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EzDee36

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  1. We have only begun researching Windows 7, but I thought I'd share what we have learned so far. This is for people who are trying to use Sysprep to create standard images (for Ghost or whatever), and would like to add 3rd party drivers. Option #1 For those of you who had been using Windows XP Sysprep you probably used "OemPnPDriversPath". When you launched Sysprep it used that setting to append entries to the following registry key: “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\DevicePath” Each folder specified in "OemPnPDriversPath" (delimited with a ";") would be prepended with "%SystemDrive%\". This is why it was required that the folder be located on your C: drive. You were permitted to MANUALLY edit the registry key to search other locations , or use the manual method only and skip the Sysprep entry. We have tested the manual method with Windows 7 and it still works. We assume it was added for backward compatibility. What’s new, versus Windows XP, is you do not have to enter every single subfolder in the device path. Windows 7 will automatically look in all subfolders. Our DevicePath value has the following data: “%SystemRoot%\inf;C:\Drivers” When PnP enumerates for devices, it searches the DriverStore and all subfolders in the DevicePath for INF files with compatible PnP IDs. After PnP creates a list of potential drivers, it compares the driver ranking of all compatible IDs and selects the driver with the lowest rank. If the selected driver is not in the DriverStore, it is populated at this time. Option #2 There is a tool included in Windows 7 called PnPUtil.exe that can pre-populate drivers into the DriverStore. The command line is quite simply: “pnputil -a {path_to_inf}\{some_driver}.inf” We noted about a 3 second time saving per driver when PnP installed devices using this method (test computer was a Core2 Duo). This utility also allows you to remove unused drivers from the driver store, if they are no longer required or are being replaced with newer drivers. Option #3 Windows 7 also includes a tool call PnPUnattend.exe. This tool can be used to force install drivers. We have seen Internet postings of people using this method to install all their drivers, but have not tested or seen any advantage of using it. Some claim that less functional generic drivers were ranking better than manufacturer supplied drivers, but one can assume it’s more likely caused by a poorly written driver. Notes: - When using PnPUtil.exe, if the same version of the driver is already installed, it states the driver was successfully added even though it didn’t do anything. - DriverStore is located in C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore If PnP is initialled during the boot process and it does not find a compatible driver, the device shows up under Unknown Devices in Device Manager. It will remain an unknown device even if the driver has been added to the device path or the DriverStore, unless the unknown device is uninstalled from Device Manager or there is user intervention. By user intervention we mean either: Right-click, update driver, automatic search “Scan for hardware changes”. Useful links: MSDN article on How Setup Selects Drivers including driver ranking: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms791096.aspx Great article on unattended Vista installations (uses PnPUnattend): http://dtmjedi.com/InsideVistaSetup_DtmJedi.htm
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