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Samba 3 and Windows Vista Clients

An Example Samba-Vista Deployment

VistaPrep version 1.0 - released 1 Oct 2008

For those that comprehend things better by example, or those that want a quick guide to Vista-izing your Samba Server, this section is for you. This page explains pretty much the exact way that I prep my networks for Windows Vista Clients.

Note: The networks that I maintain are mostly Suse Linux Enterprise Servers (SP2), along with a few Ubuntu LTS servers (ver 8.04). These instructions will probably work with any recent Linux Distro / Samba release, but I am not guaranteeing anything.

Windows Vista Workstation Prep

These are the instructions that need to be done on the Vista Workstation prior to joining the Samba Domain:

Ensure Network is correctly configured - Vista brings a new utility that manages network connections. This step is not 100% necessary, but is recommended. Ensure that the network adapter is part of a Private Network and it is also recommended that you enable File and Folder sharing (for ease of Administration). This all can be done within - Control Panel - Network and Sharing Center.

Run Vista Preparation Scripts - This is where you adjust Vista preference and apply various Policies to make Vista a little more User friendly and more like previous versions of Windows. The script that I use is coded in the kixtart scripting language and can be downloaded here:

VistaPrep version 1.0 - simply extract the zip archive and double click on "vistaprep.exe".

I highly recommend that you either utilize this script or create one similar to this for your own network, your users will thank you for it.

Join Vista Workstation to Samba Domain - The final step is to actually join the Workstation to the Samba Domain, this is done the exact same way as every other Windows Client (within System Properties).

Samba Server Preparations

Once you prep and join your Vista Workstation, there are only a couple of settings that you need to adjust on your Samba Servers before your users login.

Ensure Home Share has Hide Files Added - If you implement any type of folder redirection, where the redirected folder is located on a Samba Share, you must ensure that the new "hidden Vista folders" are also hidden on your Samba Shares. Do this by adding something similar to your Samba Share(s).

hide files = /desktop.ini/*utloo*.lnk/*Briefcase*/*RECYCLE*/

Vista-ize Your Network Logon Script - The last thing to look at is to adjust your logon scripts to accommodate Windows Vista. This should include any Folder Redirection settings needed for the User, any registry settings that you want the user to have, then optionally, if the user is in the Administrator's group, have the script re-assure the correct policies and registry keys are set as well as set any new policies you want the workstation to have. For instance my logon scripts basically do this:

  1. If in Admin Group, Sync the Time with the Server
  2. Map the P: Drive to the User's Home Share on the Samba Server
  3. Map the Network Shares according to User's Group Membership
  4. If Running Windows Vista - Apply Folder Redirection Settings
  5. If Running Windows Vista - Apply User Registry Keys
  6. If Running Windows Vista & in the Admin Group, (Re)-Apply Policies

I use Kixtart for my Logon Scripts, and example can be viewed here:

Example Logon Script for Vista

Final Thoughts

Hopefully the information listed here has helped you in deploying Samba Servers with Windows Vista Clients. Granted that these workarounds still have some downsides, such as all the policies cannot be easily applied by using groups (unless all your Users are Administrators), but in most situations these instructions should work fine.

Some of this information may change, so this article may change over time. Also if you find any useful registry keys that you set across your network let me know and I will add it too the appropriate section.

Mike Petersen