WDS Multicast Server
Applies To: Windows Server 2008
The multicast server deploys an image to a large number of client computers concurrently without overburdening the network. When you create a multicast transmission for an image, the data is sent over the network only once, which can drastically reduce the network bandwidth that is used.
Managed Entities
The following is a list of the managed entities that are included in this managed entity:
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
The multicast server uses a content provider to transmit the data from the server to the client. The Windows Deployment Services content provider can transfer any file over a multicast transmission. This content provider connects the multicast transmission or namespace to the data that has been requested by clients. |
Aspects
The following is a list of all aspects that are part of this managed entity:
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
The multicast server uses a content provider to transmit the data from the server to the client. The Windows Deployment Services content provider can transfer any file over a multicast transmission; however, you can create or use a custom content provider if you want additional functionality. For example, you could create a content provider that transfers a .zip archive, a .vhd image, or a database and then extracts data out of it. The providers must be functioning properly to deploy content using multicast transmissions.
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When the WDSServer service is started, the multicast server initializes. During initialization, the multicast server reads the configuration settings and determines whether any multicast transmissions or namespaces are still valid (and restarts them if they are). The multicast server must initialize successfully before it can function correctly. |
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The multicast server uses multicast IP addresses to connect client computers with an associated transmission. This means that each client computer that is connected to a multicast transmission is listening on the multicast IP address that is associated with that transmission. You can allocate these IP addresses by using Multicast Address Dynamic Client Allocation Protocol (MADCAP) or by using the WDSServer service. |