JRE Deployment with Active Directory

This procedure describes how to obtain the .msi file necessary to deploy the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) across a Windows 2000/Windows XP Active Directory-based network. It works for version 1.4.2 and later of the JRE installers. Sun includes an .msi (Microsoft Installer) file bundled up in the JRE Windows Offline installers. The .msi file extracted below can be assigned to an Active Directory software distribution policy.

1. Download and launch the Sun JRE Windows Offline Installion executable (.exe) file.

2. Retrieve the ".msi" file from the LocalAppData folder (the user's Application Data folder). The LocalAppData folder will differ for each Windows platform.

3. Inside this folder you will find a folder named:

          {3248F0A6-6813-11D6-A77b-00B0D0150000}

   The first 2 digits are "71" for version 1.4.2_xx, and "32" for 1.5.0_xx. The last 6 digits of this CLSID and the name of the .msi file correspond to the release number. A CLSID ending with "150000" means version 1.5.0_00, and "142010" means verision 1.4.2_01

4. From there, you can use Active Directory to distribute this .msi file to as many client Windows platforms as you want.

5. If you want to register the JRE as the default VM of Internet Explorer and Mozilla, you will have to create a transform that will set the variables IEXPLORER and MOZILLA to 1 in the Property.idt table. You can find instructions on how to generate and use transforms at the Microsoft MSDN site.