Automatic deployment of dtSearch on a network
System Requirements
Two MSI files are used for automatic deployment: the dtSearchDesktop.msi file, which contains the program files, and the dtSearchPolicy.msi file, which contains the settings for your network installation. These files can be deployed and redeployed separately, so you can upgrade your dtSearch installation without losing your settings, and you can update your settings without the need to reinstall dtSearch.
Note: Some users may require updated versions of certain Windows components to use dtSearch. Please see dtSearch software dependencies for more information.
Steps to deploy dtSearch
1. Obtain the dtSearchDesktop.msi file that installs dtSearch Desktop.
2. Create one or more shared index libraries on a network share.
3. Create one or more shared indexes on a network share.
4. Create a dtSearchPolicy.msi file that will configure your users' machines with information about the location of the shared index libraries.
5. Use Active Directory or Microsoft SMS to deploy the dtSearchDesktop.msi and dtSearchPolicy.msi files to your users.
Each of these steps is described below.
1. Obtain the dtSearchDesktop.msi file that installs dtSearch Desktop
Open the dtSearch download file in WinZip or any other ZIP-compatible program to extract dtSearchDesktop.msi. (The download file is in ZIP format even though it is an .exe file.) Copy the dtSearchDesktop.msi file to a network folder.
2. Obtain the Microsoft Windows components needed by your version of dtSearch
In addition to the dtSearchDesktop.msi file, the dtSearch download file will also contain two Microsoft components named vc_redist.x86.exe and vc_redist.x64.exe. Please see dtSearch software dependencies for more information about these files and links to the latest versions from the Microsoft web site. These files should also be deployed along with the .msi file to make sure dtSearch has all required dependencies.
3. Create one or more shared index libraries on a network share
An index library is just a list of index locations. Once you create a shared index library, you can add indexes to it later and users will automatically see the updated list. To create an index library, click Index > Index Manager > Index Library Manager, and click Add Library to create an empty index library.
4. Create one or more shared indexes on a network share
Click Index > Create Advanced to create a new index and specify that it should be added to the shared library that you created in the previous step. You can also use Index Library Manager to add existing indexes to the shared library, as long as these indexes are also in a network folder.
5. Create a dtSearchPolicy.msi file
To create a dtSearchPolicy.msi file, click Options > Create Group Policy... in dtSearch Desktop. A dtSearchPolicy.msi file can specify the following settings:
Serial number
You can use a single serial number to register as many user installations as your license covers. Providing a serial number in the Group Policy file eliminates the need for users to enter serial numbers themselves.
Shared index libraries
Specify the index libraries that should be included with this Group Policy. Once the index libraries have been set up, you can add or remove indexes in the libraries, and network users will automatically see the updates in their Search dialog box.
Specify where each user's settings should be stored
When first installed, dtSearch will prompt a user for the location of the folder for the user's settings. Specifying the folder in the Group Policy eliminates the need for this prompt.
After setting up the Group Policy, click Save As to save the .MSI file to a location on your network that your users will be able to access.
6. Deploy the dtSearchDesktop.msi and dtSearchPolicy.msi files to your users.
When the steps above are done, you will have two MSI files in a network folder: dtSearchDesktop.msi (the program files), and dtSearchPolicy.msi (the settings for your network). It does not matter which MSI file is installed first, and you can uninstall and reinstall, or redeploy, either MSI file without affecting the other.