Draft - RES 101

Published: 23 March 2015 - Last update: 12 Dec 2015 (c) Nicolai Kjaer / Spinner Software B.V.

This page is meant as a quick guide to RES for packagers, with additional tips and tricks along the way.

For experienced packagers, this is the easiest explanation: RES is a desktop manager that uses MS AD (Active Directory) for getting user and group info, and MS SCCM (System Center Configuration Manager) or MS App-V for getting deployment and application info. While there are more options for the backends, these would be standard for a Microsoft customer.

As packager you provide a Building Block (xml file and subfolders) for app info, restrictions, user (HKCU) settings, etc. The server team can import the Building Block and link it to an SCCM deployment - so you may need to provide an SMS file as well.

MS App-V : Apps run in a bubble (merged virtual/real OS).
Citrix XenApp : Stream apps to run in an bubble (isolated environment).
VMWare ThinApp : Apps run in a bubble (merged virtual/real OS).
MS TS RemoteApp : App runs remotely via TS, merged with real OS.

1. RES uses the OSD file for App-V packages. The data in the OSD is copied then modified in the RES db.

2. RES uses a RES Building Block xml file for packages. Verify: With subfolders for IconCache, Objects, Resources? A reference would be cool.

3. When you're using SCCM as the distribution backend, RES can use packages and programs from there. You can specify that an installation should run when a user clicks the app shortcut for example.

For mandatory profiles, application configuration changes made by the user are not persisted. You can Enable the RES\Composition\User Settings | Track User Settings option to keep user settings. You can then add (using templates) which settings are captured, and how persistent they are.

Their example uses Word to change a user setting and show it's not persistent, then change the RES User to capture stuff from a Word template which is set up to capture:

File: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Office\Word.OfficeUI
Folder tree: %AppData%\Microsoft\Word
Reg tree: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word
Reg tree: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\Word
Reg tree: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Commmon\Toolbar...

References: 
RES Tutorials: Capture targeted items..
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU58yE_5zGI
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMIHzjD38EQ
Part 3 (tracking any changes for an app): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjcfbmwIfHI

References:

Blogs: http://blog.ressoftware.com/index.php/category/tech-tips/

Unfortunately, everything else on their site requires a login :(.

Admin guide available from http://support.ressoftware.com - Library.

Learning centers: http://www.ressoftware.com/partnering-with-res/by-type/ralcs.

Self-study kits: http://support.ressoftware.com > Downloads.

RES online Learning: http://tutorials.ressoftware.com

Youtube:
All RES Tutorials: https://www.youtube.com/user/RESTutorials/videos?view=0&sort=da&flow=grid

SCCM integration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBc_VSBVRxg
SCCM/RES: Install via SMS when user clicks a shortcut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CncS4Tp3Vgg

Citrix - using the streaming profiler ?
Citrix/RES: XenApp server deployment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T53CuoLhg6A
Citrix/RES: Adding a .profile to managed applications: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7K_turAz60
Citrix/RES: publish a RES managed app to/as citrix xenapp: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guGd2yXw0zM

RES/App-V: from osd/app-v package to managed app: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUXpiD4ic4s

The RES software used to be called PowerFuse.

My notes from self study

Going through each chapter..

Any notes.

(c) 2015 Nicolai Kjaer, Spinner Software B.V.