SCCM 2012 deploy windows 7: how to manage network/server load?

Question

 Hi,
Hypotetically, if you would deploy Windows 7 to hundreds of pc’s at once, how could you manage that, regarding organizing the deploy, regarding network/server load? F.e. you deploy to a collection which has 500 pc’s, users can select when
to load the OS (Windows XP, we deploy the SCCM 2012 client, they can choose when to install)
 *How can you be sure network is not overloaded?
*Can you limit in SCCM 2012 bandwith usage?
Please advise.
J.
Jan Hoedt

Answer 1

You need to be as local as possible. You can host a deployment point role on a client OS such as windows 7 so you could temporarily setup one machine hosting OS images and then rebuild it last as well.
On a 100MB LAN with DP's hosted in a datacenter (not on subnet) we get to about 75 machines building at once before we see TFTP timeouts on PXE booting due to load on the local network. I would get your build as quick as possible and then do them in increasing
block sizes whilst monitoring the network and server load.
To speed up builds you could...
Build and capture to get a WIM file with most apps and updates in it.
Change the TFTPBlockSize registry settings on the DP's (If PXE booting) to as high as it will go
Host WIM files on your DP's with the Package share settings configured and enable the "Access content directly..." option in the Apply Operating System part of your task sequence.
Hope this helps.
Shaun