Unattended Install to multi-part's and multi HD's

[dostrander]

Hello Everyone,

First let me appologize for my noobness , I've never looked into "Unattended Installs" before, but have a project that this would help out immensly, have searched the forums and haven't been able to find answer to my question, so here goes.

First, computer drive setup.

I have two large HD's (300GB). Each drive will be partitioned identically, I will be creating three small part's (4-6GB, so 6 total), one more slightly larger (6-10GB, so 2 total), the rest one single data partition.

Have read the "How To" for creating Slipstreamed Unattended CD's at unattended.msfn.org and think I have a pretty good handle on it, will be starting there and probably adding Bâshrat's driver packs to it. To this I would like to add a group of about 15 apps (I understand this will kick it up to a DVD).

I'm hoping to be able to set it up so that it will install XP to all six initial partitions in one operation and selectively install apps to the same partitions (part. 1; apps 1,3,4,5, part.2 apps 1,7,8 part. 3 apps 5,11,12 etc...)

Is this possible or am I taking it a little too far? Please understand my programming skills are nill, and my batch writing skills date back to DOS 6.2. Without Unattended Install this will probably take about a week.

Slightly off-topic, if anyone's curious (or if it will impact how the install will run), the fourth partition on each drive will host the swapfile's of the three installs on the opposite drive for simultaneous read/write operations (kind of like a poor man's striping).

Thanks in advance of any help anyone can give.

A#1Noob

[dostrander]

Nothing? Anybody? Suggestion? Slam?

[stevemolson]

Intriguing Idea, but I don't think that there is a way to install different instances of XP to multiple partitions with a single installation. The installation of XP requires a reboot or 2, and the graphical portion of setup works on only the instance being installed.

If all you want to do is have this set-up be reproducible should you need to, I would say Load the Drives/Partitons up the way you want it initially 1 time, then use a disk imaging product like Ghost or Bootit NG to clone the drive to an image file. Depending on the complexity of your set-up you should be able to get each drive on one DVD with compression, so 2 drive imaging runs later your system would be back in shape.

-- Steve Olson

[Majoram]

The only thing I can think of requires some input from you.

There is a setting in the Unattended.txt / winnt.sif file where you specify the partition. There is an option where if windows is found on a partition then setup will install on the next available partition.

Now basically u do a normal unattended CD and have it do the setup. It will of course reboot a couple times but u let it do it's thing.

The problem is once the setup is done, how do u get the comp to reboot a final time on it's own. Then once it reboots and you get the "Press any key to boot from CD...." message, then u press a key and the setup process begins all over again but on a different partition

The final problem now is how/when do you identify a partition and then install a specific set of applications for that partition???

Those are my ideas, which are by no means well thought out

Maybe u can make something out of it.

[dostrander]

Steve and Majoram,

Apologies for my lack of response, my setting for email responses was turned off for some reason

Steve,

At this point I'm not concerned with crash restoration (if that's what you meant by reproducible), I'm just trying to save a weeks worth of time getting everything populated. Afterwards I'll concern myself with disaster recovery.

Majoram,

Thanks for your thoughts, I think I have a semi-firm handle on the unattended CD creation and will look into the installation to "next available partition" option. Perhaps a way around the "Press any key to boot from CD...." might be is, I'm using a drive controller card where it's BIOS allows for boot drive priority. If I load the unattended XP install on a HD, set it for priority, it should launch it auto, right? For a re-boot, I don't mind having to do it manually, but, if when in Windows you can set the "power options" to hibernate at a particular inactivity time, is there somewhere a similar option somewhere to maybe shutdown/restart?

[dostrander]

The installation of XP requires a reboot or 2,

-- Steve Olson

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Steve,

Isn't there an option for denying the reboot, and then just save them all for the final procedure?