Hardware Independent Imaging (HII)

Overview

HII is a process within Provisioning that allows you to use one image for hardware across multiple vendors and models. HII can be used with any imaging tool (ghost or imagex for example) and is useful for injecting boot critical drivers (such as network and SATA drivers).

Technical Explanation

When you deploy an image created using HII, the imaging script boots the device to the
Windows preboot environment. In the preboot environment, the HII tool will select the
appropriate HAL .dll file and load it.
The OS is installed on the device, but before the OS boots, the HII imaging script
determines which drivers are required by the device and copies the driver files to the
device's hard disk.
The drivers are added to the device's registry, so that when the OS boots the Windows
setup detects the new drivers, installs them, and configures the device with the drivers.
Windows then restarts with the drivers running, and the Management Suite agent is
installed.

Limitations

Landesk will only allow up to 300 files to be added per HII item
No option to sliently install unsigned drivers

Landesk Community Documents and Discussion

Procedures

Managing the HII driver library
Using HII with Windows 7
Using HII with Windows XP

Issues

On Windows 7, HII copies the folder structure of the drivers to the proper folder but none of the files are copied (and the drivers are therefore not installed). It is unclear if this issue will be fixed by the latest MCP Landesk patch or if there is something else wrong with the process. Additional info can be found in this Landesk discussion post: http://community.landesk.com/support/message/62563#62563

Alternatives to Landesk HII

Drivers can be added directly to the image into the PnP Driver folder specified in the answer file. Adding too many drivers can cause you image to grow rapidly in size.
DISM
DPInst