Remotely Installing & Uninstalling Sostware

[Paulfitzg1]

Some software packages we use here ( e.g. Crystal Reports, Adobe Photoshop, etc) are very expensive and in a lot of cases are raraely if ever used. I would like to make this type of software more available without the hastle of manually moving it from desktop to desktop.

Does anyone know of a product which deal with a user request for an installation of a product and then remove the product after a pre-defined period of time?

Regards

Paul.

 

[ReddLefty]

SMS (Systems Management Software from Microsoft) will do this, but it's a rather large piece of software, not to mention setup time, just to do software rentals. With SMS, the user can request the software and it will take the available license and install on their computer for a period of time (this is configurable). When the time is up, or some else wants it, then automated features may take the desire action.

You can take a more manual route, and use the Windows 2000 Group Policy software deployement.

If you create an MSI with WinInstall LE (or if it already comes packaged in an MSI), then you can Publish it to the user. When that users time is up with the software or you wish to move it somewhere else, you can tell the group policy to remove the software. You then repeat the process for the new user of the software.



"In space, nobody can hear you click..."

 

[FumUnda]

If I am not mistaken, it has been a couple of years, but I believe WinInstall has a feature that monitors the cpanel's add/remove programs usage data and you can then remove, advertise or publish the application after a threshold has been reached.

 

[mangoo78]

You can use WPKG -

http://wpkg.org

- for installing and deinstalling, and generally managing software, without the need of repackaging it to MSI format (which is not always easy and not always works) on a group of workstations.

You can use it with Active Directory (which can only deploy MSI packages) and with Samba.

 

[CptnTrips]

Altiris is a great product for software deployment/management. We use it with great success and like it ten times better than SMS. Like SMS, it does take a little time to setup and tweak to your needs, but once you do, it's great.

It's a great alternative to SMS. We often joke in our department that we'll never be able to work any place else that's not willing to invest in it.