Get started with UE-V 2.1 SP1

Follow the steps in this guide to quickly deploy Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V) 2.1 SP1 in a small test environment. This article helps you determine whether UE-V is the right solution to manage user settings across multiple devices within your enterprise.

The standard installation of UE-V synchronizes the default Microsoft Windows and Office settings and many Windows app settings. Make sure your test environment includes two or more user computers that share network access.

• Step 1: Confirm prerequisites: Make sure your environment is able to run UE-V, including details about supported configurations.

• Step 2: Deploy the settings storage location for UE-V 2: All UE-V deployments require a location for settings packages that contain the synchronized setting values.

• Step 3: Deploy the UE-V 2 agent: To synchronize settings using UE-V, devices must have the UE-V agent installed and running.

• Step 4: Test your UE-V 2 evaluation deployment: Run a few tests on two computers that have the UE-V agent installed and see how UE-V works.

Before you proceed, make sure your environment includes these requirements for running UE-V.

• MDOP license: This technology is a part of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP). Enterprise customers can get MDOP with Microsoft Software Assurance.

• Administrative credentials for any computer where you install UE-V.

You need to deploy a settings storage location, which is a standard network share where user settings are stored in a settings package file. When you create the settings storage share, you should limit access to users that require it. For more information, see Deploy a settings storage location.

1. Create a new security group and add UE-V users to it.

2. Create a new folder on the centrally located computer that stores the UE-V settings packages, and then grant the UE-V users access with group permissions to the folder. The administrator who supports UE-V must have permissions to this shared folder.

3. Assign UE-V users permission to create a directory when they connect. Grant full permission to all subdirectories of that directory, but block access to anything above.

   1. Set the following share-level Server Message Block (SMB) permissions for the settings storage location folder.

      Expand table

      User account	Recommended permissions
      Everyone	No permissions
      Security group of UE-V users	Full control

   2. Set the following NTFS file system permissions for the settings storage location folder.

      Expand table

      User account	Recommended permissions	Folder
      Creator/owner	Full control	Subfolders and files only
      Security group of UE-V users	List folder/read data, create folders/append data	This folder only

The UE-V agent synchronizes application and Windows settings between users' computers and devices. For evaluation purposes, install the agent on at least two computers in your test environment that belong to the same user.

Run the AgentSetup.exe file from the command line to install the UE-V agent. It installs on both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems.

AgentSetup.exe SettingsStoragePath=\\server\settingsshare\%username%

You must specify the SettingsStoragePath command line parameter as the network share from Step 2. For more information, see Deploy a settings storage location.

You can now run a few tests on your UE-V evaluation deployment to see how UE-V works.

1. On the first computer (Computer A), make one or more of these changes:

   1. Open to Windows Desktop and move the taskbar to a different location in the window.

   2. Change the default fonts.

   3. Open Calculator and set to scientific.

   4. Change the behavior of any Windows app, as detailed in Managing UE-V 2.1 SP1 settings location templates using Windows PowerShell and WMI.

   5. Disable Microsoft Account settings synchronization and Roaming Profiles.

2. Sign out Computer A. Settings are saved in a UE-V settings package when users lock, sign out, exit an application, or when the sync provider runs (every 30 minutes by default).

3. Sign in to the second computer (Computer B) as the same user as Computer A.

4. Open to Windows Desktop and verify that the taskbar location matches that of Computer A. Verify that the default fonts match and that Calculator is set to scientific. Also verify the change you made to any Windows app.

You can change the settings in Computer B back to the original Computer A settings. Then sign out Computer B and sign in to Computer A to verify the changes.

• Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V) 2.1 SP1

• Prepare a UE-V 2.1 SP1 deployment

• Administering UE-V 2.1 SP1

• Technical reference for UE-V 2.1 SP1