Distributing Applications to Users and Workstations

Novell® ZENworks® for Desktops (ZfD) Application Management lets you distribute applications to users on Windows 98 and Windows NT/2000/XP workstations.

The distribution process for an application might be as simple as creating a shortcut to an already installed network application, Web application, or terminal server application, or it might be as complex as installing the application files on the workstation, modifying the workstation's registry and configuration settings, and mapping drive paths.

Regardless of the complexity of the application, however, the basic distribution process consists of the following five tasks:

  1. Create the application's file package on a network resource (network server, terminal server, Web server).
  2. Create an object, called an Application object, in Novell eDirectoryTM. This defines the application in eDirectory and enables it to be configured and managed in eDirectory. The Application object contains information about how the application files should be distributed (for example, copied to the workstation if necessary) and run (for example, launched from the workstation, a network server, or a terminal server).
  3. Using the Application object, define the system requirements that a workstation must meet before Novell Application LauncherTM will distribute the application to it.
  4. Associate the Application object with the users or workstations you want the application distributed to.
  5. Ensure that users (or workstations) have sufficient eDirectory rights to the Application object and file access rights to network resource where the application files reside.

The following sections help you complete these tasks: