Create custom pages using MDT UDI Wizard designer

Recently I read a request from a Technet user about his requirements around generating a prompt with build options using SCCM and / MDT only for SCCM OSD Task sequence.

I have done the similar prompts using HTA, VB script and other third-party tools.  So I thought I will give a crack at this using MDT UDI Wizard Designer. Surprisingly it took less than 10 min to create the prompt, which is easier then creating from HTA, VB script or any other methods.

This is a quick article to explain how to create build type prompt to technician.

In this how to document, we will edit the existing UDIWizard_Config.xml file to customise the UDI pages. Make a copy / backup of default UDIWizard_Config.xml file before start editing xml file. Then we will add a custom page to the UDI Wizard with few labels and assign task sequence variables to those labels.

Go to Start -> All programs -> Microsoft Deployment ToolKit

Launch UDI Wizard Designer as administrator. If we launch UDI Wizard designer as normal user, we won’t be able to save the UDIWizard_config.xml file back to MDT Share. That is why the UDI Wizard Designer has to be launched as Administrator.

Select Open from the Home tab then browse to the location of UDIWizard_Config.xml in your MDT installation path or the location where MDT package is stored.  UDIWizard_Config.xml file will be located in %MDT Package%\Scripts\.

Opening the UDIWizard_config.xml file will display there StageGroups by default.

Expand StageGroup: New Computer;

By default the new computer stage has 11 different pages. If required we can customise them as needed. To remove a page from stage group; right click on the page then click on Remove Item;

I have removed all the default pages then added 4 custom pages Welcome, Deployment Readiness, Language and Install Program pages. Now we will add “Choose build type” page to the StageGroup.

Click on Add Page from ribbon; then Select Build your own page from Add a Page to the Page Library window

Give unique display name and page name to the page. I have named the display name and page name “Choose Build Type”. Now this page will be added to the page library on the left side of the column in UDI Wizard. Select build Type page from page library then drag it to New Computer stage group, place it in-between other pages as desired.

Now the StageGroup: New Computer will look as below;

Select newly added page, click on Configure. This will open My Custom Page canvas where we can add our customization.

On the canvas I will add 3 radio buttons and name them Pre Stage, New Build and Rebuild.  On the Layout tab we will add a Label for each of the radio button (Pre Stage, New Build, Re build), add Value for each label (PreStage, NewBuild, ReBuild).

On the Settings tab we give task sequence variable name (BuildType).

So what happens here is when we use the task sequence variable ‘BuildType’ it validates the values, when the values returns true the task will be executed.

Save the UDIWizard_config.xml file then exit the UDI Wizard designer. Distribute the updated MDT package to all the distribution points.

Till this stage we have completed designing a page, created labels with values and task sequence variable.

Next we need to integrate the UDI page to the task sequence and create a task to validate the task sequence variable. For testing purpose I want to create a pause step and this step will be executed by task sequence if the Task sequence variable for BuildType is equal to PreStage.

Open an existing task sequence in edit mode, add Run Command line step then add following command

cscript.exe "%DeployRoot%\Scripts\UDIWizard.wsf"

Start in: %TOOLROOT%

I will be using previously created package (TSPaused) package to pause the task sequence. Identify a step where we want to add a pause step then Add Run Command line step to the task sequence configure the  step as below;

On the Options tab, select Add conditions then choose Task Sequence Variable. On Enter the task sequence variable to evaluate;

Variable: BuildType

Condition: equals

Value: PreStage

Then click OK.

When the step is complete, the task will look like as below;

Save the changes and exist the task sequence editor.

Now the time to test our work.

Boot up a machine, select the task sequence which we have updated with the UDI and Pause package. When the task sequence reaches the UDI page, we will be prompted UDI window for action.

The UDI Wizard will display the first screen - Welcome Screen;

Deployment Readiness;

Time Zone selection;

Build Type;

and install applications;

 

Once we click on Finish button, the task sequence will continue.

When the task sequence reaches Pause task, it will evaluate the condition.  On the built type selection I have chosen PreStage  so the condition will validate as true /equal then executes the task and populates the pause window as below;

That’s it. We have successfully created a user selection options, populated custom task sequence variable then validated with task sequence.

More over everything has done with SCCM and MDT, no scripting and no third-party tools involved.