Speeding up XP install process

[expert01]

I'm gathering the information I need to set up an XP PXE install system, and one thing that's gotten into my head recently is how to speed up the XP install process.

I was first looking at the txtsetup file and considering stripping out the least likely drivers (less drivers to load, faster setup load, right?).

Then I thought the fastest way would be to do it via a .wim file. I had searched about this a few months ago, and spent some time searching again. It seems to me that quite a few people have tried to do this before and not succeeded.

The theory sounds good - use the Vista or 7 installer, replace the install.wim with one of XP, slipstream a product key into the first install screens (so it doesn't ask you for a product key until later), and let the installer handle the partitioning and copying.

The only place people have gone wrong (in my eyes) is installing Windows XP all the way, installing more stuff, then creating an image of it. It seems to me you would have more success running the text mode setup of XP until it copies your files to the hard drive and makes the boot sector and whatnot, then making a wim image of the drive before it reboots. That way, the Windows XP setup wizard still runs, which handles hardware detection, product keys, networking, accounts, and whatnot.

So, does this sound possible? And has someone managed to do this before (with the XP installer running)? Would it still take a long time to install? Does the XP installer, which I think had a "Copying Files" section in the GUI, spend a lot of time doing this? Is it possible to get it to copy all the files, then stop before hardware detection?