Release Notes

This is where you find the changes to the latest and the greatest...

3.0.8.0 - 2023-01-13

  1. Fixes issues with OSD Toolkit Turbo writing incorrect registry keys causing progress bars from updating.

3.0.7.0 - 2023-01-08

  1. Fixes an issue with BCEnabler Move command not reading the build versions.

3.0.6.0 - 2022-12-08

  1. Changes to registry keys for download statistics for improved tracking.

  2. Changed incorrect error log level entry to informational level.

  3. Changed incorrect error log level entry to warning level.

3.0.5.0 - 2022-11-23

  1. Fix for broken Turbo, the Turbo now retries without the risk of breaking the hash of the file being downloaded.

  2. Updated reporting of the Turbo feature. We now write each Turbo exit code to the content registry key.

  3. Updated with more information on registry keys for each download for post deployment troubleshooting.

  4. Support for setting BranchCache into local mode vs distributed mode depending on speed of transfer.

  5. Fixes an issue where Windows 11 WinPE media creates a BranchCache database that is then wrongly imported into Windows 10. We recommend using Windows 10 WinPE media for deploying Windows 10. Databases are now never transferred if WinPE version is higher than the target OS.

  6. The BITSACP now supports switching servers if runtime servers are not responding correctly and other servers are available.

  7. Fixes an issue where special ACL's are written to the download folder when content is downloaded for individual accounts.

  8. Updated script for reporting on download times and execution times available here: https://github.com/2pintsoftware/OSDToolkit

3.0.3.0 - 2022-10-06

  1. Added support for detecting sites with great bandwidth moving client to non BranchCache.

  2. Fixes an issues for Turbo in networks generating a large amount of timeouts. We have another better potential in testing in testing now.

3.0.2.0 - 2022-07-18

  1. Fixes an issue where modern CPU's seems to overload the network when using Turbo feature, causing the BranchCache API's report that no more data is available on peers in some circumstances (even though it's available on peers).

3.0.1.0 - 2022-07-04

  1. Fix for ACP Turbo feature to work with CCMTOKEN based authentication.

3.0.0.8 - 2022-02-04

  1. Fixes an issue where HashGen.exe (Turbo feature) caused hash mismatches.

  2. Fixes an issue where HashGen.exe was not providing progress.

  3. Fixes an issue where HashGen.exe was providing progress even if it was disabled.

  4. Fixes an issue where BCEnabler.exe sometime failed to configure BranchCache.

  5. BCEnabler support for Windows 11 PE versions.

  6. BCEnabler.exe has improved logging.

  7. BCEnabler.exe will now return an error code if BranchCache fails to initialise properly.

  8. Added support for Upload Jobs on the BITSACP. More coming on this.

  9. Reworked BITS logic for modern Windows 10/11 PE versions.

  10. Fixes an issue if the Network Access Account is not required for WebDav access but is required for the BITS jobs.

  11. Support for restarting bits Jobs in the Error state.

2.9.4.0 - 2021-08-23

  1. New support for USB drives as part of caching as part of USB key concept described here: https://2pintsoftware.com/usb-branchcache-better-together/

  2. Fixes an issue with the BITSACP if several Network Access Accounts are used and the password is expired on one of them, leading the BITSACP into a never ending loop.

  3. Fixes an issue if BITSACP service is left behind due to app crash.

2.9.3.7 - 2021-06-11

  1. Fixes an issue where only the x86 version of WinPEGen.exe is available.

  2. Fixes an issue where x86 WinPEGen cannot create x64 media properly when StifleR is integrated in the boot image.

2.9.3.6 - 2021-06-01

  1. Fixes an issue where logging is not reporting OK if BITS job status stays in "Connecting" mode and never transfers to "Transferring" state although the job is transferring.

  2. Fixes a division by zero issue that can happen under certain scenarios which crashes the ACP.

  3. Fixes a potential integer overrun for very large files and very slow networks.

2.9.3.5 - 2021-04-27

  1. Adds functionality to avoid having to run BCEnabler.exe after reboots in WinPE.

  2. Updated logging for certain cases.

  3. Ensures BCEnabler.exe cannot run in Full OS.

2.9.2.25 - 2020-11-26

  1. Minor release allowing for future phone tethering capabilities.

2.9.2.22

This release incorporates important bug fixes.

  1. Fixes issues where system registry is not unmounted properly due to handle still active when using BranchCache version 1 (For Windows 7, yes that still exist).

  2. Resolves a logging issue where a log statement crashes the BCEnabler if port and BCVersion is not specified on the command line. (Not that anyone runs BranchCache on default port 80 right???).

  3. Fixes a cache issue where the NTFS ACL's are not set correct in some circumstances. This leaves the cache dead in the water and BranchCache is not working correctly in the full OS. This issue was introduced in 2.8.2.9 and later versions and the results depends on several factors as disk layout etc. For machines built on these versions, check that the cache is set correct, and if not, the fix is to run the following commands (as an example)

    Netsh BranchCache Reset

    Netsh BranchCache set service mode=distributed

  4. OSD Toolkit version and BCEnabler binary versions are now being transferred to the full operating system registry under HKLM\Software\2Pint Software\BCEnabler

2.9.2.19

Release to fix some of the functionality we broke in the 2.9.2.6 release as well as disabling the WinHTTP intergration with BranchCache to help with our customers using ConfigMgr with Enhanced HTTP. (Contact us for more info on this issue)

  1. Fixes regression when cache is present in OS image being applied, which breaks BCEnabler MOVE step.

  2. Fixes for HTTPS ConfigMgr environments where we select the wrong virtual directory to authenticate with.

  3. Improved handling where Turbo takes a second to release file handles. Improved work to troubleshoot hash issues.

  4. WINHTTP is disabled in WinPE to improve reliability in CCMTOKEN scenarios.

  5. Removed last entries for policies for BranchCache.

  6. Fixed issue where BranchCache would cause a BSOD with "CACHE MANAGER" on reboots in WinPE.

  7. Fixed issue where the improved logic to change the cache location causing issues to re-initiate old caches on reboots.

2.9.2.9 - Introducing 'Turbo Edition'

This was a quick release to fix some previous issues in 2.9.2.6 around HTTPS and CCMTOKEN paths and to enable licensing for the Turbo feature.

  1. Turbo - read about the Turbo feature here - https://2pintsoftware.com/the-updated-osd-toolkit-turbo-feature/

  2. Turbo now also work on HTTPS with PKI scenarios

  3. Turbo mode now requires a license key - please see https://2pintsoftware.com/pricing/ for pricing details

  4. Allow HTTPS override in full OS where no Network Access Account is available and BITSACP fails due to lack of credentials, we then redirect to HTTPS on SMS_DP_SMSPKG paths.

  5. Fix for bugs when HTTPS usage in full operating system environments where no Network Access Account is present.

  6. Fix for StifleR Service not started in all scenarios by BCEnabler.exe.

2.9.2.6

This was a major rework of the OSD Toolkit to improve stability and performance of both the BCEnabler as well as the BITSACP. Please test in QA/Test environments before deploying in production to make sure that all your scenarios are working.

  1. Changes to BCEnabler logic for improved stability

  2. Changes to Firewall transfer rules to full operating system

  3. Fixes bug if version is not specified on the BCEnabler Enable command line

  4. Changes to allow turbo for 5 files, largest first if over 100MB in size

  5. BITSACP: Improved progressbar to also who peer data

  6. Improved support for PSD

  7. Fixed hash issues where small packages might fail

  8. Fixed BCEnabler Move issue when moving from other disks

  9. Improved logging to roll over if log files are over 1MB in size

  10. All logging is now in to the SMSTSLog folder

  11. Improved spelling and grammar in log files, thank you Mikael Nyström for going through all logs

  12. Turbo feature completes download if 100% of files are available locally

  13. The BITSACP.EXE, HashGen.exe and BranchCacheTool.exe are all signed

  14. BITSACP.EXE, HashGen.exe and BranchCacheTool.exe are all moved to full OS disk as part of the BCEnabler MOVE command line options.

1.9.7

This is the 1.9.7 release version of the executables, future binaries and capabilities might differ greatly.

This release contains the following features:

  1. BranchCache WinPE Generator - For creating BranchCache enabled WinPE Images

    1. There are two versions, one x86 and one x64

      1. Both versions can be used to create x86 and x64 images. Only difference is of course that the x86 version of the tool does not run on a x64 system.

    2. To reiterate, the tool architecture has nothing to do with the generated architecture of the boot images.

  2. BITS & BranchCache WinPE Enabler – For enabling BranchCache in WinPE task sequences/command line deployments

    1. Both x86 and x64 versions are included

    2. These are automatically injected into WinPE versions created by the Generator tool.

    3. Initializes BITS and starts dependent services

  3. Alternate Content Provider for WinPE and Task Sequences

    1. BranchCache BITS BranchCache Downloader with BITS & BC Integration (BITSACP.exe)

    2. Both x86 and x64 executables are available, although x86 should work on x64 in most circumstances as well (not in WinPE as syswow is not included)

    3. Runs in both WinPE as well as full OS

    4. Generates the same reporting structure if the BITS Reporter is on the system

Happy Caching!

//The 2Pint Team

BranchCache First Timer?

If you are not familiar with BranchCache we recommend that you take a look at our BranchCache page before continuing with this document as it covers several key factors of BranchCache.

http://2pintsoftware.com/microsoftbranchcache

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