Skype Transform / Deploying Skype
First things first, grab the Skype business version from the Skype business site. This has no adverts and is an MSI file for simple deployment.
You’ll probably want my Skype Transform which will remove the desktop shortcut and prevent Skype from auto starting with windows.
You can now deploy Skype in your prefered way (Group Policy, SMS, Microsoft Deployment etc). If you’re using Microsoft Deployment, you can use the following command:
msiexec /i SkypeSetup.msi /quiet TRANSFORMS="NoDesktopShortcutNoAutorun.mst"
Hello,
Could you please send the mst file ? Is it free ?
best Regards
Hi Andre,
The download link is in my blog post. Anyhow, you can download it from here:
http://davehope.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/nodesktopshortcutnoautorun.mst
Thanks,
Dave
Here’s the problem that I am running into: I deploy the Skype msi using my administrator account from a network share.
Each time a user logs into a workstation and launches Skype for the first time, Skype tries to run through a setup phase and complains that it can’t find the original msi file. Which is true; our users do not have administrative access and they certainly don’t have access to our software distribution points.
So. what is this setup phase that runs with each user’s first launch, and how do I install this application such that this does not happen? I’m thinking this is so that Skype can create per-user desktop icons and registry auto-run keys? (NOT a “business” feature, rather an annoyance)
I’ve tried:
msiexec.exe /qn /i SkypeSetup.msi ALLUSERS=1
I’ve also tried:
msiexec.exe /qn /i SkypeSetup.msi ALLUSERS=1 STARTSKYPE=FALSE INSTALLLEVEL=1 TRANSFORMS=:RemoveStartup.mst TRANSFORMS=:RemoveDesktopShortcut.mst”
Thank you
Hi Dave,
I got the mst – but I don’t have the old msi.
Do you know the exact the mst file does to the msi so it can be applied to the current version of Skype? Or do you have the old version of Skype?
Thanks!
Hi
Its been years since I last looked at deploying Skype, however I’ve just knocked a quick MST up. It prevents Skype auto starting and removes the desktop short-cut.
Download Skype for Business from:
http://www.skype.com/intl/en-gb/business/download/downloading/
And get the transform from:
http://davehope.co.uk/Projects/MST-Skype51.mst
Install via a GPO, or:
msiexec /i SkypeSetup.msi TRANSFORMS=MST-Skype51.mst /qn
Hi. One quick question concerning the MST. How did you create it? Is there a customization wizard for Skype similar to those created by Adobe? Thanks!
Afraid there’s no tool that I’m aware of for Skype. It’s a case of editing the MSI with something like Orca and generating a transform.
Damn. can’t someone just post the friggin’ MSI???
It’s right there on the Skype site. See the link in my post.
No, I mean the modified one. Apologies.
If you’re deploying Skype in a corporate environment, you’re probably better off using the transform as you can persist your changes when they release new versions.
Alternatively, if you use something like InstEd or Orca, you an produce a single MSI from an MSI and MST.