ScriptLogic Corporation Strengthens Desktop Authority Product Suite With Solution for Desktop and Server Provisioning and an Enhanced Application Management Tool

ScriptLogic® Corporation ( www.scriptlogic.com ), a leader in network administration software for Microsoft® Windows®-based networks, today delivered on its promise to release complimentary solutions into its Desktop Authority product family, covering the desktop lifecycle management from PC birth to decommission. ScriptLogic introduced Desktop Authority Image Center, a new solution for centralized desktop and server provisioning. The company also announced the availability of Desktop Authority MSI Studio 3.5 and Desktop Authority MSI Studio Pro 3.5, featuring enhancements for pain-free application installs on desktops across the enterprise.

Desktop Authority Image Center helps enterprises reduce the time associated with the initial deployment and configuration of desktops and servers by centralizing the capture, customization and deployment of hard disk images. Desktop Authority Image Center enables rapid deployment of desktops with the standard operating system, patches, service packs and applications as defined by IT policy.

Desktop Authority MSI Studio reduces the cost of application ownership and software distribution by simplifying the creation, modification and deployment of application installers. Its comprehensive toolset empowers administrators to develop, enhance and test Windows Installer (MSI) packages for seamless software distribution on all network desktops. The Pro version introduces extra features to identify application deployment problems before they happen.

According to industry research firm Gartner, organizations considering computer purchases in 2006 or 2007 should plan on a four-year (48 month) refresh strategy, with the option of extending to five years if business needs/requirements allow. Gartner's recommendation for notebooks remains at three years (36 months) (1).

When replaced, these machines need to be replaced or re-imaged, meaning that all the software running on the machine is wiped and re-installed, giving the computer a new life. Desktop Authority Image Center addresses IT administrators' need for a centralized imaging solution that pushes the operating system and a set of applications to a workstation, the first step in computer lifecycle management. Using Desktop Authority and Desktop Authority MSI Studio, IT administrators can then easily deploy applications, desktop configurations and user preferences, creating a uniform environment and allowing an end user to be instantly productive.

"By staying in close contact with our customers and resellers, we've seen a shift toward vendor consolidation -- enterprises want software solutions from a vendor that address all phases of the desktop lifecycle," said Andrew Langsam, COO at ScriptLogic. "Recognizing this trend, ScriptLogic now offers Desktop Authority Image Center to enable desktop provisioning, the first step in comprehensive PC lifecycle management. In conjunction with the rest of the Desktop Authority product family, ScriptLogic now offers solutions which manage the entire life of a Windows desktop computer."

Through an intuitive console, Desktop Authority Image Center answers the needs of IT administrators challenged with centrally provisioning and re-provisioning desktops and servers. It offers multiple common methods of image deployment, including bootable media, a Pre-boot Execution Environment and support for alternate Hardware Abstraction Layers and storage drivers. Desktop Authority Image Center makes optimal use of network resources with unicast or multicast communication (allowing more than one machine to be imaged at once), bandwidth control, and the ability to place image deployment servers at suitable points on the network.

Desktop Authority MSI Studio gives IT administrators the ability to take complex installs, which normally require extensive administrator or user intervention and scripting, and generate an automated, unattended installation. In addition, ScriptLogic will offer Desktop Authority MSI Studio Pro, an enhanced version, which adds two significant new capabilities:

--  Zero-Touch Testing - reduce failed deployments by simulating MSI
    package creation and installation before releasing it throughout the
    organization.

--  Conflict Detection and Resolution - realize potential package
    conflicts when compared to other installed packages. This allows problems
    to be corrected before releasing the package.

"At First Southwest Company, it's important for users within certain groups to have access to uniform workstations -- each with the same software and configurations -- as this makes it easier to service them and keep them up to date. Using Desktop Authority Image Center in conjunction with Desktop Authority, the IT department has the ability to quickly deploy a usable OS and standard environment so the user is instantly productive," said Brian Davis, IT Support Services Supervisor. "Since IT administrators are tasked with so many daily activities, tools provided by trusted vendors like ScriptLogic have become essential for desktop configuration and daily network management."