How to install GPP CSEs using a Startup Script

When you have the Group Policy Preference (GPP) Client Side Extensions (CSE) downloaded you'll notice that they are not (yet) in the .MSI format - so using Group Policy Software Installation (GPSI) is not possible. Bummer, right!?

We have .EXE files for Windows XP/2003 and .MSU files for Windows Vista... But that's not the only thing we need to think about. Before "deploying" these things to the clients on the network we need to know the OS version (XP/2003/Vista), the OS architecture (32 or 64 bit), the Service Pack Level, and whether or not the Group Policy Preference Pre-requisites (WmlLite - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/914783/en-us) are installed.

To make all this pretty easy I've created a "demo" script for deploying the GPP CSEs using Startup Script - or a manual launch (in admin context). My good friend Jeremy Moskowitz asked me to do this - so, a couple of hours later the "demo" - or "beta" - script is public (download below)...

Note: I haven't been able to test in all scenarios yet, but I *think* they are all covered pretty well by now. Please report back if you find any problems - any feedback is welcome!

Download the VBS script right here!

NB! You might need other language version for the XmlLite GPP CSE Pre-requisites, so watch out!

Running the script in your production network is on your own risk. The code is delivered "As Is" - totally free of any charge. No strings attached.

I hope this works out nicely for you!

Jeremy Moskowitz