Sysprep and User account settings

[Guest]

Greetings,

Long time XP user, first time sysprep user.

I'm running Windows XP Pro on a Dell Optiplex 400.

I am trying to create a standard base stand alone kiosk image. I have 6
locations with 4 computers at each site and I want all 24 systems to look and
act exactly the same way.

I created a base image and using the Shared Computer toolkit created a
generic user account with proper restrictions placed on that account.

In addition to this, I configured the base image to automatically boot to
the generic user account, automatically launch IE in full screen mode to a
pre-setermined web site.

I've created a ghost image, for back up purposes and when I restore the
original ghost image to test systems and reboot the system all works as
planned.

So when I tried to use sysprep to create an image I can rollout, my reults
failed.

The only success were that the admin and generic accounts remained with
their proper credentials.

However, none of the original settings applied to the generic account took.

ANy ideas as to what happened to the settings applied to the generic account?

 

[Hunter01]

Greetings,

Long time XP user, first time sysprep user.

I'm running Windows XP Pro on a Dell Optiplex 400.

I am trying to create a standard base stand alone kiosk image. I have 6
locations with 4 computers at each site and I want all 24 systems to look and
act exactly the same way.

I created a base image and using the Shared Computer toolkit created a
generic user account with proper restrictions placed on that account.

In addition to this, I configured the base image to automatically boot to
the generic user account, automatically launch IE in full screen mode to a
pre-setermined web site.

I've created a ghost image, for back up purposes and when I restore the
original ghost image to test systems and reboot the system all works as
planned.

So when I tried to use sysprep to create an image I can rollout, my reults
failed.

The only success were that the admin and generic accounts remained with
their proper credentials.

However, none of the original settings applied to the generic account took.

ANy ideas as to what happened to the settings applied to the generic account?

If it's all the same hardware bin sysprep, just ghost away and all will
be well, sysprep is excellent for "one image fits all hardware" but a
complete waste of time if all platforms are the same. If it's different
hardware and you have to use sysprep for that reason, remember that the
"local admin" account will replace the default profile as soon as you
sysprep.

 

[Guest]

:

If it's all the same hardware bin sysprep, just ghost away and all will
be well, sysprep is excellent for "one image fits all hardware" but a
complete waste of time if all platforms are the same. If it's different
hardware and you have to use sysprep for that reason, remember that the
"local admin" account will replace the default profile as soon as you
sysprep.

Unfortunately the systemsvary from site to site. They are the unused step
children of computers.

So it looks like I need to use sysprep for this reason....what about SIDS?
WOnt the same image give me the same sids on each system?

 

[Hunter01]

Unfortunately the systemsvary from site to site. They are the unused step
children of computers.

So it looks like I need to use sysprep for this reason....

Yes, you most definitely will if you want a single image across the
board. In that case going back to your initial problem what exactly is
happening??? For starters the default user profile will be set by the
local administrator profile, Microsoft in their infinite wisdom decided
they didn't trust us any more to have the intelligence to create our own
default user profiles and as of SP2 decided they'd just overwrite
anything we set with the local administrator profile whenever sysprep is
run, so perhaps this is part of your problem?

I work in a domain environment so can't tell you much about "the Shared
Computer toolkit" as I don't use it, but I would hazard a guess that if
you were to log into the machine with the generic account prior to
sysprepping the machine, and setting everything the way you like it
under that account, that the settings would most likely stick as opposed
to the profile being generated post image on the first login of that
account from what Microsoft has patched together as your new default
user profile? Can't guarantee that though, we don't set up any
pre-configured profiles, we just work with the devil and use the local
admin profile as our default user profile now despite the stupidity of
that Microsoft "innovation".

Or am I completely out of the ball park and missed what you're asking?
It's the weekend and I had a good pub session last night so things are
still a little hazy!

what about SIDS?
WOnt the same image give me the same sids on each system?

Not if you use one of the third party products which are dedicated SID
changing packages, that don't butcher your customisations like Sysprep
tends to do and take a 10th of the time to do their thing. Unfortunately
Sysprep is the ONLY way we've found to create a hardware independent
image, and like yourself we have a lot of different hardware around, so
despite it's many problems and ongoing issues getting all the drivers to
work across the board it's been a godsend for us.

 

[Adam Leinss]

=?Utf-8?B?Sm9obiBBZGFpciBKcg==?=

ANy ideas as to what happened to the settings applied to the
generic account?

Sysprep breaks the settings applied by SCT. What I did is used Ghost
to make an image and then I just run NewSID by Sysinternals on the new
hardware after I bring down the image to scramble the SIDS.

Adam

 

[Guest]

I'll run it again today and try and give a detailed blow by blow. Hope the
weekend was great, but not so great that you are fuzzy this morning.

 

[Guest]

In addition to getting a more detailed explanation of what is happening, I
will also try the sysinternals utility. That may just be what the doctored
ordered.

 

[Hunter01]

I'll run it again today and try and give a detailed blow by blow. Hope the
weekend was great, but not so great that you are fuzzy this morning.

Nah, I'm much healthier this morning! Hopefully the customisations that
are getting blatted away are easily restored, the ones we're concerned
with we just re-instate, some via reg hacks deployed by Altiris, others
via login script, etc.etc. For most there seems to be a work around
(like that damn firewall they insist on turning back on!)

Sometimes Sysprep seems like more trouble than it's worth, but we just
have way too many different platforms around now to stuff around with
updating umpteen dedicated images every time we want to change the OS,
or base SP/patching level or whatever else.

Anyone know of a third party toy like Sysprep that sorts the hardware,
yet doesn't mangle the system with "Microsoft knows best" customisations?

 

[Hunter01]

In addition to getting a more detailed explanation of what is happening, I
will also try the sysinternals utility. That may just be what the doctored
ordered.

Very handy toy to have, but you wont need it if you are using sysprep to
cater for multiple hardware platforms in a single image, Sysprep will
change the SID for you. If you have dedicated images for each platform
then NewSID would be the way to go, much less intrusive than Sysprep.

 

[Darrell Gorter[MSFT]]

Hello John,
use this article to note the change with SP2 with regards to running
Sysprep.
887816 Changes in behavior of the SysPrep and RIPREP tools after you
install Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;887816

There is also a QFE to allow for the option to revert the behavior prior to
SP2.

Thanks,
Darrell Gorter[MSFT]

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights
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<Greetings,
<
<Long time XP user, first time sysprep user.
<
<I'm running Windows XP Pro on a Dell Optiplex 400.
<
<I am trying to create a standard base stand alone kiosk image. I have 6
<locations with 4 computers at each site and I want all 24 systems to look
and
<act exactly the same way.
<
<I created a base image and using the Shared Computer toolkit created a
<generic user account with proper restrictions placed on that account.
<
<In addition to this, I configured the base image to automatically boot to
<the generic user account, automatically launch IE in full screen mode to a
<pre-setermined web site.
<
<I've created a ghost image, for back up purposes and when I restore the
<original ghost image to test systems and reboot the system all works as
<planned.
<
<So when I tried to use sysprep to create an image I can rollout, my reults
<failed.
<
<The only success were that the admin and generic accounts remained with
<their proper credentials.
<
<However, none of the original settings applied to the generic account took.
<
<ANy ideas as to what happened to the settings applied to the generic
account?
<

 

[Guest]

Thanks Darrell. I am finally able to get back to this problem today.