Create a Cloud-Connected Answer File

Note: You must upload the cloud package before you create a cloud-connected answer file.
 

Create a Cloud-Connected Answer File

1. From the Activities workspace of the SmartDeploy Console, click Use Cloud Services, and then click Create Cloud Answer File.
    
2. On the Welcome page, click Advanced to review and set the recommended additional answer file settings for cloud deployments.
   1. On the General tab, review these settings:
      1. Deployment automation
         Leave the default option selected: Unattended.
         
      2. When Deploy Wizard ends
         Leave the default option selected: Reboot.
      3. Registration information
          Set the owner and company information as needed.
      4. Autologin after deployment
          (Optional) You can specify an account and the number of times that you want the device to automatically sign in to Windows after deployment.
      5. Firmware
         (Optional) SmartDeploy uses the OEM tools that are available to attempt to enable UEFI and Secure Boot if it is not already enabled.
          
   2. On the Disk Options tab, review these settings (see the UI for detailed information):
      1. Recreate Drives (recommended)
         This option deletes all existing partitions, re-creates the necessary partitions, formats the new partitions, and then writes image data to the partitions. The new partition structure is based on the partition structure from the Reference VM and will fill any previously unused space.
      2. Wipe & load drives
         This option formats only the target drives that are specified in the image but doesn't change the target device’s hard disk partition scheme. You'll receive an error if the existing partitions don't match the partition structure of the Reference VM. This method lets you leave a folder structure on the hard disk. You can choose a protected folder by using the Browse button on this tab. By default, SmartDeploy will protect the C:\Backup folder.
          
   3. On the Tasks tab, create tasks as needed.
      Note: Please see our Tasks article for detailed information on creating tasks.
       
   4. On the Network tab, review the settings.
      Note: You can specify the target device’s IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS server information. Or by default, you can obtain the network address information automatically.
       
   5. On the Wireless tab, review the settings.
      Note: You can configure SmartDeploy to allow devices to be imaged over a wireless connection and to configure wireless settings after the device is imaged. Please see the Use a Wireless Connection article for more information.
       
3. Click OK to close the advanced settings, and then click Next to continue creating the answer file.
    
4. On the Select Image Source page, click Cloud storage provider, and then click Next.
    
5. On the Cloud Authentication page, confirm that your cloud storage provider is selected and that a green check mark is present, and then click Next.
    
6. On the Select Cloud Image page, click Browse.
    
7. Click the folder and then the image file that you want to use, and then click Select.
    
8. Review the selected image information, and then click Next.
    
9. Click OK when you are notified that a portion of the image will be downloaded and verified.
    
10. On the Application Packs page, select any Application Packs that you want to have installed during deployment, and then click Next.
    Note: Any Application Packs that were uploaded to cloud storage will be present here.
     
11. On the Naming Convention page, modify the naming hierarchy by selecting your preferred convention and clicking Move up. After you set your preferred naming convention, click Next.
    Note: You can specify # to generate a random number 0-9.
     
12. If you want to migrate a user’s data and settings during a deployment, click the Enable User Data Migration check box. Specify a network share to temporarily save the user's data, and then click Next.
    Note: For more information about user data migration, see the User Data Migration article in our User's Guide.
     
13. If you did not specify a Windows product key when you captured your image, you can specify it here. You won't see the Product Key page in the Answer File Wizard if a product key was specified in the Capture Wizard during capture.
    Note: You can leave the product key blank if you are testing deployment or want to provide it after deployment.
     
14. On the Network Identification page, specify a domain or workgroup or choose to be prompted to join an Azure domain during deployment, and then click Next.
    Note: Off-site (cloud-connected) clients are unlikely to be able to joined to your on-premises domain, since the domain join attempt will occur during sysprep before VPN can be connected. You will need to add off-site computers to your domain post-deployment.
     
15. On the Regional Settings page, select the time zone and language that you want to set on the endpoint after deployment, and then click Next. 
    
16. On the Install Client page, review these settings.
    Note: We recommend that all answer files are configured to install the SmartDeploy Client. This allows you to perform additional deployments to clients over the network or cloud via the SmartDeploy Console.  
    1. Click the Install SmartDeploy Client during deployment check box.
    2. Specify the non-fqdn SmartDeploy Console host name.
    3. Check the box for Cloud Only Connection if you want to force the SmartDeploy client to use the Cloud Service even when on-site, or connected via VPN. 
       
       
17. Review the summary of your selections, click Next, and then click Finish to complete the Answer File Wizard.
     
18. Chose a name and location to save the cloud answer file, and then click Save.