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Break WinPE/BartPE resource limits LEGALLY


TheTruth

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Hi there :),

Well, after a long time of research, I've come up with an idea to remove resource limits (Which is 5 or 6 running processes at most) from WinPE/BartPE (LEGALLY) through a loader without patching any file (no need for the illegal Winlogon resource patch), this was required at least for me as using any patched files in WinPE is prohibited at official workplace, I'm looking forward to implementing this idea in "PE Shell Swapper" (peshell.exe) once I get some more free time, but for now I need to make sure that everything is working just as I wanted it, so I've written a small (experimental) loader that will automatically launch the Command Prompt (cmd.exe) on an empty desktop as a shell (or you can pass your shell to it), so you can test bypassing the resource limits by running as many programs as you wish form the command prompt.

Actually, I managed to launch 150 instances of notepad without reaching any limit on 128 MB VMware machine with a normal (unmodified) Winlogon.exe file.

Now, how can one use this loader?

First, download PELoader.exe here: WinPE Tools by ThTruth

(Scroll to the end of the page to get it)

Second, either make PELoader your shell, or launch it like any tool from your running WinPE/BartPE session, but remember to replace your patched winlogon.exe with a normal image :rolleyes:

Notes:

- Once you close the command prompt, your machine will be rebooted.

- Tested only on WinXP SP1-based WinPE/BartPE, but I'm sure it'll work on all versions of Windows, God willing.

- This loader is just a way to allow you to share me testing my work, and once we're all sure of it's functionality, we can come up with any ideas on how to implement it in a more useful way (making it load your favorite shell).

Benefits of using PE Loader:

- Legal way of removing resource limits.

- 800x600 startup resolution instead of 640x480 caused by winlogon patch.

- Compatibility with current and future versions (and Service Packs) of Windows (Winlogon), unless MS adds more tricks :D

(Note: Patches work only on specific versions of Winlogon).

Please, test and give feed back.

Regards,

TheTruth

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@liulaotou2

Believe me, it works.

Just tell me what message did you get and how you launched it, also make sure you use unmodified Winlogon.exe file.

You can also go to the same link above to download PE Loader 0.2 that allows you to pass your shell to it instead of the default cmd.exe. Read the included "readme.txt" for more info.

Regards,

TheTruth

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@TheTruth

I test it again,it works very well now.

Can you add this function in PESHELL.EXE?

Can PESHELL.EXE support every different [AutoRun] for each Shell?

I want to translate 'PE Network Configurator' into "Simplified Chinese"

and "Traditional Chinese",so that wo can use it easily.

I can not send mail to your mailbox at yahoo.com.

Best Regards.

liulaotou2

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@liulaotou2

Glad it works now.

Can you add this function in PESHELL.EXE?
God willing.
Can PESHELL.EXE support every different [AutoRun] for each Shell?

Yeah, its on my todo list, just a matter of time.

I want to translate 'PE Network Configurator' into "Simplified Chinese"

and "Traditional Chinese",so that wo can use it easily.

My pleasure, but what is the problem with my e-mail.

Try either of the following addresses:

pierremounir (at) yahoo (dot) com

pierremounir (at) hotmail (dot) com

Regards,

TheTruth

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Hello jassi, didn't know you at first, but rememberd at once from this lovely name (jassi)!

Glad to see you too, a great board here but unfortunatelly, it lacks big fans and enthusiasts of WinPE.

I think you turned to Linux a while ago, what's the matter now? :)

Have a nice day.

Regards,

TheTruth

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  • 3 weeks later...

@thetruth

excellent work here, i was always getting empty menus and sometimes the machine reboots at startup because of the limited resources of WinPE when using explorer as a shell, but now i can load explorer without any problems and load many applications as well.

AWESOME :)

piro

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Great idea. It's kind of hard to do proper computer recovery or installation with a "crippled" OS. :-)

I'm about to test it with a XP SP2 RC2 installation - anyone have any luck with it yet? (I'll post my results as soon as I have them.)

Also, about the 24-hour time limit, while I agree with the theory behind it, there are situations where it could be troublesome, etc. For example, if trying to recover a failed file system, the recovery and network file transfers could take quite a large amount of time... Does anyone have a forseeable workaround? Using DOS just doesn't cut it anymore, as RAID/SCSI drives are inaccessible, and loading network support is a pain. :-) Loading a parallel XP installation is an option, assuming an extra hard drive is available.

Thanks for all your work so far!

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