Primary OS as a Portable Windows / WindowsToGo on VHD – Doing it the r

[crashnburn4u]

Primary OS as a Portable Windows / WindowsToGo on VHD – Doing it the right way?

Background:
For few months now, I’ve native booted sample .VHDs/.VHDX (s) with variations of BIOS/ UEFI & MBR/ GPT.
Gotten comfortable with BCDBOOT variations, converting between MBR <> GPT and so on.
Learnt partition variations that work well inside VHDs; EFI, SYS, \Windows partitions.
Learnt how DISM can be used to Image & Apply standard & custom .WIMs on VHDs / HDDs/ Partitions.

Product Licenses & keys:
Before anyone shouts wolf, here are the license/ keys & ISOs that we have:
Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 8.1 Pro, and Windows 8.1 Enterprise MAK & Servers as well.

I know some of this may not be ‘supported’ paths or how Microsoft says things should be done, so just like many such experimental pathways on forums, please help this one if you can.

Objective: Portable Windows VHD:
People are booting their primary OS from VHDs and that’s what I wish to do.

I’d like to boot my Primary OS from VHD; It to be my single Container for [OS + Apps + Files/ Data]
I intend to boot the VHD off Internal disk, not via USB. Then, changing hardware is a single .VHD file copy away.

One caveat I noticed is that if you move the OS/ VHDs across hardware it needs to do work on Hardware/ Driver profiles (and typically it’s recommended to Sysprep + Generalize before moving them).

On the other hand, W Enterprise based Windows To Go is said to handle this differently, with some secret sauce.

Researching Microsoft’s Windows Enterprise based Windows To Go:
I noticed, the typical & official Microsoft WTG scenario is a paired relationship:
Mother {W Enterprise} – using WTG Creator - Daughter {WTG created on USB } system.
I thought the only way to move forward was this paired way and wanted to avoid it.

Then I noticed that MS specifies a Powershell/ DISM/ BCDBoot way to build this with any custom .wim Windows Image, which is typically how I’ve been creating VHDs. They just add policies to hide the Host System’s OS & disable WinRE; which are things I don’t care much about. 

I guess, my VHD should be good to go. But, I am wondering if there’s something missing? Or something special/ extra is being added/ changed by WTG Creator? If so, do share. 

Found additional Portable Windows/ Windows To Go Creators:
I found the following variations of portable Windows creators/ applying Windows, official and unofficial:

• WTG - Enterprise
• DISM – Powershell Scripts
• WTG Creator – extracted for use in – Pro Volume
• WinNTSetup - MSFN
• WinToUSB
• AOMEI Partition Assistant
• WiNToBootic
• Easy2Boot
• Rufus
• Maybe some more..

My Portable Windows VHD Concerns:
Is this VHD good to go automatically and Moveable across hardware? 
These are 3 areas of curiosity/ concern for me that I need to answer:

• Image Application & Creation
  • Is there something else that WTG Creator based MS WTG has that’s missing?
• Licensing & Activation
  • I can activate it with the Windows Enterprise MAK license and/ or the Pro license
  • Also, the few times it moves it will be running on OEM Hardware with MS licenses in firmware
• Hardware/ Driver profiles
  • Does MS WTG handle hardware/ driver profiles differently when booting on machines?
  • I found this little insight (quoted below) on a Windows Registry key. http://superuser.com/a/919119/183467
    • Can/ should the opposite be done?
    • Does WTG Creator do this? Or does the Windows instance do this by itself?

 

reg add HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control /v PortableOperatingSystem /t REG_DWORD /d 0

The value PortableOperatingSystem is the flag you want to change. If it is 1, Windows Thinks it is a WindowsToGo.

 

 

Multiple operations fail if Windows 8 is improperly identified as a Windows To Go installation
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2778881

Refresh your PC fails reporting: 
Your PC can't be refreshed because it's running Windows To Go

The Windows To Go control panel reports: 
Can't change startup options when you're in a your Windows To Go Workspace

Windows Store fails with error
Windows Store isn't available on Windows To Go Workspaces

 

Edited September 10, 2015 by crashnburn4u

[jaclaz]

• On the other hand, W Enterprise based Windows To Go is said to handle this differently, with some secret sauce.

Hmmm. said by whom/where?

 

I guess we must draw a line somewhere.

Windows 7 "to go" does not exist (as a "product" by MS).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Windows 8 "to go" does exist (as a "product" by MS)

 

A number of tools/sites/whatever will mix together a "portable" Windows with the "to go".

 

You won' t AFAIK find HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\PortableOperatingSystem in a Windows 7 (or it will be ineffective).

 

All your doubts/questions seem to me revolving around the same one "Will it work as intended?"

 

The differences between WTG creator and "plain" commands can be derived from here, where the two methods are described :

http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/6991.windows-to-go-step-by-step.aspx 

(this is "direct", no VHD involved)

Create two of them, one with the WTG creator and one with given set of commands, then compare the result to see if you can find any difference between the two.

 

jaclaz

[crashnburn4u]

 

• On the other hand, W Enterprise based Windows To Go is said to handle this differently, with some secret sauce.

Hmmm. said by whom/where?

 

I guess we must draw a line somewhere.

Windows 7 "to go" does not exist (as a "product" by MS).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Windows 8 "to go" does exist (as a "product" by MS)

 

A number of tools/sites/whatever will mix together a "portable" Windows with the "to go".

 

You won' t AFAIK find HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\PortableOperatingSystem in a Windows 7 (or it will be ineffective).

 

All your doubts/questions seem to me revolving around the same one "Will it work as intended?"

 

The differences between WTG creator and "plain" commands can be derived from here, where the two methods are described :

http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/6991.windows-to-go-step-by-step.aspx 

(this is "direct", no VHD involved)

Create two of them, one with the WTG creator and one with given set of commands, then compare the result to see if you can find any difference between the two.

 

jaclaz

 

 

Will do the compare on a sample VHD instance. I typically use Beyond Compare for file/ folder structure comparisons, would suggest any other tools for such a compare? 

Something that does a Operating System/ Registry compare /diff beyond files?

 

Just wanted to know if there were any issues that I should be aware of. 

 

PS: I will be going with W 8.1 on this, I just wanted to point out I have licenses for the list above and have read the variation of tutorials for each. 

 

Also I am keen on understanding one thing:

Application Data - The Local v/s Roaming profiles of Apps..

 

i.e. the settings that Apps  save into..\AppData\.. 

Local\

LocalLow\

Roaming\

LocalGoogle\

 

I did read a thread/ article about the differences between Local and Roaming, but I'd like to get some insights in the context of this Portable VHD version of Windows. 

 

Do the applications go cuckoo when a VHD moves? 

Can they be "tuned/ tweaked/ prepped" before, during, after installation? 

 

I know that when I did Sysprep on a Win 8.1 instance, the SID changed. 

 

I am guessing that the SID does not change when such a VHD moves between machines? -

 

Which is what Apps sometime tie into.. Especially noticed some stuff like this with Google Chrome. 

Chrome disavowed up my User Profile Data {It apparently uses Windows Crypto API for some stuff} and Bluebeam PDF Revu hasnt worked at all - which I can live with and redo install etc. 

 

Do some Apps generally tie into Hardware? or typically just into the SIDs? 

Edited September 11, 2015 by crashnburn4u

[jaclaz]

 

I know that when I did Sysprep on a Win 8.1 instance, the SID changed. 

 

Hardly "queer", it is actually one of the features of Sysprep.

A few links:

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897418.aspx

http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2009/11/03/3291024.aspx

http://www.stratesave.com/html/sidchg.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_experiment

 

jaclaz

[crashnburn4u]

Thanks. Nice articles. Could you share some insights on the Local & Roaming thing that I asked about on previous post? [i'll mark it bold]

 

 

 

I know that when I did Sysprep on a Win 8.1 instance, the SID changed. 

 

Hardly "queer", it is actually one of the features of Sysprep.

A few links:

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897418.aspx

http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2009/11/03/3291024.aspx

http://www.stratesave.com/html/sidchg.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_experiment

 

jaclaz

 

[jaclaz]

I don't get it.

What is the problem/doubt/whatever?

Are you going to use a domain?

Maybe you need to start again from the basics:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roaming_user_profile

 

Unless there are valid reasons to use roaming profiles are not "easy" to setup and maintain and usually they end up in issues with this or that tool or program or app, and anyway they may represent a feature on "fixed" installs, not on something that you go around with.

 

jaclaz

[crashnburn4u]

I guess maybe I dont need roaming profiles. Also, I understand Sysprep changes the SID by design. 

Now, would the SID change by itself, if/ when the VHD/ WTG moves from machine to machine? or not? 

 

 

 

I know that when I did Sysprep on a Win 8.1 instance, the SID changed. 

 

Hardly "queer", it is actually one of the features of Sysprep.

A few links:

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897418.aspx

http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2009/11/03/3291024.aspx

http://www.stratesave.com/html/sidchg.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_experiment

 

jaclaz

 

[crashnburn4u]

 

Everyone here raves about WinNTSetup. But, before I use it I’d like to know what it does internally.

 

With Microsofts official way, on reading about MS WTG there are 2 ways to create WTG:

1 - Using WTG Creator

2 - The second way specifies a Powershell/ DISM/ BCDBoot way to build this with any custom .wim Windows Image, which is typically how I’ve been creating VHDs.

 

It also adds another step, that adds policies {SAN} to hide the Host System’s OS & disable WinRE; which are things I don’t care much about. 

 

Before I use WinNTSetup, I'd like to know, what it does internally - steps?

What does it do differently? as compared to above 2 methods.