I recently transitioned to a new role where one of my responsibilities is modernizing EUC functions. A low-hanging fruit I noticed was around how Hardware Refresh is handled, specifically moving data. Due to the type of work that is performed, we cannot use current technologies such as OneDrive to simplify this process even further. Previously, the process involved manually copying user data to a USB stick, then transferring it to the new hardware—a method that's outdated and painfully slow. Enter USMT.
Over a decade ago, I created a USMT shell wrapper so updated this wrapper. Why not rewrite it in PowerShell, you might ask? Speed and simplicity. It was much quicker to update the existing script than to build a new one from scratch in PowerShell. Moreover, this presents a learning opportunity for some of my staff, as I plan to assign them the task of converting the script to PowerShell once we've agreed on the featureset.
What’s Changed?
Being over a decade old, I made several updates and enhancements based on the initial need. As Microsoft has not updated USMT MIG files (it is going away after all). I am leveraging EhlerTech's MIG files, which are outstanding. This update was focused on the USMT version (10.0.22621.1) within ADK 11 version 10.1.22621, as newer ADKs are a little buggy, but other versions should work fine, as its more about the Windows version. Here’s a breakdown of the major updates:
- Removed XP detection.
- Forced AMD64 for data capture (this can be toggled back if needed).
- Added Execution Escalation detection.
- Enabled the ability to exclude IT support staff escalated accounts from user captures.
- Expanded store file detection from just the (destination) C drive to multiple drives, supporting USB storage, which can be faster than gigabit networking anymore.
- Implemented detection for Windows 10 or 11 as the source, ensuring the correct MIG file is used during capture.
- Introduced a switch to specify a specific sAMAccountName for data capture.
What’s Next?
While these updates mark significant progress, there are additional improvements I'd like to make in the future, particularly once we transition to PowerShell. Some ideas include:
- Supporting ARM64 captures and destinations if needed.
- Enhancing USMT store file detection to ignore mapped drives etc.
- Add UNC error handling
- Make DOMAIN a variable for easier sharing
- Add OneDrive Detection
