App Packaging for a Modern Workplace

The Challenge

Our client believed they had an estate of approximately 400 applications that required to be analysed, rationalised, packaged, tested and deployed for their Windows 10 roll-out project. The client’s intent was to deploy these applications via Microsoft Intune which required the applications, each to be packaged as a single MSI file.

Quorum were required to:

• Assess the applications for deployment via this method and provide advice..
• Rationalise the application estate, including removing functionality overlaps.
• Recommend the testing approach.
• Produce testing schedule and testing results documentation.
• Repackage all applications to the customer’s required standards, automating application install via repacking efforts and managing/simplifying license management.

Our Solution

Quorum carried out a complete application discovery piece, initially starting with in excess 400,000 unique software instances within the discovery report supplied by the customer. This was obviously a far greater number than initial expectations. Using our expertise and experience while also liaising with key stakeholders this was rationalised down to 89 applications deemed to be in-scope. These applications were then individually analysed before being re-packaged to allow for automated deployment using the Microsoft InTune platform. The InTune platform, at this point, was still quite immature within the client.

Packaging Standards documentation was created to ensure uniformity in the ongoing management of the application estate and the full process was documented to assist in future packaging activities. Using industry standard packaging tools (admin studio, orca) all applications were repackaged to the customer’s required standards to ensure automated delivery was achievable within Intune.

The Result

The client now has a complete set of applications ready for automated deployment within the new environment. This has also allowed them to better understand the applications used and their criticality to the business.

• 100% of in scope applications were packaged.
• 98% reduction in volume of the application estate.
• 42% reduction in packaging effort due to simplification.

To assist the customer in business readiness, all in scope applications have been migrated to a Windows 10 environment. The customer now has a clear view of their application estate, a knowledge of which applications can/cannot be taken forward into a Windows 10 platform as well as having far better visibility of the license costs and implications of these. As part of our handover process we demonstrated to the customer how application migration sits in the middle of their target operating model (TOM).

Quorum took the relevant area of the customer’s business on a journey; teaching them how to package up their own specific applications, working closely with them to drive simplification of these and in the process received excellent feedback from their head of department:

“Thanks everyone, Great to see collaborative working and forward/ future planning that will protect our staff’s access to the applications and ensure service delivery.”

Contact us today to see how we can help you move your legacy desktop applications into a modern management platform.