bookie32 Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 (edited) Hi folks OK! this is something that has been done to death, but as always, there is always a lack of information.....what I get fedup with is finding what seems like very good "how to's" until one comes to the part where it is assumed that we have done this and we have done that....!!I have tried to find complete info on how to use MDT to capture XP but there is always something missing...So, I have been looking at the option of using WDS...I have installed XP Home Edition in VMware with all updates and removed VMware tools before creating a snapshot "before-sysprep"...I then created my Sysprep directory on the C:\ Sysprep. I added all the files from the latest Windows XP sp3 cab file and added the original "unattend" file from my Windows XP CD. My Windows XP Home Edition only comes with sp1 included, but because I have updated it with all updates and sp3 I assume that the sp3 cab file is the right one?I ran "sysprepmgr" to check the "unattend" file but didn't make any changes to that and then ran "sysprep.exe" I chose the option " to prepare the computer for end user, click reseal" and then turned of the vm.WDSTo create my images for capture and deploy using WDS I followed this guide. Now the guide states clearly that if don't sysprep the vm the right way then you wont see an image when you use pxe boot...Sure enough there was no image. I have read a ton of info but nothing really says why the images isn't being found?!!I had VMware 7, but have upgraded to the latest version now and I can't see any drivers I can add etc to make this work. Being on the same physical machine I don't really understand why WDS isn't seing the syspreped vm?Can someone help me with this?XP is still used by a lot of my customers and I need a way of imaging and deploying their computers with either WDS or MDT...don't really care...just want a complete "how to" that actually works...Sorry, bit grumpy today.....The one thing I promise...is when I finally get my server doing my capturing and deploying as it should ..then I will do a COMPLETE how to and not assume that the person reading knows anything!!bookie32 Edited October 30, 2011 by bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted October 31, 2011 Author Share Posted October 31, 2011 Hi again!Perhaps I should have asked....who has had success in deploying XP with either WDS or MDT or anything else for that matter and how did they do it..........?bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tripredacus Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 Does your VM get an IP from the PXE server, or are you able to boot into your Capture Image? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted October 31, 2011 Author Share Posted October 31, 2011 Hi Tripredacus Yes, the vm is getting an ip and the welcome to windows deployment capture wizard, but then nothing in the list for caputre?!bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamtheky Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 (edited) we do it with our WDS. It serves up the boot image, which in this case is just standard with a starnet.cmd that A ) maps a drive to a folder on the WDS itself with the net use command. Lets call that i:\images.B ) Then runs " imagex /capture c: i:\images\XPtest.wim 1 " then subsequently any drives that need appended to that wim. --running this line manually should verbosely function or fail -- then i would go back to automating it.**Of course you get HAL with this method and it will only go back onto the same or very similar machines. Edited October 31, 2011 by iamtheky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tripredacus Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 I know MDT can go XP images but I haven't got that far into it yet. I might be able to get into the Enterprise side of things soon, but as far as I am concerned (currently) XP is EOL except for Embedded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 Hi guys!Well, I had hoped to use MDT and tried to follow the info from this guidePartly I can understand what he is getting at, but....Now, create a new text file, and make sure to include the following text. Then save it as Autologon.reg (or name it differently if you want, but then adjust the filename again in the GuiRunOnce section of the Unattend.txtWindows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon] “DefaultUserName”=”Owner” “AutoAdminLogon”=”1″ “AutoLogonCount”=”999″ “DefaultPassword”=”"Couldn't work out where the reg file should go? If one is to have the directory order as he suggests - then what goes where...?As usual I have wasted time writing to someone who seems to have a blog that is dead!!Anyone make sense of this?bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allen2 Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 From the guide the reg file should go in the minint folder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 Hi allen2I am glad it makes sense to someone....LOL...OK! the structure he proposes in the guide...does that make sense?bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allen2 Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 The guide seems right but as i didn't ever tried deploying with MDT or WDS, i can't tell for sure if it will work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 Hi allen2Thanks mate...will have a look at that a little later and get back to you...customers to take care of...:LOLbookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted November 2, 2011 Author Share Posted November 2, 2011 Hi again!Either I am really stupid.....don't need to answer that one or the whole setup the guide shows doesn't make sense...He talks about the $OEM$ directory that is within deployment share?The first pic shows the general layout for my MDT deployment share.. in MDTThe second pic shows the actual deployment share info on my hard drive....The third pic shows the actual "operating systems" directory on my hard drive...no structure here as shown in MDT?Even if I create the structure he shows in MDT one hasn't a real directory into which I can put the "Autologon.reg"?! This structure is only visible in MDT?And which of the directories he is creating does one import the os to in MDT?bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookie32 Posted November 3, 2011 Author Share Posted November 3, 2011 Hi folks!Well, not being funny...I have liturally spent weeks on this idea of using Windows Server 2008r2 with WDS and MDT for imaging and deploying Windows...No disrespect to you guyss...just don't think Windows can cut it....Yes, I agree there is a lot to learn, but I have never had any problem following instructions from guides etc to get things working...I have wasted a lot of money and time on this and will go back to Linux......Why is it that there is more help and info regarding capture and deployment from the Linux world?I do thank everyone for their help!bookie32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamtheky Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 (edited) the user in post #5 does it just finewhile their may be limitations for MDT (idk cause we dont use it), WDS serves XP images just fine. I dont see why you would want to do anything but the most basic of push and pulls for a .wim you will be unable to service, and is HAL dependent. You could make a boot.wim for each of the hardware with commands hardcoded in the startnet, and let XP clients use the boot menu to select which one they want. Or even a single boot.wim to detect the system programatically and auto deploy without much effort. Edited November 3, 2011 by iamtheky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tripredacus Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I think your $OEM$ folder goes into the OS folder in your third picture. I tried to look on my test server but it seems I don't have any OSes added. Ugg even the production server doesn't have any either since I never got a reply to that "What OSes do you want to use" email. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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