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How to Associate Users with a Destination Computer

 

Updated: May 14, 2015

Applies To: System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP1, System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP2, System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager, System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager SP1

When you use System Center 2012 Configuration Manager to deploy operating system you can associate users with the destination computer where the operating system is deployed. This configuration includes specifying the following:

  • That a single user is the primary user of the destination computer.

  • That multiple users are the primary users of the destination computer.

User device affinity supports user-centric management for when you deploy applications. When you associate a user with the destination computer on which to install an operating system, an administrative user can later deploy applications to that user and the applications automatically install on the destination computer. However, although you can configure support for user device affinity when you deploy operating systems, you cannot use user device affinity to deploy operating systems.

For more information about user device affinity, see the following documentation:

How to Specify a User When You Deploy Operating Systems

The following table lists the actions that you can take to integrate user device affinity into your operating system deployments. You can integrate user device affinity into PXE deployments, bootable media deployments, and prestaged media deployments.

Action

More information

Create a task sequence that includes the SMSTSAssignUsersMode variable

Add the SMSTSAssignUsersMode variable to the beginning of your task sequence by using the Set Task Sequence Variable task sequence step. This variable specifies how the task sequence handles the user information.

Set the variable to one of the following values:

  • Auto: The task sequence automatically creates a relationship between the user and destination computer and deploys the operating system.

  • Pending: The task sequence creates a relationship between the user and the destination computer, but waits for approval from the administrative user before the operating system is deployed.

  • Disabled: The task sequence does not associate a user with the destination computer and continues to deploy the operating system.

This variable can also be set on a computer or collection.

Create a prestart command that gathers the user information

The prestart command can be a Visual Basic (VB) script that has an input box, or it can be an HTML application (HTA) that validates the user data that is entered.

The prestart command must set the SMSTSUdaUsers variable that is used when the task sequence is run. This variable can be set on a computer, a collection, or a task sequence variable. Use the following format when you add multiple users: domain\user1, domain\user2, domain\user3.

Configure how distribution points and media associate the user with the destination computer

When you configure a distribution point to accept PXE boot requests and when you create bootable or prestaged media by using the Create Task Sequence Media Wizard, you can specify how the distribution point or media supports associating users with the destination computer where the operating system is deployed.

Configuring user device affinity support does not have a built-in method to validate the user identity. This can be important when a technician is entering the information on behalf of the user when the technician provisions the computer. In addition to setting how the user information is handled by the task sequence, configuring these options on the distribution point and media provides the ability to restrict the deployments that are started from a PXE boot or from a specific piece of media.

For information about how to configure the distribution point, see How to Deploy Operating Systems by Using PXE in Configuration Manager.

For information about how to create media, see the How to Create Bootable Media and How to Create Prestaged Media sections in the How to Deploy Operating Systems by Using Media in Configuration Manager topic.