royalbox

@b0r3d Do you mean find and remove them from drivers.cab? I'm a bit scared to do that! I'm sure I read something once about forcing it to accept a driver but I can't think where it was. Thanks for helping.

Yes! Please understand I don't think my idea is superior and I'm not trying to get people to do it that way. It's the way microsoft suggest and I found it before I found this site and spent some time making it simple to do and I thought I'd share it for anyone else who wants to do it that way too. I also wanted those who were better at batch files etc. to improve it and make it easier if possible.

Here's a quote from the microsoft guide I used: You're not realistically likely to know what hotfixes would need to be re-installed -- at least I wouldn't anyway. Still, everyone has a choice how they install the hotfixes or even whether they want to install them at all. I just wanted to post something I use that others may find useful or not.

I added a bit to my script to update sp1.cab. I've added the bit before and after so you can see where it goes. You now need carbarc in the bin folder as well. I couldn't get either compression files to do all I needed. You have to extract the sp1.cab contents to files\sp1 rem move cat files to svcpack folder for %%i in (2\update\*.cat 2\sp2\update\*.cat) do move /y %%i 3\svcpack ::NEW BIT:: xcopy /d /h /u /y 2\*.* files\sp1 xcopy /d /h /u /y 2\sp2\*.* files\sp1 bin\cabarc.exe N 3\sp1.cab files\sp1\*.* ::END:: rem compress files and copy to output folder bin\compress.exe -d -r -zx21 2\* 3 bin\compress.exe -d -r -zx21 2\sp2\* 3 I've tested it and it will only add files that are already in the files\sp1 folder, and it will only add them if they are newer. The drawbacks are that the files will also be copied to the 3 folder and end up in i386, and it has to rebuild the cab when adding each new hotfix. Please improve it for me!

I've only just noticed the sp1.cab in the i386 folder. Why doesn't the microsoft guide mention this? Does this mean that files could still get changed to older versions if you uninstall/reinstall something?

EDIT:See my post later on. The zx21 is full compression. It is used in compress.exe. I don't know! I do know that compress.exe compresses each file in it's own cab and changes the extention to filename.ex_ automatically, which is why I used that. You could try something else and let us know how you got on. This is the method I came across first. I was responding to this: If it wasn't for this, I'd use the other way. I found it worked on all hotfixes with the white icon. Which one's doesn't it work on? It does mean the cd has the updated files if you uninstall and reinstall something later on though. I did this becuase it was in the microsoft guide I was following.Anyway, it's just something I use and thought I'd pass on.

Thanks for the info. I have to say that as soon as I see the corporate software developers favorite word 'solution' I just know I'm going to read something and at the end of it, not have a clue as to what it actually does! "resolution of application compatibility and user state migration issues" that sort of thing. I must be getting old. Perhaps I need a 'solution' that resolves reader understanding shortfalls by use of supplimental translation guidance (STG).

If I tell it exactly as it's laid out on my machine then you can adapt folder names etc. afterwards. I really do hope you can improve this or tell me if there are any problems or better ways to do it though. I have a folder called xpcd. In that I have folders called 1, 2, 3, bin and files. Contents of bin compress.exe which I think came with cabarc that I downloaded from microsoft. I don't have the link but I'm sure google will help. Contents of files dosnet.inf from the xp installation files which has the following added to it: [OptionalSrcDirs] svcpack hotkill.ini which you make yourself and put the following in it: *.pdb spmsg.* hotfix.* spuninst.* empty.* eula.* update.* spcustom.* xpsp*.exe sp1 symbols winnt.sif which has my serial number and other custom settings. At the root of the xpcd folder I have execute.cmd which does the work. It contains the following which I have commented so you know what's happening. @echo off setlocal enableextensions rem check if hotfix file exists if not exist 1\*.exe goto _end rem delete any files in extract folder if exist 2\* del /s /q 2\* rem extract hotfix to extract folder for /f "usebackq delims==" %%i in (`dir /b 1\*.exe`) do echo 1\%%~ni.exe /q /x:2 >>$x$.cmd call $x$.cmd del $x$.cmd rem check extraction took place if not exist 2\* goto _end rem create svcpack folder in output folder if not exist 3\svcpack md 3\SVCPACK rem move hotfix to svcpack folder move /y 1\*.exe 3\svcpack rem delete unwanted files from extract folder for /f %%i in (files\hotkill.ini) do del /f /q /s 2\%%i for /f %%i in (files\hotkill.ini) do del /f /q /s 2\sp2\%%i rem move cat files to svcpack folder for %%i in (2\update\*.cat 2\sp2\update\*.cat) do move /y %%i 3\svcpack rem compress files and copy to output folder bin\compress.exe -d -r -zx21 2\* 3 bin\compress.exe -d -r -zx21 2\sp2\* 3 rem create svcpack.inf file echo [Version] >3\svcpack.inf echo Signature="$Windows NT$" >>3\svcpack.inf echo MajorVersion=5 >>3\svcpack.inf echo MinorVersion=1 >>3\svcpack.inf echo BuildNumber=2600 >>3\svcpack.inf echo. >>3\svcpack.inf echo [SetupData] >>3\svcpack.inf echo CatalogSubDir="\i386\svcpack" >>3\svcpack.inf echo. >>3\svcpack.inf echo [SetupHotfixesToRun] >>3\svcpack.inf for /f "usebackq delims==" %%i in (`dir /b 3\svcpack\*.exe`) do echo %%~ni.exe /n /q /u /z >>3\svcpack.inf echo. >>3\svcpack.inf echo [ProductCatalogsToInstall] >>3\svcpack.inf for /f "usebackq delims==" %%i in (`dir /b 3\svcpack\*.cat`) do echo %%~ni.cat >>3\svcpack.inf rem compress svcpack.inf bin\compress.exe -d -r -zx21 3\svcpack.inf rem comment out the next line if you want to examing svcpack.inf afterwards. del /q 3\svcpack.inf rem copy winnt.sif to output folder if exist files\winnt.sif xcopy /y files\winnt.sif 3 rem copy dosnet.inf to output folder if exist files\dosnet.inf xcopy /y files\dosnet.inf 3 goto _end :_end That's it. You put your hotfix in 1 execute the batch file and the files are extracted and compressed into 3. You then copy all of folder 3 to your xp installation i386 folder. You have to let folder 3 'build-up' and not delete it after copying your files over or the next time you add a hotfix, svcpack.inf will only reference that one. I'm sure there are gaping holes, problems, unnecessary code, not enough code... but I'm no expert. That's why I really hope that people will post back any improvements. I should also say that this is for xp home with sp1 already slipstreamed that's why I'm only using the files from sp2 in the extracted files and not sp1. You don't have to compress the files if you don't want to but it would be tedious to go through the xp installation folder and delete all the files that would be replaced as they would be used in preference to the new ones. What I'm trying to say is for every new file like shell32.exe you would have to delete the compressed shell32.ex_ from the install folder. Too much hard work. The reason I bothered to compress svcpack.inf is that I spent hours one day trying to figure out why my newly installed windows would get to the boot screen then shut down. I forgot to delete svcpack.in_ from the xp installation files and it was using this in preference to my svcpack.inf file and so there was no reference to the updated cat files. Anyway I hope someone finds it useful.

I just extracted Startup.cpl and used the batch to copy it to system32 without worrying about the inf file. Is that no good?

Is there a way to force an xp unattended install to install the driver you want even if it would rather install it's own which it 'thinks' is better? Thanks.

Re the svcpack method. Two things. First, as I understand it you can't use this with the hotfixes that have the 'setup' icon with the picture on it. IE, OE and java updates etc. But it works well for the other type with the plain icon. Second, I spent some time making a batch script to automate the whole process. You start of with a hotfix in one folder, hit execute.cmd and you end up with the hotfixed files in another folder, compressed, with an svcpack folder containing the hotfix and cat file, and an updated svcpack.inf file all ready to just copy over the top of your xp instalation files. Some points. Newer files don't get updated with older ones so it doesn't matter what order you do the hotfixes in. You have to do one hotfix at a time (or newer files might get overwriten). You have to keep the final folder with all the hotfixed files and add to it, not start from scratch with each hotfix. When you get a new hotfix you just put it in folder '1', execute, and copy the whole of the output folder to the xp installation folder overwriting all files. I got the info from various places and worked some out myself. The script could probably be improved and cleaned up by those who know better. I posted the whole thing on another forum and was totally ignored. But it works file for me, in conjuction with the method on the unattended site. Which, by the way, is the only site where all details are clearly given and make sence and which works in my opinion.