mmarable

The syntax is different with the Reg command in Win2000 as opposed to XP/2003. It's been a while, but I think you have to have like Reg Add .... <keyname>="value". You're best bet is to open up a command prompt and type in "reg add /?" on your Win2000 box and it'll have the exact syntax you need.

Okay, I think I see what you are looking for. You want to install Win2003 as an Active Directory controller with your WinXP clients as domain members. All of your account administration would be done with Active Directory accounts and you can handle client configuration and lockdown using Active Directory Group Policies. Hope that helps you along the way.

dijuremo, I have to tell you, I really am liking this. You've done an excellent job putting this together. It's very well thought out and organized. Again, nice job. I am having one problem though. I boot up the BartPE disk but the menu items under "Setup hard drive partitons" are all greyed out. The same thing is happening to the menu items under the OS choices. It's as if the last level of menu is greyed out. For example, the menu items under "Windows 2000" are greyed out, but the menus immediatly under Windows XP are fine (Home, Professional, etc.) but the menus under that (Home/Laptop, OS with updates) are greyed out. The batch files are there and I run them directly without problem. It's probably a BartPE thing, so I suppose I should just play with it. Could it be the If statement in the XML file for the menus? I'm not real familiar with creating plugins for BartPE so you'll have to bear with me. The items that are greyed out have an IF statement associated with them. Could it be that the menu is built before the connection to the share has been made, so the items are greyed out? I'll play with it and see what I can find out. Thanks Mike

This is pretty slick. It follows a similar thought process to a script I was working on. I like this. I like what you've done. Real nice work.

Here is what I did. I have basically one single "core" XP unattended install. I juggle 5 machines, so I just set up the drivers manually. (I don't use driver packs). So, I have a CD that installs XP on any of my machines. Basically, at this point you're done. I've also added a script that cmdlines.txt runs that uses "compname.exe" to rename the computers based on the Mac address (or the asset tag on my Dell laptop). So, here's a CD that installs XP on any of the machines and automatically names the computer. Now, if you want to install apps with this disk, you're going to have to move up to a DVD. I just create an "Apps" folder off the root of the disk. Here I put all my application installs. Now, I break the apps down into what will be on all the machines, for example virus scanners, maybe Office, that sort of thing. These I will install from a single batch file called something obvious like "core.cmd". I'll kick this off using the runonceex key in the Registry. Anything that is going to be specific to each machine I install using a batch file named after that machine. So, let's say PC1 is going to get Photoshop. I have a batch file called "PC1.cmd" that has the code to install Photoshop. I have Runonceex execute %computername%.cmd, so that when the first login happens, it runs "Core.cmd" to get all the basic stuff, then it will then run "%computername%.cmd". The name was already set, so in this example it will run "PC1.cmd" and install Photoshop. You can easily do this entirely using Runonce Registry keys. Just have the compname batch file that is run from cmdlines import in the appropriate keys to install the unique apps. That's just the way I do it.

There are also an endless supply of very detailed books on the subject at any large book store. They cover the full spread of people's knowlege, so they'll range from step by step books all the way up to guides dedicated to well seasoned system engineers.

I've been going over the docs over the weekend and I have to say it's a very professional job you've done here. I took the plunge and started setting this all up today and ran into an error with "Slipstream.bat". The very last line generates an error. echo Slipstreaming Update (KB912945) Security Update && start /wait WindowsXP-KB912945-x86-ENU.exe /quiet /integrate:%WINXPCD% The problem is that you have KB912945 listed as an Optional update and not a Critical one. So, the script cannot find the needed file. But, so far so good. I'm really likeing this system you have. Excellent work.

If you're doing a CD or RIS install, then the $OEM$ folder is at the same level as the I386. If you're doing a network install, or installing from another type of media (like a WinPE CD, or USB drive) then the $OEM$ will be under the I386 like in the diagram.

In Win2000, only $$ and $1 work. The $Progs and $Docs don't do anything.

It's a small thing, but it bit me the first time I tried setting up the RunOnce stuff on Win2000. The "REG" command it Win2000 has different parameters than it does in XP/2003. So, the commands that work in XP/2003 do not create the keys on Win2000.

You're not going to be able to treat this like an automated CD. You'll need to use the Winnt.exe parameters to perform an automated install. If I remember correctly it's someting like "/unattend=<path to unattended file>\<filename>.txt The text file is nothing more than WinNT.sif, so there's nothing special about it. Hope this helps to get you on your way.

There's documentation included with R2 that explains how to do this in detail. Basically, you copy the contents to the CD and execute the install command as you would any other applcation install. R2 isn't a "patch" that can be integrated into a 2003 install CD like a service pack, it's a set of additional applications that are installed onto a 2003 server.

That's pretty slick. I like that idea. Could you share those scripts you have? I'd like to try them out if you don't mind. Thanks

Yes, you can create a master CD and do all your installs with that. That's what we have done before. If I remember correctly, if you leave the machine name line blank in the SIF file, the install will stop at that point and allow you to manually name each machine. This is the simplest way of doing it. There are all sorts of ways to auto-magically name your computers as you build them.

We have a similar system where I work as well. We have a hidden partiition that boots WinPE and reimages the hard drive. In your case, you're going to have a partition that has the installation files and configured for an unattended setup. That part is easy. The problem is booting. You could boot DOS/Win9x and then initiate the install from there. You're going to need a boot loader that can recognize the drive/partition that you're going to install to. So, DOS isn't going to play nice trying to install to a large NTFS partition. You could probably set it up to use the WinXP/2000/2003 boot files, but you'll then have to script something to initiate the install. On the surface it isn't hard to do. You just have to have a way to boot a core OS that can recognize large NTFS partitions. WinPE would work great if you have access to it. Maybe BartPE would work for you. I'm just thinking out loud here, so keep that in mind.

For the font(s) it's a 2 step process. First, you can just put them in $OEM$\$$\Fonts. That will get the file or files onto the system. Second, you must "register" (for a lack of a better term) the fonts. An easy way to do this is to open the Fonts folder in Explorer. This is the easy way if you're adding a lot of fonts. If you're only adding a few, you can add the keys to the Registry manually. There was a topic here quite a while ago that detailed the Registry keys pretty well. If you search the forum, you might have to look back more than a year or so to find it. I can't remember how long ago the posting was.

You can take everything you have on the original box (both flat and riprep images) and copy them to the new machine and you should be all set. RIS is a very simple tool. Once you have the service installed just copy over your images and restart the service. As long as you copy the flat images over with your riprep images you'll be fine. The riprep images need to reference the flat image to do the installs. Do not use new flat images on your new RIS server as the NTOSKRNL files may end up not matching exactly what the riprep images are looking for.

I agree. Start simple, then make it more advanced. It may have a problem with the long filenames not being within their own quotes.

Yes, you have a couple of options to do what you're looking for. You can set up a WinPE image to boot from the RIS server and use it to lauch Ghost32 to make your image.

Yes, all of your images regardless if they are flat disk images or ripreped should be lsited on your server's properties. Are the images in the same folder as the flat disk images? Are the riprep.sif files present?

Yes, you can use non-Windows DHCP servers. I do it using a LinkSys router as the DHCP server.

I have had some inconsistant results by trying to "inject" the WinNT.sif file directly into the ISO image. That's just me, but it's best to extract the contents of the ISO, add your file(s) and then create a new ISO image. I'm sure you've read it, but follow the guide exactly and it'll work every time. http://unattended.msfn.org/unattended.xp/

I've used it a lot at work. It can be a pretty cool set of tools if you're trying to build a PC that the public is going to access. Basically it's a set of HTAs and VBScripts that consolidate a whole series of policy settings. It's all scriptable and you can install and configure it automatically. In theory, the idea you have of keying in the CD key during install and then auto installing the toolkit should work, as long as you've installed the WGA component before installing the toolkit.

You can do a custom setup in RIS. Just after you authenticate in RIS you can choose to do a Custom setup vs an Automated setup (or wording similar). In a custom setup you key in the computer name and, if you wish, specify what OU you want the new computer account to go. Then you pick your RIS image as you normally would and off you go. As long as your SIF file still lists the computer name as %MACHINENAME% you're in business. If you don't have those options, you'll need to change the default domain policy and turn on the options for custom installs.

I don't know the numbers off hand, but for example on laptops it's set to power off hard drive and such even on AC power. I think after 30 minutes on AC it'll go into standby I think. I'd have to dig out a laptop and see what the default numbers are, but if they work for you go for it. Using the powercfg tool you can create your own power configuration that suites your needs. Drop it into a script and every laptop will have the exact same power settings. That's what we do here.