SmartDeploy provides the capability of storing and deploying your golden Windows image, software, scripts, and drivers using Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive. Unlike other desktop management solutions, user PCs can be connected via wireless and do not have to be on a corporate network or connected through a VPN.

Windows 7 Imaging Software

Windows Image Software

Hi

I think it depends on your size/needs, despite SCCM being a Microsoft product it is brilliant and does what it says on the tin and whole lot more, however if you are thinking it may be overkill and it is literally an imaging/cloning/management solution you require then there are alternatives. We currently use SCCM/WDS at my current place for deployment as it fits the needs of a large university like ours, although in a previous position I had great success with FOG (Free Opensource Ghost). http://fogproject.org

To give you some idea of how robust and reliable FOG is, I maintained a High School IT estate with it for 4 years, and we re-imaged all site PC's once a year during the summer break. To put that into context, I would set the image process going on a Friday for around 700 PC's of differing makes and models with a uniform Windows hardware independent image pushed to all of them. By Monday this would be complete with an margin of error of usually no more than 5% (Things like loss of network connectivity, machines unplugged etc etc.)

One of the best things about FOG apart from its incredible reliability is that it is managed via a web interface. This meant I could monitor the progress of my imaging tasks from anywhere over the weekend, and make adjustments etc if I needed to. It also handles things like application deployment, distributed storage nodes for multi site imaging, Universal OS support (Yes including Mac/Linux and multiboot setups), AD joining, power management etc etc. Its incredibly scalable.

I know I sound like I'm on commission here but this product is completely free so nothing in it for me. I am just very very impressed with it as a solution. In my opinion for deployment and cloning, it walks all over anything else for ease of use. That said, if you need a more Microsoft environment integrated management solution then SCCM is the way to go.

My two cents :)

Sully

Windows Os Imaging Software

PS, If anyone mentions Symantec Ghost in this thread, you can take this as me scoffing at it in advance ;)