID 101
  • Description: Die Zuweisung der Anwendung ShoreTel Communicator 16.23.5631.0 der Richtlinie ShoreTel Communicator ist fehlgeschlagen. Fehler: %%1274
  • Description: The assignment of application ShoreTel Communicator 16.23.5631.0 from policy ShoreTel Communicator failed. The error was : %%1274

Workaround:

• Explicitly set the policy Startup policy processing wait time: Activated Amount of time to wait (in seconds): 120s. This is normally not required if FastLogonOptimization is disabled, but Windows 7 seems to have a bug here.

History:

• 04/09/2011: Exists in Windows 7 RTM and SP1
• 13/04/2011: Implemented Activated Amount of time to wait workaround.