| Area/Feature | ADS 1.1 | WDS | Microsoft Deployment (Lite-Touch) | ConfigMgr 2007 | ConfigMgr 2007 with Microsoft Deployment |
| OS Deployment |
| | Architectures | x86, x64 | x86, x64, IA-64 | x86, x64 | x86, x64 | x86, x64 |
| | Operating systems | Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 | Windows 2000 and later | Windows XP and later | Windows 2000 and later; WePOS & WinFLP | Windows 2000 and later; WePOS & WinFLP |
| | Client and/or server | Server only | Client and server | Client and server | Client and server | Client and server |
| | Image-based vs. setup.exe | Image only | Image only, except setup.exe in RIS mode | Image and setup.exe | Image and setup.exe | Image and setup.exe |
| | HAL agnostic | No | Yes, for Vista/WS2008 and later | Yes, for Vista/WS2008 and later | Yes, for Vista/WS2008 and later | Yes, for Vista/WS2008 and later |
| | Source of Configuration Data | ADS database (SQL) | Active Directory | .INI files or SQL database | ConfigMgr database (SQL) | ConfigMgr database (SQL) |
| | Automatic generation of unattend files | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Image Management |
| | Format of images | IMG | WIM. Also RISETUP and RIPREP in RIS mode | WIM | WIM | WIM |
| | Image are interchangeable across products | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Replicate images to multiple locations | No | Manage externally via DFSR | Manage externally via DFSR | Yes | Yes |
| | Binary delta replication | No | Manage externally via DFSR | Manage externally via DFSR | Yes | Yes |
| | Pre-stage to target computer before starting deployment | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Multicast image to target computers | Yes | Yes | Yes, using WDS | Yes | Yes |
| | Bandwidth management of image xfer | No | Yes when multicasting | No | Yes when pre-staging | Yes when pre-staging |
| | Reference computer build & capture | Manual | Manual | Automated via task sequence | Automated via task sequence | Automated via task sequence |
| Device Driver Management |
| | Insert drivers into OS image | No | Install fixed set of drivers via unattend.xml commands | Automatic at deployment time based on PnP ID | Automatic at deployment time based on PnP ID | Automatic at deployment time based on PnP ID |
| | Insert drivers into WinPE | No | No | Admin initiated | Admin initiated | Admin initiated |
| | Reporting on driver availability for devices across an organization | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Disk Management |
| | Complex repartitioning & formatting | Yes | Yes | Via custom diskpart scripting | Yes | Yes |
| | Deploy multiple partitions and data images | Yes | No | Yes for multiple partitions; no for data images | Yes | Yes |
| | Deploy and enable BitLocker configurations | No | Yes, as a start-up script in the OS image | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Automate setup of RAID/SAN/iSCSI | Yes, with vendor tools | No | Yes, with vendor tools | Yes, with vendor tools | Yes, with vendor tools |
| | Virtual floppy for pre-OS hardware setup | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Network Management |
| | Migrate network settings | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Network connectivity assumptions | Well-connected only | Well-connected only | Well-connected only | Well-connected or poor/intermittent connection | Well-connected or poor/intermittent connection |
| | Works for static IPs with no DHCP | No | Yes with bootable media | Yes, except PXE | Yes, except PXE | Yes, except PXE |
| | IPv4 and IPv6 | IPv4 only | IPv4 only | Works only in IPv4 environments; can configure some IPv6 settings | IPv4 and IPv6 (except PXE) | IPv4 and IPv6 (except PXE) |
| Deployment Models |
| | PXE initiated | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Removable media (CD, DVD, USB) initiated | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Client OS initiated | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Push/pull model | Push and pull | Pull only | Pull only | Push and pull | Push and pull |
| | End user choice of image to deploy | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Fully unattended option | Yes | Yes after initial PXE boot | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Offline deployment from media | No | No | Yes | Yes, including CD/DVD spanning | Yes, including CD/DVD spanning |
| | Deploy to unrecognized computers | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| End-to-end process |
| | Task sequencing | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Task sequence conditions & groups | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Task sequence parameterization (with variables) | Per-computer | No | Yes, from rules using LTI database | Per-computer and per-collection with override | Per-computer and per-collection with override |
| | Migrate user state & settings | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Install patches | No | From a file share for Vista/WS2008 and later only via built-in OS capability | Yes, from file share | Yes, integrated with ConfigMgr Software Update Management | Yes, integrated with ConfigMgr Software Update Management |
| | Install applications | Yes | Yes, via unattend.xml or startup scripts, from file share or baked into image | Yes, from file share | Yes, integrated with ConfigMgr software dist | Yes, integrated with ConfigMgr software dist |
| | Install Vista/WS2008 and later language packs | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| | Install server roles (AD, File/Print, DHCP, DNS, etc.) | Yes, as custom actions | Yes, as start-up scripts | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Obeys maintenance windows | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Works in a NAP environment | No | Post-deployment actions could fail if quarantined | No | Yes, task sequences wait for remediation before continuing | Yes, task sequences wait for remediation before continuing |
| | Wake-on-LAN integration | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Security |
| | Encrypts "secrets" on the network | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Encrypts "secrets" on the target computer | Yes | No | No | Yes, except during Vista setup phase | Yes, except during Vista setup phase |
| | Strong authorization of target computer | Yes | No | No | Yes, except for PXE | Yes, except for PXE |
| | Encrypts user state during migration | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Encrypts images on the network | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Password protect deployment media | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Reporting |
| | Aggregate status of all deployments | Yes | Via Crimson events | Yes with OpsMgr | Yes | Yes |
| | Detailed status of individual computers | Yes | Via Crimson events | Yes with OpsMgr | Yes | Yes |
| Admin UI |
| | Central monitoring of deployments | Yes | Only for multicast transmissions | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Task sequence editor | Limited | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| | Sophisticated targeting | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Multiple simultaneous IT admins | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| | User access controls | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| | Scriptable | Yes, with WMI | Partial via COM+ | Scriptable .Net data layer | Yes, with WMI | Yes, with WMI |
| | Localized | No | Yes, to Windows Server languages | As funded by country subs | Yes, to ConfigMgr server languages | Yes |
| | Framework technology | MMC 2.0 | MMC 2.0 | MMC 3.0 | MMC 3.0 | MMC 3.0 |
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