MSI Silent install

[Doctrg]

Forgive me if this has been answered, but I am trying to put together a silent install to push out to all of my lab computers the new client. I saw a link in a previous discussion, https://portal.fogproject.org/projects/fog-client/wiki/Command_Line_Installation, but the link is not working. I also noticed that the new client is not using the method of a config.ini file like the legacy client uses. Are reboots now forced without having to edit the ini to set it to force reboots?

[Wayne Workman]

Using scripting techniques, the base command is this: msiexec /i FOGService.msi /quiet WEBADDRESS="x.x.x.x"

Look here for information on the new client: https://forums.fogproject.org/topic/4250/new-client-progress

@Jbob is the new client developer. He’s talked about having the new client automatically uninstall the Legacy client but I’m unsure if this has been implemented yet.

[JJ Fullmer]

Although I imagine you figured this out by now, I also wanted to do this and found this post. I figured this is as good a spot as any to post it.
I’ve noticed that the service works better when it’s installed on each computer after imaging rather than trying to include it as part of an image.
So the idea of this script is to download the latest version and install it silently right after imaging, so I would suggest adding it as a snapin that you put on all clients. The only change you should need to make is changing the fogip variable to your fog server ip.

@ECHO off
set fogip=192.168.100.100
echo "downloading latest client..."
powershell -Command "wget http://%fogip%/fog.client/download.php?newclient -OutFile C:\FOGService.msi;"
echo "installing client..."
msiexec /i C:\FOGService.msi /quiet WEBADDRESS=%fogip%
echo "starting service..."
net start FOGService
echo "Done!"
exit

[Joe Schmitt]

@Arrowhead-IT what issues are you experiencing with including the client in the image? Its actually safer / more secure to install the client into the image rather than after imaging completes.

[Wayne Workman]

@Arrowhead-IT https://forums.fogproject.org/topic/6330/remove-legacy-client-and-replace-with-latest-new-client

[JJ Fullmer]

@Jbob said:

@Arrowhead-IT what issues are you experiencing with including the client in the image? Its actually safer / more secure to install the client into the image rather than after imaging completes.

The client just plain doesn’t work when I include it in the image. Maybe I’m missing something, and I’m still doing testing. This is a new setup. At my old job I used to always include it in the image, but it had sporadic success rates too. I find that a fresh install always seems to work. Also, I love that I can install the client and it adds itself if the client isn’t already in fog. I figured that functionality meant that I should install it individually.

[Wayne Workman]

@Arrowhead-IT said:

Also, I love that I can install the client and it adds itself if the client isn’t already in fog.

In my opinion - that is singularly as large of an improvement in FOG as the entire new client is.

The whole idea behind FOG is to lower workload. And clients automatically reporting in for approval is FAR better than registering 1,000 computers by hand, or trying to rely on importing some shady spreadsheet that probably isn’t half correct with a million typos in it.

[JJ Fullmer]

@Jbob oh sorry, that was kind of vague.
It starts and all that but it doesn’t seem to do anything when I set the client to a task on the server.
This could be just me and I need to test more though.

[Wayne Workman]

@Arrowhead-IT Give us a log file. C:\fog.log

[JJ Fullmer]

@Wayne-Workman I just noticed that I missed this post, it was when I was on vacation. This hasn’t actually been a problem on this new network as much. If it happens to me again I’ll come back here or make a new post with the fog.log on anything having trouble.

[JJ Fullmer]

@Arrowhead-IT I figure that I should report that in my recent testing with the latest client I have not had any problems with the client being installed as part of the image. It works as it should. I intend to use the script I posted here as a gpo script to add all the active directory computers on my network to fog in one quick click.