custom deployments?

[cmattb]

Hello all, I work for a custom computer company and so far, we've been doing Vista installs pretty much by hand. It hasnt been too bad, but we would like to change to unattended installs asap. In the past, with XP, we just did images for each motherboard we carried, then installed any additional drivers/software afterwards. Ive been trying to read up on how unattended installs work in Vista, but I still have a few questions.

First, we would like to completly automate the installs using a XML file. I understand how to do things like the user name and product key, but is there a way to install specific drivers or software through the XML file? The drivers and software to be installed change from system to system, so it would have to be able to specify which things to install.

Second, is it possible to do this all over the network, or am I going to have to have the xml file on a floppy or USB drive?

Last, Ive been using BDD for the last few days, just trying to get familiar with it, and Ive gotten most things to work alright, but I cant seem to get Nvidia drivers installed. Note this isnt using an xml file, this is using BDD's light touch install. Its like since there is a driver already installed (the generic microsoft one), it doesnt even try to install the new video driver.

Any help/tips you can give me are really appreciated. Again, Im new to this, so if I'm asking something obvious, dont hesitate to make fun of me

Thanks,

Matt

[joshiieeii]

Download BDD 2007 and start reading up on Lite Touch.

Download BDD 2007 Here

BDD 2007 allows you to have a driver repository that Vista will look to when it is updating drivers in the PnP stage. BDD also supports doing this over the network. There is a ton of documentation included with BDD so don't be intimidated, you will slowly absorb stuff.

Edit: Doh, helps to read the whole post....The XML question, you will need to use Lite Touch for a network based XML type situation. The driver issue you are talking about is a know issue with the way the drivers are updated. There is supposedly an update to BDD coming soon, hopefully they will include a fix for it.

Edited April 18, 2007 by joshiieeii

[mniehaus]

We will have a patch available in the next couple of weeks, but given the description I doubt this issue is related.

Assuming you added the nVidia driver to the BDD Deployment Workbench, it should be copied to the local machine during the deployment and injected into the Windows Vista driver store. However, if that driver isn't signed, the in-box driver provided with Windows Vista will take precedence.

If you look at the BDD.LOG (it should be in \windows\temp\bddlogs after the deployment completes), you should see that the driver was copied. PNPUTIL.EXE can show that the driver was injected into the driver store. The \windows\inf\setupapi.app.log should show which driver was selected as "best".

-Michael

[Br4tt3]

Hi Michael!

Welcome to MSFN!!! Nice to see you checking out this forum and thanks for a great product in BDD. Awsome....

Any time and name on the replacement/upgrade that will support Longhorn server deployments using the BDD concept?

Again, enjoy ur stay here and hope to see more of u in here....

[prathapml]

If its vista 32-bit, I might recommend this topic for reference - http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=90286

Place the autounattend.xml either at the root of your dvd or at the root of your USB drive.

nVidia drivers aren't being automatically installed, because (as always) setup gives priority to WHQL signed drivers - and none of the nVidia-Vista drivers have the signature, except for the ones already contained on the dvd as part of Vista's own driver-set.