MDT 2012 Beta 2 integration in ConfigMgr 2012 RC

On 10 november 2011 the Beta 2 of Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2012 is released. MDT 2012 can be used as a single OS deployment solution, but can also be used for ConfigMgr 2012 RC integration. In this blog I will describe the installation, integration and new functionality.

What's new in MDT 2012 Beta 2:
MDT 2012 Beta 2 offers new User-Driven Installation components and extensibility for Configuration Manager 2007 and Configuration Manager 2012 as well as integration with the Microsoft Diagnostics and Recovery Toolkit (DaRT) for Lite Touch Installation remote control and diagnostics.

Key benefits include:

• Full use of the capabilities provided by System Center Configuration Manager 2012 for OS deployment.
• Improved Lite Touch user experience and functionality.
• A smooth and simple upgrade process for all existing MDT users.

First download Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2012 Beta 2 on Microsoft Connect: https://connect.microsoft.com/site14/Downloads/DownloadDetails.aspx?DownloadID=8689

Make sure ConfigMgr 2012 RC is installed for this integration. This is decribed here: Installing the ConfigMgr 2012 Release Candidate (RC)

Then install MDT 2012 Beta 2 with the default features.

After installation start "Configure ConfigMgr Integration".

The next screen will be displayed then:

All needed values are filled in by default, so move on. When installation is all fine "Operation completed successfully" is displayed.

Start the ConfigMgr 2012 RC console for new MDT features now.

Beneath Software Library > Operating Systems > Task Sequences, the following option is added:

Choose "Create MDT Task Sequence" for a new task sequence with MDT functionality.

For people who used MDT 2010 integration in ConfigMgr 2007, this screen looks very familiar.

It is also possible to select MDT features in existing task sequence. Just edit them, and choose Add > MDT

Have a look at my older blogpost for more explanation of all choices: MDT integration in ConfigMgr 2007

Beneath Software Library > Operating Systems > Boot Images, the following option is added:

Choose "Create Boot Image using MDT" for a new boot image with MDT functionality.

At last you can use the build-in scripts that's included with MDT, for using in ConfigMgr 2012 Task sequences. With MDT integration in ConfigMgr 2012 you have the best of both worlds. And with new functionality in MDT 2012 here is even more available! (User Driven Installation)