Assess builds

Aug 14, 2017

The Build Assessment solution indicates whether applications will work on additional builds of the same OS family. Suppose that your reference build is Windows 8 and you need to know if the applications that work on it will also work on other Windows 8 builds, such as ones customized for call center employees. The Build Assessment solution performs a standard AppDNA analysis on the reference build and compares it to an analysis for each target build.

AppDNA creates the following build assessment reports:

• Build Assessment Summary Report — This report indicates for the reference and target builds the number of applications with issues that require fixes or cannot be fixed.
• Build Assessment Comparison Report — For each target build compared to the reference build, this report provides a high-level summary of RAGs for each build, a summary of RAGs by algorithm group, and a summary of RAGs for each application.
• Build Assessment Issues Report — Similar to the Application Remediation report, this report also includes details about compatibility issues that are image-dependent and that result from GPOs, security and machine lock down policies, and permissions on registry keys or file system entries.

You can mark applications that you have tested in the Configure Build Assessment solution wizard so that AppDNA ignores any potential issues on the reference and target builds. When you indicate an application is tested on the reference build, AppDNA ignores all amber or red RAGs for non-image dependent algorithms on the reference and target builds because those issues do not affect the application in your environment.

To configure a build assessment solution

Before running the Configure Build Assessment Solution wizard, gather the following information.

• The OS family and image name of your reference build

• The image name for each target build

  Tip: The easiest way to work is to import the target build images before starting the wizard.

• Which applications to assess against each target build

  You can assess all applications or choose the ones to assess.

• Which applications work on the reference build

1. In the AppDNA side bar, click Solutions and then click Add solution.

2. In the Solutions Templates page, select Build Assessment and then click Next.

   The solution wizard opens.

3. Identify the solution: In the Solution name page, type a Solution name and Description, to be used in the solution report.

4. Choose a reference build: In the Reference build page, select the OS family and Image that will be the reference point for the assessment.

5. Choose target builds and applications:

   1. In the Target builds page, click New and then select an Image.

      If a target image does not appear in the list, click Import images. You must then cancel the wizard before you can import an image. Follow the on-screen instructions and then return to Step 1 to configure the Build Assessment solution.

   2. After you select a target image, choose applications: In the Applications page, select the applications you want to assess on the target build.

   3. When you are finished with the Configure Builds page, click Next.

6. Specify the applications that work on the reference build: In the Validated Applications page, select an option.

7. To complete the solution:

   1. On the Summary page, click Build to save the solution.
   2. On the Progress page, click Analyze. When the analysis completes, choose report to view and then click Finish.

   To view the reports at any time: In the AppDNA side bar, click Solutions and then click the name of the solution.

To add a target build to a solution

1. In the AppDNA side bar, click Solutions and then click Build Assessment in the Solutions pane.
2. In the Build Assessment pane, locate the solution, click Add build under Target Builds, and then complete the wizard.

To change an application list

Follow these steps to:

• Change the list of applications on the target build to use in the assessment
• Change the list of applications that are validated on the reference build

1. In the AppDNA side bar, click Solutions and then click Build Assessment in the Solutions pane.
2. In the Build Assessment pane, click Edit beside the solution name.
3. Click through the wizard until you reach the page you want to change.
4. After you complete your changes, click Build and then Analyze.