Schedule

One of the earliest activities in planning a pilot is to start a schedule. Include tasks for planning the pilot, preparing the users and sites, deploying the pilot, and testing during the pilot. Remember to schedule time for training users, support staff, and the installation team. Also allow time to inventory the sites, upgrade hardware, and evaluate the pilot. You might need to include tasks for developing the support and communication mechanisms you identify during planning.

To create the schedule for the deployment phase, you need to know the number of computers to be upgraded and the estimated time it takes for each one. Determine how many machines you plan to upgrade per day and the sequence in which you plan to upgrade them. Think through which hours of the day and which days of the week are best for upgrading servers and client computers. Should you upgrade computers during off-hours to avoid disrupting users? Should you upgrade clients during working hours so that the users can attend training during that time? Do you plan to require that end users receive training before you upgrade or install their computers with Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Professional? If you do, the training schedule is a dependency for your pilot deployment.

As you deploy the pilot, you can refine your schedule with updated estimates based on your installation experience so that it is more accurate for the full deployment.

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