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WinNTSetup v5.3.4


JFX

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@Gear Doge Wimgapi checks some environment variables. WIM_FileData_Number_Workers is what you want to set to get faster applying.
By default WinNTSetup set this to half of the physical cores for standalone XPRESS/LZX compressed WIM files.


@click-click Wasn't supposed to end up in the rar file, just delete it.

Edited by JFX
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Please help.i used your windowsNt setup program.  I put in the path of my install files and now I changed my mind  and don't want to install windows. Can you please tell me.

What is the name of the folder that the win 2k setup files were copied to? ( on the c drive)

 

What file is pointing to start windows setup  when I reboot? (Boot ini, config.sys)

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6 hours ago, Rudolf Horak said:

What file is pointing to start windows setup  when I reboot? (Boot ini, config.sys)

restore \NTLDR on your boot drive with one of your XP ISO.

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On 8/10/2022 at 1:48 PM, JFX said:

Normally Windows 10 systems above build 17000 don't need any WOF exclusion.

But there were some reports that it don't work for some people (maybe hardware related).
None of them told if they used BIOS or UEFI booting. This also makes a difference!
EFI bootmgr has reading support for compressed files, BIOS bootmgr has not.

You can set SkipBuildsAbove17000 in Tools\Compact\WimBootCompress.ini if you sure you don't have
this problem with your machines.

 

At least since Win 10 v2004 (20H1), I can confirm without any doubt the Bios bootmgr has reading support for compressed files, just exactly the same EFI bootmgr has.

I always test all my builds in Bios and in UEFI environments.

Thats why I'm using same [PrepopulateList] as in the WimmootCompress.ini contained in this version, just adding following two lines:

\Windows\System32\pwdrvio.sys
\Windows\System32\pwdspio.sys

I found since this version all *.sys drivers. don't need to be uncompressed as before, including SVBus driver that is loaded during the very first stages of boot process, this is valid for Bios and UEFI

So even applying SkipBuildsAbove17000=1, in a Wimboot mode installation, of a re-captured WIM file from a MinWin VHD, (based in 10 2004), having all my programs, made using WinNTSetup, used space is very much bigger than using wimlib directly, that follows to the letter the WimbootCompress.ini contained in the WIM file.

Also tried using additionally my same [PrepopulateList] section, in your version in \WinNTSetup_v526\Tools\Compact\WimBootCompress.ini, and the resulting used space is still bigger.

The used space, (just after installation) I got when making a Wimboot mode installation of a MinWin based in 10 2004, using wimlib-imagex or Wimlib-clc is never bigger than 60 MB, usually it is 58.9 MB, then it fits fantastic in a 512 MB 2 partition VHD.  Very usefull to Ramboot in a PC having only 2 GB of Ram.

P.D. : New traslation is pending, I'm running some test about something else, but I'll do it ASAP.

alacran

Edited by alacran
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Quote

@alacran WinNTSetup will load software hive, so you loose ~ 60 MB (hmm, I should re-compress it afterwards),
rest up to you to be find...

When I capture a drive using wimlib, I usually use a modded WinbootCompress.ini, and the WinbootCompress.ini used is automatically copied into \Windows\System32, then the WIM is ready for applying it using wimlib with this new WinbootCompress.ini

Please take the following as a kind suggestion, but of course as you are the author of the program, the decision is yours:

With all due respect to you my friend, IMHO I think it may be easier if you could use a set of WinbootCompress.ini files, and depending of the OS version use the respective file, and just let wimlib apply the selected WIM index IAW the respective file used, and avoid extra decompression that induce file fragmentation or recompression that induce free space fragmentation, I don't have any experiece with Win11 but it seems it may need its own WinbootCompress.ini file.

Following is useful to avoid high fragmentation in my Wimboot:WIMCOPY mode look alike installations:

To avoid the fragmentation in small (upto 2 GB or 3 GB depending of the compression used) fixed size VHDs, as I use to have the NTFS partition as second partition, it is made first of only 50 MB, and once formated it's expanded to the full space, then in case of making a (1400 MB) VHD similar to Wimboot:WIMCOPY mode from a re-captured MinWin, I copy first the WIM file to the root of the NTFS and then create a Wimboot folder and move the WIM into it, and the resulting installation using wimlib is 0% fragmented, but if the Wimboot folder is created first the trick doesn't work.

UPDATE: Today I tested this other option that also works fine: if the Wimboot folder is created outside of the VHD and the WIM file is copied/moved into this folder, and then the folder and its content is copied into the VHD, there is also 0% fragmentation after installation.

By the way only fixed size VHDs are capable to Ramboot by means of grub4dos for UEFI + SVBus driver, unless there is new info I'm not aware.

Also I want to share here this, that may be interesting for MinWin builds: http://reboot.pro/index.php?showtopic=22650

See you latter my friend.

alacran

Edited by alacran
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On 8/16/2022 at 4:18 AM, alacran said:

By the way only fixed size VHDs are capable to Ramboot by means of grub4dos for UEFI + SVBus driver, unless there is new info I'm not aware.

Last time I checked, SVBus was supporting dynamic VHDs. No RAM saving, but faster loading than fixed VHDs.
Separate ESP partition does not make much sense here. It depends on Grub2 and this one can load a NTFS driver.


Hope someone figures how to setup the native vhdramdiskboot from bootmgr.efi.
If this one support differencing VHDs, I might get some interest in RAM booting again.

As for your profile, nice one. You could get rid of this WUB, as Windows Update is removed in MinWin anyway.

Edited by JFX
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Hi, JFX

In MBR environment there is no problem with dynamic VHDs, and yes in fact they load faster than fixed size VHDs.

But in UEFI the problem is not in SVBus driver, who does not support Rambooting dynamic VHDs is grub4dos for UEFI, at least untill last time I checked in the chinese forum where is located its page: http://bbs.c3.wuyou.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=422652

I read some months ago in a  Post from Yaya (who started developing the UEFI version) on that page that the support for differencing VHDs was developed and working fine in the last version at that time. but I never have being interested in this kind or VHDs and didn't pair very much attention to this.    By the way I never have tested this feature.

EDIT: 2021-01-31 (yaya)   Supports starting a first-level differential VHD image.

About the WUB, yes it can be removed, it is there doing nothing.

About native VHD ramdisk booting from bootmgr.efi, well all WinPE WIM files are Ramboot capables, I ram some tests with no luck, back in August or September 2020, trying to boot a OS drive captured in a single index WIM file, applying the bootable flag, and using the external file boot.sdi but a PE also makes use of the internal driver:  \Windows\System32\drivers\fbwf.sys, (file-based wright filter driver) not present in the OS version, also found many things in the Registry that are very different.

EDIT: I edited my previous post about the Medium profile, it is now MinWin_Medium_Profile_2022-08-20

Changes:

New "Optional PStart pre-configured" folder.

Medium\Add\Port_Apps\WUB folder was deleted.

Medium\Add\Program Files\VHD_Loader folder: Now includes delete REG files.

alacran

 

Edited by alacran
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16 minutes ago, click-click said:

FYI  - Newer version of IMDisk available: 2.1.1 vs. 2.0.10

Yes, but IMDisk 2.1.1 no longer supports unpatched Window7 (which include all Win7PE based WinPE and the Windows 7 WinRE).
If you only use it on updated Windows 7, you can replace the 2 IMDisk files in Tools\imdisk.

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I think following info could be useful for some readers of this topic:

In a previous post I shared my MinWin_Medium_Profile_2022-08-20

That includes the option to enable automatically attach a VHD to Y drive every boot, this option works fine in all scenarios, even if booting from USB, or a WinPE were all drive letters have changed.

This can be used in MinWin or any other mode installations.  To include this option in an allready intalled OS, you can find the info and Download here: VHD to fixed drive v1.2

But for people having a good amount of Ram available, it is also possible to load your favorite VHD(s) to Ram automatically every boot, in all previously mentioned scenarios, just by editing a little CMD file, changing the VHD name and drive letter, or adding new line(s) to Ram load additional VHD(s), always keeping in mind that the VHD(s) fit in the available Ram and there is still enought Ram available for the OS,  the booting time may have certaing small delate depending of the amount of GB that we will load to Ram.

Load_RamDisk v1.0 (2022-08-30)

This can be used in MinWin or any other mode installations, just by following the instructions in the README file, in case you want to disable (but keep available) any previous service to automatically attach a VHD, you can use:

ServiWin by nirsoft, just select Services and find the service name in the list and by a right click on it select Change Startup Type and select disabled.

EDIT: Forgot to mention Load_RamDisk is also possible to attach/mount as file disk, NOT as Ramdisk a VHD or IMG file jus by editing the CMD file, instructions inside the new CMD file.

Hope this can be useful for some of you

alacran

Edited by alacran
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Hi there,

I´m new on this topic and it would be really nice, if anyone can help me here out:

My goal: Install a minimal Win 10 version to an VHD file, boot from internal NVMe M2 disk with secureBoot/UEFI to RAMDISK to prevent any change to the vhd file - and also got a quick OS without any applications in it :) (enough RAM is there)
All the (standalone(portable) applications should be run from an extra VHD file (also loaded to RAM), where I can replace any app if needed without any problems.
No other OS (also no "normal" installed of Windows) should be there.

So, I´ved read a lot of threads and comments, download some toos (WInNTSetup 5.2.6, SVBus_1.3_signed, Grub4DOS_UEFI (source-only? Do need to make an bin there before?) and guidlines, but got no really point here to with???

So, what (other) tools do I need for and what steps do I need to go here?

Thank you very much for pointing me in the right direction!

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