Configure Deployment Processes

The Deployment Processes page lists all your Application Manager deployment processes. You can also add new deployment processes and pause all deployment processes from the same page.

Deployment Process list includes the following information:

• Applications: Number of applications in the deployment process. Click the number to view and manage the applications in the deployment process.
• Status of the deployment process. The status can be:
  • Successful - The application was imported successfully to MECM.
  • Running - The application import is in progress.
  • Pending run - A new deployment process that has not started. To start the deployment process, click the ellipsis (...)  in the Actions column and click Run.
  • Paused - The deployment process is temporarily stopped and Application Manager won't import new versions of the selected applications.
  • Warning - The application was imported into Configuration Manager, but Application Manager wasn't able to create all the specified deployments. Make sure any specified collections exist in MECM.
  • Error - The application import failed and requires troubleshooting.
• Total Process Time: The number of days from the start of the first deployment step to the end of the last deployment step. 
• Actions 
  • View Details including the applications included, the total duration, the list of deployment steps, and any delays.
  • Click the ellipsis (...) to Run, Pause or Delete the deployment process. Select Manage Settings to modify all deployment process related settings.

A deployment process defines a set of applications to be deployed to specified collections. A deployment process is made up of one or more individual deployments, each of which deploys the same set of applications out to different device or user collections. 

We recommend configuring options on the Deployment Processes page, rather than via the Setup Wizard, for deployment processes with more advanced settings.

Create a New Deployment Process

Each deployment process consists of applications to deploy and the collection(s) to which the applications will be deployed.

To create a new deployment process:

1. In your Recast Management Server, navigate to Application Manager > Deployment Processes.

2. On the Deployment Processes page, click Add Deployment Process.

3. In the Select Application(s) side panel that opens, search for and select the applications to deploy with this deployment process. Click Next.

4. Name the deployment process and click Next.

5. From the list of collections drawn from your Configuration Manager environment, select the device or user collection to which you'll first deploy the chosen applications. You may, for example, want to start by deploying the applications to a collection of Testing Devices.

6. Click Save & Close to return to the Deployment Processes page. The first deployment step will be listed under the deployment process name.  

TIP: To delete a step in the deployment process, click the ellipsis (...) and select Delete Deployment Step from the drop-down.

7. Set when the deployment will be forced. You can choose to initiate the installation Immediately or you can give users a grace period of 1-7 days to manually set their deployment time before the installation is forced.

Deploy the Applications to Another Collection

You can install the same application updates on another collection by adding a deployment step to your deployment process.

To add a deployment:

1. Click the plus sign (+) to the right of the deployment process name. In this example, the deployment process is named Common apps.

2. In the Add Collection side panel that opens, select the collection to which the applications will deploy next. In this example, the target collection is IT Department Devices.

3. Click Save & Close to return to the Deployment Processes page. A second deployment will be listed below the first.

To edit a collection, click the ellipsis (...) to the right of a deployment step and select Edit Collection from the drop-down.

Add a Delay Before a Deployment Step

You may want to add extra time ahead of a deployment step to, for example, allow for feedback following the initial test deployment.

To add a delay:

1. Click the ellipsis (...)  to the right of a deployment step.

2. Select Add Delay from the drop-down. A Delay X days row will appear above the chosen deployment step, meaning that the delay will happen before that step.

3. Select a number of days to delay the next deployment step in the list.

TIP: Hovering over a delay on the timeline opens a summary of delay details.

View Deployment Process Duration and Schedule

As you add collections and set the start of each deployment step, the timeline will reflect the duration and schedule for the deployment process. You can scale the timeline by Week or by Month. The total deployment duration is the number of days from the deployment availability time (in Software Center) to when the application is installed automatically.

Example Deployment Process

In this example, Microsoft Edge and Mozilla Firefox are deployed to the AM - Pilot and AM - Production collections.

• AM - Pilot deployment will start immediately after the selected application is imported into Configuration Manager.
• AM - Production deployment will start 5 days after the AM - Pilot deployment. The installation deadline is 1 day after the availability time.

TIP: Hovering over a grey bar on the timeline opens a summary of when the deployment is available and when it will be installed automatically.

To review and/or edit your deployment process settings:

On the Deployment Process Details page, click the ellipsis (...) next to a deployment step and select Manage Settings from the drop-down.

NOTE: Settings marked with a caution icon are set directly within the deployment process. Any changes to global settings won't be inherited by this setting.

You can manage the applications included in an Application Manager deployment process straight from the Deployment Processes page in the Recast Management Server interface. 

Click on a number in the Applications column to view, add or remove applications. The list of applications is searchable and sortable. 

Sort the Application List

By default, the application list is sorted in ascending order, first by vendor and secondly by application name. Where sorting is applied, the selected options appear next to the column header label.

To sort the application list differently:

1. Click on a column header one or more times to cycle through and select sorting options. 

2. Click Save & Close to save your changes.

Add an Application to a Deployment Process

To add an application:

1. In the Select Application(s) side panel, click the checkbox to the left of the application to add.

2. Click Save & Close.

Remove an Application from a Deployment Process

To remove an application:

1. In the Select Application(s) side panel, click the X to the right of the application to remove it.

2. Click Save & Close.

When you pause a deployment process, Application Manager temporarily stops importing new versions of the selected applications. If a deployment process is running, it will be paused after completion.

To pause a deployment process:

1. Navigate to the Deployment Processes page in your Recast Management Server.

2. Under the Actions column, click the ellipsis (...) next to the deployment process you want to pause.

3. Select Pause from the drop-down menu and confirm the pause.

The status of the deployment process will change to Paused.

To resume a paused deployment process, click Run in the same drop-down menu.

When you delete a deployment process, the applications included in it are no longer updated as new versions become available. You can delete a deployment process from either the Deployment Processes page or the Deployment Process Details page in your Recast Management Server.

NOTE: These steps remove the deployment process from Application Manager. To completely remove the applications, you'll also need to delete the deployments and the applications in your Configuration Manager console.

From the Deployment Processes page:

1. Under the Actions column, click the horizontal ellipsis (...) next to the deployment process to delete.

2. Select Delete from the drop-down and confirm the deletion. This action cannot be undone.

From the Deployment Process Details page:

1. Open More Actions by clicking the vertical ellipsis.

2. Select Delete Deployment Process from the drop-down and confirm the deletion.