Please specify image

[David08107]

Is there a reason why answer file is either losing credentials at deployment or does it work whenever it feels like it? I deployed 5 laptops 2 out of the 5 worked. I did net use * \\computername\c$\smartdeploy which worked. But I do not want to do this for 500 computers. Is there a fix for this or a cause? 

[SmartDeploySupport]

Hi David,

The answer file definitely isn't "losing" credentials (if you access the XML file from within PE, you'll find the credentials hashed there as expected, assuming you used the same media for all 5 laptops), but there are several reasons why this sort of failure might occur.

I'll go ahead and give you a KB article in case it's helpful for future reference:

https://support.smartdeploy.com/support/solutions/articles/48001166138-prompted-for-image-location-during-unattended-deployment

For your specific scenario, you've actually ruled out quite a bit with the details you have there - most likely, there is some restriction that is preventing the administrative share path (\\computername\c$) from being used reliably. Try creating a standard share (e.g. \\computername\SmartDeploy, which corresponds to C:\SmartDeploy), then update the answer file to use this instead, recreate your media (making sure to include Platform Packs for all devices you plan to deploy to), then retry deployment.

The other possibility is that there's nothing wrong with the answer file or media, and the network is initializing faster on some devices than others. Increasing the unattended countdown clock can help with this - try setting it to 60 seconds, then save the answer file, recreate media, and retry deployment.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to support@smartdeploy.com.

 

Glenn
SmartDeploy Support

[David08107]

Thank you, I believe the countdown could have been the issue.