I previously documented how to deploy Camtasia Studio 6 with Group Policy and now it’s been time to update to version 7 for my organization. There isn’t really much of a trick required for the actual deployment of Camtasia. TechSmith provides the installer in the form of a .msi file and it works perfectly well to just deploy that file and have it installed on your client computers. The real trick (and why it’s worth sharing) comes to deploying a licensed version of Camtasia Studio 7 so you don’t have to run around and enter the license keys for your customers. We might as well make it easier on them and on ourselves.
This article may seem sparse on details but that is because only a slight update is needed from the Camtasia 6 deployment instructions to accommodate version 7 (technically version 7.1 as of writing). For more details, I recommend you read that article first and then return here for an update to the procedure.
You can get the .msi file needed to deploy Camtasia from a URL provided in your purchase receipt e-mail or download the latest Camtasia Studio trial, with a license key it’s fully functional. Use the .msi and create a normal software installation package inside your GPO. You may need to use selective deployment to remain compliant with your licenses.
The other thing we’ll need to do inside this Group Policy Object is apply the license key. To easily do that, you can use the Administrative template I’ve updated to version 7. You can download the Camtasia7.adm file I created from here: http://www.404techsupport.com/blog/Camtasia7.adm
Once you have the file downloaded, you can open it in Notepad and check for yourself but it only provides a prompt to allow you to easily set the two needed registry keys in HKLMSoftwareTechSmithCamtasia Studio7.0: RegisteredTo and RegistrationKey
With the file downloaded, right-click on Administrative Templates under Computer Configuration and choose ‘Add/Remove Templates…’ In the window that pops up choose ‘Add…’ and browse to the Camtasia7.adm file you just downloaded.
In order to view this homemade template, we’ll need to change some filtering options. Go to the View menu and choose Filtering… Then on the window that pops up, uncheck “Only show policy settings that can be fully managed” and hit OK.
Now under Adminstrative Templates, you should find a Camtasia 7 License folder. Open it up and configure the Registered To and License Key values. Enable the settings and enter your details. The only specific is that the license key should be entered with no dashes or spaces, this is a change from Camtasia 6. With both those settings enabled and entered correctly and the software installation package ready to go, your GPO deployment of Camtasia Studio 7 should work flawlessly.
If you were previously deploying Camtasia Studio 6, disable the Camtasia License settings in its previous version and let it apply to your machines before you remove that template. This just cleans up the previously created registry entries.
Best of luck with your deployments!