Deployment options for Windows XP/Vista/Server

[JonnMann]

Hi,

I hope I have asked this in the right forum - the question kind of covers several areas...I am looking at the available options for managing our IT environment of 50-60 PCs, laptops, etc. We have PCs running Windows XP, Vista Bus. and Server 2003. These PCs are a mixture of employee laptops and desktops, training laptops and desktops, and servers. I am looking for a "zero touch" method of pushing out OSs as well as ways of continuning to monitor the systems after deployment - updates, applications, inventory, etc.

On the training machines, it is also necessary to be able to re-deploy OSs regularly as we run training courses weekly - I have also been looking at virtual machines for this purpose. Some of the training machines are in remote offices to which deploying images from a central location would not be practical.

The products I have been looking at are Systems Management Server 2003, System Centre Essentials 2007 and Business Desktop Deployment 2007. We currently use Symantec Ghost for imaging PCs but I am not happy with this method.

Can you suggest any other tools from MS that might be of interest? At the moment, the only tool that seems to really do ALL of the above is Systems Management Server. Would you agree?

Thanks for any advice!