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Web Based Computer Lab Imaging with Grimiore

Published:11 October 2009Publication History

ABSTRACT

We present Grimiore, a web-based frontend for the disk imaging software Clonezilla. Grimiore was created to maintain computer labs in an academic setting. Each class had different needs for software and operating systems, yet classes compromise on what is installed so they can coexist in the same lab. Reinstalling the operating systems on the lab computers takes too long to be done daily, for each class. Labs, which are maintained by the professors, also face the problem of malfunctioning computers, and the time needed to troubleshoot the issue or reinstall the computer's operating system is often not available during the semester.

Grimiore allows administrators to restore and maintain an entire lab of computers, rather than a single computer or a single homogenous image. Administrators can create a lab configuration for each use of the lab, and restore them with a single option. Grimiore stores configuration data for each computer in each class, allowing lab configuration to contain heterogeneous images. Finally, Grimiore is web-based and provides administrative control over the entire imaging system, as well as user level control over a single client computer. Professors can modify entire labs with one operation. Students can repair the computer they are logged into.

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    • Published in

      cover image ACM Conferences
      SIGUCCS '09: Proceedings of the 37th annual ACM SIGUCCS fall conference: communication and collaboration
      October 2009
      342 pages
      ISBN:9781605584775
      DOI:10.1145/1629501

      Copyright © 2009 ACM

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      New York, NY, United States

      Publication History

      • Published: 11 October 2009

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