[You are Here] Part 1: Dell Command Update – Leveraging with ConfigMgr – Offline Repo Overview
Part 2: Dell Command Update – Create Custom Catalog for Offline Repo
Part 3: Dell Command Update – Creating the Offline Repo Content
Part 4: Dell Command Update – Offline Repo – TS Integration
Part 5: BONUS: Dell Command Update – Automation with PowerShell (at least the parts you can)
So I’ve blogged about using DCU in the past:
- Say Goodbye to Dell Driver Management – Use Dell Command Update in OSD – GARYTOWN ConfigMgr Blog [2016]
- Dell Command Update Tips for Enterprise Automation – GARYTOWN ConfigMgr Blog [2019]
- Dell Command Update via Task Sequence – GARYTOWN ConfigMgr Blog [2019]
But I didn’t really get deeper into how to build out an Offline Process for using DCU in a disconnected environment. Why, because its super frustrating to do. By far the worst OEM experience I know for build offline repositories and deploying them. However since I took time to figure it out, I figured I’d try to spare others the same pain I did.
@Dell Employees who read this, if I’m wrong on any point here, please correct me. Reach out to me on twitter and show what could have been done to make this easier. I know I make mistakes, and this was so crazy odd, that I feel I must be doing it wrong.
High Level Requirements:
- Access to the Dell Tech Direct Portal (this could be a non-starter for some, as it might be controlled by others in your organization who don’t want to open it up to you.
- Pro: It has a GUI web interface to build your offline repo
- Con: It has a WEB interface, that isn’t intuitive, and if your organization wants to do some custom offline repos, and other devices where you just trust Dell with the latest and greatest… it’s a hot mess
- While I’m annoyed at the portal, let me say their lack of a MFA integration with an Authenticator App really bothers me. Maybe that’s an upgrade from the free version??
- Create the Repository Metadata [in portal]
- Pick your models you want to support with your catalog. This is where you have to decide, do you want 1 or a few massive offline catalogs, or one per model? I personally am doing 1 per model so I can easily control what is going on.
- Pick your OS, and updates, and move on
- Promote from draft to test or prod and download the stub file
- Extra the Zip file you download from the Portal and Build Offline Repo
- Run some fancy commands with the EXE provided in the ZIP file to create a folder with the Offline Repo content
- Create the CM Package with the Repo Content & Distribute
- Create the CM Package with Dell Command Update
- Create a Script that configures DCU to use Offline Repos and Runs DCU pointed at that offline Repo, and then cleans up the Offline Repo Settings
Ok, so I as go over the high-level, I’m realizing that this is going to be a long post. There is just SO much to it. I should probably break it out into several smaller nuggets, so maybe that’s what I’ll do, and I’ll just make this post the Overview Post to prep you for the following posts coming…
- Creating the CM Packages to host your Dell Offline Repo Content
- Creating the Catalog Metadata in Dell’s Tech Direct Portal (Requires you already have access)
- Building the Dell Repos and putting into CM Packages
- Integration with ConfigMgr Task Sequences
For a sneak peek at some of the process, you can see it in the MMS presentation Mike & I gave at MMS 2024. MMS 2024 at MOA: Driver Management in the Enterprise – Co… (sched.com)
Question, if anyone has any idea why they would want to use Offline Repos with Dell Command Update in the “Modern” Intune world, please let me know, and I’ll gladly cover turning this into an Intune Package to deploy
Planning on working on these posts over the next few weeks.
GARYTOWN.COM