Cross-platform in an industry standard term used to express hardware or software compatibility.
In relation to Dell Configuration Services (CS), when the term cross-platform is used in conjunction with operating system imaging, we're referring to the process whereby an operating system disk image, when applied to different computer models or platforms - functions correctly with any and all of the different hardware, firmware, driver configurations on first boot; meaning - there is no extra work required to download drivers and update the operating system to support additional hardware for different computer platforms.
Below is a list of the Dell & Microsoft cross-platform imaging solutions that Dell CS supports for factory imaging.
- Dell ImageAssist = Free Dell Tool & Support
- Dell KACE
- Microsoft Deployment Toolkit = Free Microsoft Tool
- Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager with Operating System Deployment
The main difference between the paid-for and free versions of the utilities above comes down to enterprise level features and OS deployment functionality.
Dell Configuration Services (CS),can pre-load the new systems you order with images created using any of these technologies. Save time on new system deployments by having this completed ahead of time as systems are being manufactured.