The Lazy Slug's Guide To...

If you are a Network Administrator, you're probably well aware of how to deploy BOINC from a Windows Server. However, if you happen to be the 'IT Guy/Girl' for the office, these instructions will allow you to install your modified BOINC package across your network, without having to visit each workstation.
N.B. There are additional notes if you use Microsoft's Small Business Server 2003 (SBS).

Step 1 - Creating a Security Group

By using a security group, you put in one 'container' all of the computers that you want to have BOINC running on. Although not strictly necessary, it does make managing the server easier.
If you wish to use any of the additional scripts on the downloads page, without having to modify them, use the name suggested here for the security group.

1. On your server, click Start > All Programs > Administrative Tools > Active Directory Users and Computers.
2. In the left panel, click Your_Domain and right click Users OR, if using SBS, click Your_Domain > MyBusiness and right click Security Groups. In either case, select New > Group from the pop-up menu.
3. Enter the name BOINC Computers for the group and ensure that the Universal option is selected in the Group Scope and the Security option in the Group type. Click Next.
4. Depending on your server configuration, you may be asked about creating an Exchange mailbox. Untick the Create an Exchange e-mail address checkbox. Click Next.
5. On the Summary page check the information entered and click Finish.

Step 2 - Adding members to the Security Group

Now that the security group has been created, it's time to add the workstations.
I would suggest that you just add one workstation for the time being, until you are sure that BOINC deploys without any problems.

1. On the right panel of the Active Directory Users and Computers window, right click the security group that you created above and select Properties from the pop-up menu. (You may have to scroll down the list to find your group, as it is in alphabetical order.)
2. In the Properties window, click the Members tab and then the Add... button at the bottom.
3. By default, computers are not included in the object types you can add as members to your group. To change this in the Select Users, Contacts, computers, or Groups window, click the Object Types... button and tick the Computers checkbox. Untick all of the other checkboxes and then click OK.
4. Back in the Select Users, Contacts, Computers, or Groups window, click the Advance... button and then the Find Now button. Your server will now display all of your computers in the bottom half of the window. Select the computers you want BOINC deployed to (multiple computers can be selected/unselected by holding down the Ctrl button on your keyboard whilst you click each one). When you have finished click OK. (It is best not to select any servers but instead install these manually to see if there are any performance issues.)
5. The selected computers should now be displayed in the Select Users, Contacts, Computers, or Groups window. If you are happy with the selection, click OK
6. You should now be back at the Properties window, which will be displaying the list of computers that will have BOINC deployed on them. Click OK to finish.
7. Close the Active Directory Users and Computers window.

Step 3 - Creating a Group Policy

A group policy needs to be added to your server to apply the BOINC application to your workstations.

1. On your server, click Start > All Programs > Administrative Tools > Group Policy Management.
2. In the left panel, expand Your_Domain, if necessary, to see the current list of Group Policies, which are likely to vary from one server to another. Right click Your_Domain and select Create and Link a GPO Here... from the pop-up menu.
3. Fill in the New GPO window, by entering a suitable Group Policy Object name and click OK.
4. Right click your newly created Group Policy object and click Edit...
5. In the Group Policy Object Editor that opens, expand Computer Configuration > Software Settings and right click Software installation. From the pop-up menu select New > Package....
6. Locate the BOINC.msi file that you previously put into a shared folder. As the path selected here must be available to your workstations, browse to the msi file using My Network Places. If you are using SBS the location will be \\YOUR_SERVER_NAME\ClientApps\BOINC. When you have found the file, click Open. (If you do not select the file correctly via its network location you will receive a warning. Click No and try again.
7. Next, select the Advanced option in the Deploy Software window and click OK.
8. In the BOINC Properties window, click the Modifications tab and then the Add... button.
9. Locate the BOINC.mst file that was previously created by the script. (you should have it in the same folder as the BOINC.msi). Again, browse to the file using My Network Places, if necessary. When you have selected it, click Open.
10. Back in the BOINC Properties window, you should see the mst file listed. Click OK to complete the deployment and close the the Group Policy Object Editor window.

Step 4 - Applying the Policy to the Security Group

The final task is to ensure that the policy is applied only to the members of security group, you created in Step 1.

1. In the left panel of Group Policy Management, expand Your_Domain and click the policy created in Step 3 above. In the right panel, click Authenticated Users under the Security Filtering heading and then click the Remove button
2. In the confirmation window, click Yes.
3. Next, click the Add... button to open the Select User,Computer or Group window. In the text box enter the name of the security group created in Step 1 and click OK.
4. You should see that the policy will now only be applied to your security group. Now you can close the Group Policy Management window.

All that is left to do now is to restart your workstations so that BOINC installs. To save you from having to walk around to each one, there is a script on the Downloads page, that will do it for you. however, you might want to check BOINC is not being deployed to my workstations when I restart them on the Troubleshooting page to avoid some common problems first.