In the Boot Disk Creator there is a "Boot Task Type" selection. What do the options mean?

There are 2 different versions of Boot Disk Creator. While they share the same name they are, in fact, entirely separate. Functionality differs, and preboot operating systems are imported into each version separately. The Boot Task Type selections perform differently in the different versions.

To see the Boot Task Type options right click on a configuration in the Boot Disk Creator, then choose Create Boot Disk.

Standard Tools Boot Disk Creator:

This application is part of the Ghost Solution suite Standard Tools.

You launch this from Program Files (x86)\Symantec\Ghost\bootwiz\bootwiz.exe

Automation - This task type will load network adapter drivers and try to launch Ghost. (There is no Automation Agent in Standard Tools, so  when using Ghost Standard Tools Automation is the same as Network.)

Network - This task type will load network adapter drivers and try to launch Ghost.

StandAlone - This task type will not try to load network drivers and will not map the network drives.

Console Boot Disk Creator:

This application is part of the Ghost Solution Suite console. Launch this from within GSS by clicking Tools - Boot Disk Creator, or run \Program Files (x86)\Altiris\eXpress\Deployment Server\Bootwiz\bootwiz.exe

Automation - This task type will load network adapter drivers and launch the Symantec dAgent when it boots to automation. The agent will attempt to communicated with the Ghost Solution Suite server to find a task that is assigned to it. If there is no task assigned to the agent for a "known" computer, the agent will make the PC reboot to production. *

Network - This task type will load network adapter drivers and map the default express share (usually M: = \Program Files (x86)\Altiris\eXpress) but it does not launch the Symantec dAgent.

StandAlone - This task type will not try to load network drivers and will not map network drives. Since the console version of Boot Disk Creator does not allow the user to select OEM extensions, that means by default there will be no Ghost tools (such as ghost64.exe) on the boot disk. Since there are no Ghost tools, and no connectivity to the Ghost server, boot disks created with a StandAlone boot task type is not particularly useful in Ghost Solution Suite console version. To make it useful one would have to copy the Ghost tools to the boot disk.

* If a computer has a record in the Computers panel the Ghost console it is considered a 'Known' PC. Known PC's will not stay in an automation environment unless they have a task assigned to them that compels them to do so. By contrast, unknown computers will not be compelled to reboot immediately, rather they will boot to the PE environment, then wait. This will only be true for the first time the PC is booted into Automation, as after the first boot into the Automation environment, the PC becomes a Known PC which then requires a task to stay in Automation. If you delete a computer record from the Ghost console the computer will then be an unknown PC again, but you will lose history of any jobs that have been run on that PC. Be sure to shut down the PC before attempting to delete the agent from the console or it will reappear immediately when the agent checks in again.