Tip 6: Shrink and Simplify OS Images with Dynamic Driver Provisioning

With Dynamic Driver Provisioning in Windows 7, IT professionals can reduce the size of their images and reduce the number of images they maintain. And IT pros don’t need to update images when they introduce new hardware into their environment. By storing drivers centrally on deployment servers, separate from images, IT professional can install drivers dynamically or assign sets of drivers based on information contained in the BIOS.

If they choose to install drivers dynamically, Windows 7 enumerates Plug and Play devices during installation. Then, it chooses drivers based on the Plug and Play IDs of the actual devices on the PC.

Reducing the number of drivers on individual PCs reduces the number of potential driver conflicts. This ultimately streamlines installation and setup times, as well as improves the reliability of the PC.

For more of Dynamic Driver Provisioning, check out the Deployment Image Servicing and Management screencast available on the TechNet Springboard Series site.