Installing and Updating Games Across the Hall
Installing and Updating Games Across the Hall
Section titled “Installing and Updating Games Across the Hall”When a popular game gets an update and the club has a dozen PCs, manually touching each machine is slow. In IZI, game installation and updates go through the Hall view: place the PC on hold (booking blocked, players can’t get to it), disable disk protection (the freeze mechanism that rolls back changes on reboot), work in the launcher as usual, then re-enable protection in one click. The rest of the hall keeps running without interruption.
The workflow is identical whether you’re updating one machine or twenty — each PC is managed independently.
What you need
Section titled “What you need”- Access to Hall in IZI CRM (Administrator or Owner role)
- A game launcher on the PC (Steam, Epic Games, etc.) — installed when the reference image was built
- An open shift — hall management requires an active shift
Step 1. Place the PC on hold
Section titled “Step 1. Place the PC on hold”Open Equipment → Hall → Control Center. Find the PC card.
If an active session is running — end it first: device menu (three dots) → End session.
Then: three dots → Create hold. Enter a reason (“Game install” or anything descriptive) and set an end time. Click Create hold.
The PC card now shows a hold indicator — it can’t be booked by players.
Repeat for every PC you plan to work on.
Step 2. Disable disk protection
Section titled “Step 2. Disable disk protection”On the PC card, click the green shield icon — or three dots → Disable disk protection. Confirm in the dialog.
The PC reboots. After it comes back up, the shield icon turns red — changes to disk are now saved. The PC behaves like a regular computer with no freeze applied.
Step 3. Install or update games
Section titled “Step 3. Install or update games”Go to the PC (or connect remotely) and open the launcher. Install or update games as you normally would.
The IZI client continues running in the background — it doesn’t interfere.
After the download finishes, launch the game once to confirm it works correctly. This is the best time to verify, while disk protection is still off.
Step 4. Re-enable disk protection
Section titled “Step 4. Re-enable disk protection”Click the red shield icon on the PC card — or three dots → Enable disk protection. Confirm.
The PC reboots. The shield turns green. The current state is now the new restore point: everything installed stays, anything added after this point rolls back on the next reboot.
Step 5. Remove hold
Section titled “Step 5. Remove hold”Three dots → Remove hold. The PC is available to players again.
Repeat steps 2–5 for each PC you worked on.
- Schedule updates at opening time or during low-traffic hours. See hourly load in Analytics.
- If a PC needs to be restored to a clean state without manual reinstallation, use IZI Boot to redeploy the disk image.
- For full disk image management details — Configuring IZI Boot and disk images.
Frequently asked questions
Can I update multiple PCs at the same time?
Yes. Put all target PCs on hold, disable disk protection on each, and run updates in parallel. Players cannot book machines on hold — the rest of the hall keeps running.
What happens if I disable disk protection without putting the PC on hold first?
The command won't execute — IZI ignores it without an active hold. This prevents accidental disk unlocking while the hall is live.
Do I need to quit the IZI client before installing a game?
No. The IZI client runs in the background and doesn't interfere with installation. Open any launcher directly and install as normal while disk protection is off.
Does disk protection re-enable itself after a reboot?
No. Protection stays disabled until you manually re-enable it via the device menu. Don't forget to turn it back on — otherwise the next reboot won't roll back accidental changes.
A player is in an active session. What do I do?
End the session first via the device menu in the Hall view. Then place the PC on hold and proceed.
Installed games disappeared after enabling disk protection. What happened?
This shouldn't happen. When you re-enable disk protection after installing games, IZI Boot takes a fresh snapshot of the current state — including the new games. Only changes made after that snapshot are rolled back on reboot. (Disk protection snapshots are managed by the IZI Boot server-side system.)