Agent Installation › Installing an Agent on a Windows System › Workflow for Agent Installation on Windows

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Workflow for Agent Installation on Windows

Use the following workflow as a guide:

  1. Plan agent deployment on Windows in a way that makes it possible to use the same response file for multiple silent installations without modification..
    1. Identify the Windows hosts to target for agent installation. Identify a host for first installation and connector export, and then one for testing silent installation.
    2. Plan a common user name and password to define on each target host for the low-privileged user.
    3. View or set the agent authentication key to use for all installations.
    4. Identify the host name or IP address of a common collection server for Windows agents. (Those agents can be installed with the same response file.)
    5. (Optional) Create a setup checklist with these values.
      • Installation path for installed agent: C:\Program Files\CA\elmagent\.
      • FIPS mode: enable or disable
      • Collection server hostname or IP address
      • Agent authentication key
      • Agent user name and password
      • Name of the connectors file you plan to export: Connectors.xml.
  2. Prepare a host and install the first agent.
    1. Create a low-privileged agent-user account with the planned credentials.
    2. Grant the agent-user access to Windows Security.
    3. Download the agent binaries to the desktop for interactive installation.
    4. Install the agent interactively and verify successful agent installation.
  3. Prepare files for broad deployment and test a silent installation
    1. Identify a test host, that is, a host on which to create a response file and test silent installation.
    2. Create connectors on the first installed agent, test them, then export the connectors. Save the Connectors.xml file to the %WINDIR% directory on the test host.
    3. Download agent binaries to %WINDIR%.
    4. Create a low-privileged user with the planned credentials and grant the agent-user access to Windows Security.
    5. Create a response file, using the values you recorded in the setup checklist.
    6. Invoke a silent installation on the test host.
    7. Confirm that results are desired results for remaining agents. If not, make the needed adjustments before continuing.
  4. Prepare remaining target hosts and deploy agents with tested files.
    1. Identify the rest of the target hosts for agent installation.
    2. Prepare each host for silent installation. If installing with the low-privileged user credentials, add the user and assign required access.
    3. Use CA Software Delivery to get the agent package; unseal the package and replace the sample response file with the response file you tested, and also add the Connectors.xml file. The package already contains the binaries.
    4. Distribute and deploy the packages to the target hosts with the CA Server interface.