streaming exe vs msi

[Mike_MT]

I'm not sure which is better for my situation. I have a LAN (no WAN links to deal with) and I will primarily be using view 4.6 (linked clones) with thinapp 4.6. Desktops are floating - they are provisioned/used/deleted/reprovisioned as they are used. I want to just stream applications as users want to use them, but I am unclear about which way is better - streaming an exe or msi... Any thoughts?

Also, I'm not sure what the best way is to distribute the apps to users - should I make a folder with shortcuts on everyone's desktop? What is the best way you have used/seen?

Mike

[Cievo]

I always prefer to use streaming model, because I think MSI are for laptop. You use linked clones to save space on storage, but if you install MSIs on all linked clones they will eat space on your storage and idea of saving storage space when using linked clones is gone.

I would thinapp applications, put them somewhere on fileserver share. For distribution of thinapp application shotrcuts I would use thinreg.exe utility in logon script for users. Thinreg.exe will create shortcuts and make file associations for you based on thinapped application settings.

[ChrisBCarlson]

I am so confused on streaming.

- you create your package, edit the .ini file to enable streaming.

- you scan your new app

-view finds it.

-you deploy it with the streaming option..

What does that give you? If i deploy this program to a certain amount of desktops with the streaming option does that give control over who has access to it? cause it sure does not seem like it. i must be doing something wrong.. i see nothing installed and i do not see any shortcuts deployed to desktops to the SMB share that i have them hosted on.

However i can create a shortcut on my desktop to the exe file on the server and run it like that but none of my file assoations work unless i tell the file to open with that shortcut. I do not want to have to do that to every ones computer.

I have tried looking a bit on some examples of streamed apps vs full assignments and i cannot find it anywere.

If anyone could find a good writeup/walk through on how to set up any application with these two options that would be great.

thanks

[Mike_MT]

If you have Active Directory, this is a great way to do it:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR9b5ELaVEw

Basically you create the thinapps as exes with dat files, assign permissions using AD groups (or users), and run a simple script to populate/create icons on the users Desktop and/or Start Menu (edited in package.ini).

[ChrisBCarlson]

so the question is.. for example with adobe reader x 10.0.1 .. how would you associate pdf files with that application that is entitled to them? because once they open a pdf file from an email or somthing it has no file type. Now i know how to associate programs with file types.. but how would you do that automatically once the program is provisioned to them.