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This article explains the steps to follow to deploy NetSupport Notify via Active Directory Group Policy.

Creating your installation package
The following files are required to perform an Active Directory installation (they need to be placed in the package):

  • NetSupport Notify.msi
  • NSN.ini (the component file which tells the installer which components to install, i.e. Agent, Console)
  • NSN.lic (Licence File)
  • Config.dat file (Agent Configuration File)

The MSI installation file can be downloaded from our main download site www.netsupportsoftware.com/download or from your my support account (if you have registered) at www.netsupportsoftware.com/support

You will find the NSN.ini and NSN.lic on an existing Notify Server/Console installation and the Config.dat file will be located on an existing machine with the Notification Agent installed.

Setting installation options
The installation options required for NetSupport Notify deployments can be set using the NSN.ini. The NSN.ini file should be copied to the package storage location as specified above. The deployment installation will automatically detect the presence of the file and install the application with the specified installation options. The NSN.ini file contains full examples of the installations options that can be set, making it very easy to configure.

Configuring the Notification Agent (Config.dat) for the installation
The configuration changes that you make within the AgentConfig.exe file are stored in a file called Config.dat.

  1. Navigate to:
    32bit C:\Program Files\NetSupport\NetSupport Notify
    64bit C:\Program Files (x86)\NetSupport\NetSupport Notify
  2. Run the AgentConfig.exe.

  1. Enter the IP address of the Notification Server.
  2. Enter the port number that the Notification Server is configured to use, the default port is 443.
  3. Enter the Gateway key, then confirm the Gateway key.
  4. Click OK.

Configuring the installation package within Group Policy
Once you have the files, place these in the Package folder. This location must be accessible by all Agent machines you wish to deploy to, and they must also have read access for these files. We recommend you use a UNC path and not a mapped drive as the Agent machines mapped drives may differ from machine to machine, i.e. \\server\share\NetSupport Notify.msi.

  1. Open Group Policy Management.
  2. Right click Group Policy Objects and select New. Enter a name so it is clear what package you will be distributing, i.e. NetSupport Notify Agent.
  3. Right click the Group Policy Object you have created and select Edit. The Group Policy Object Editor will open.
  4. In the Group Policy window, you are given two possible installation types/levels for the NetSupport Notify package: “Computer Configuration” and “User Configuration”.
    If you use “Computer Configuration”, the package will be installed before the user is prompted to log in. The installation will use the System Service Account to install the package.
    If you use “User Configuration”, the package will be installed when a user logs on. Please note that the user will require administrator rights to install the software at this level.
    We recommend installing the package under “Computer Configuration” to prevent the possibility of any issues installing at “User” level.
  5. Select the type of configuration you require and go to Policies > Software Settings > Software Installation.
  6. Right click Software installation and select New > Package.
  7. You will be prompted for the location of the package (NetSupport Notify.msi). Ensure when selecting the package, you enter the full UNC path, i.e. \\server\share\NetSupport Notify.msi
  8. When prompted for the deployment method, select Assigned.
  9. The package will be displayed (there may be a brief delay). If you selected the “User configuration”, right click the package and select Properties. In the Deployment tab, select the Install this application at logon option.
  10. Close the Group Policy Editor.
  11. This policy can be linked to the desired OUs by right clicking the OU and selecting Link an Existing GPO. You can then select the policy that was created and click OK.

If you have deployed at the “Computer Configuration” level, the Agent machines will need to be restarted for the software package to be installed. If the package is set at the “User Configuration” level, it will require the user to log off and back on again.

When creating the package, you will only see the installer file (NetSupport Notify.msi), but as long as the additional files (NSN.ini, NSN.lic and Config.dat) are located in the same UNC path, it will read the files during the deployment.

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