Let me start by saying I know there are packages to do much if not all of this already.
Concise statement of a non-trivial larger concept is to have a Linux server make timed backups of several windows systems in a zero user interaction format- and be able to remote restore those boxes equally "no user assist" required.
Expanding the short concept as :
Backups being BOTH data AND drivers etc.
Restore as being from a file up to a drive wipe and reload using some image system.
The simple explanation is to make supporting windows boxes a bit less painful.
The expanded explanation is as "life support" while beginning a migration to Linux. The reason is that having such a system in place also becomes a pre-migration tool. Imagine doing a ms to LNX migrate where the majority of system users would already have server resident current recently checked backups before you arrive onsite? This is one way to make that possible.
OR the much more mundane target of being a data resurrection for non geeks
Here's where it gets potentially real rewarding. CAN this group we make up work together on making such a beast? My initial project vision is to break it down to baby steps. One bite ones.
First bite being a method of scripting the backups and archiving them. That means defining WHAT gets grabbed from where when etc rules and namespace conventions to make admin less painful. Since many windows users are schiziod in their file naming we have to be mindful of that.
Second Bite being creating the restore method/s. Ranging from a web menu to ?
Third is assembling a crude demo tabletop setup for degubbing.
While it's quite psychotic to even joke about- what a mindblower it would be at ITEC if we had a demo going. Just how fast CAN a network "drive image restore" of Ubuntu with the data from a typical windows cubicle farmer's level be run? that's to say - power up with formatted blank drive to fully usable Ubuntu with local copies of files? Showing that we can image up a Ubuntu workstation and have productive work restared faster than one could restore windows would be a kudo for Linux eh?
Oren