Creating an XPe Installation CD [revisited]

[garvin.seto]

Creating an XPe Installation CD [revisited]

In the past I have inquired about creating an installation cd for my
headless devices. That runs XPe. This is for those that are in the
same boat as me. And I am also looking for questions and comments
about my implementation, in order to do it better.

Problem:
- create a bootable installation cd, much like an windows xp cd install
"set it and forget it"
- cheap-affordable... some places charge a fee per cd you burn and
distribute.
- Easy to use

Solution:
- created a linux boot cd (Burn s/w: nero or sonic cd now and Linux
distro: hal91 or RescueCD)
- made custom boot script to:
+ copy over a compressed image of XPe (i.e. image.tar.gz)
+ uncompress image
+ eject cd
+ create beeping noise to notify the user to reboot the pc
- reboot pc

Discussion:
- This is what I've been able to do so far. Things left to do:
+ Have the custom script format the entire hard drive and create a
boot partition to copy the image to, if that s possible
- Questions / Comments / Concerns

 

[Guest]

Garvin/ALL -

I have been able to do a similar thing, yet I use Windows PE and an
installation script...

I have also been able to deply xpe using windows PE and windows server 2003
for PXE/RIS deployment...


If anyone else would like instructions or a howto provide webspace that I
can upload a procedure to.

-Mark

 

[BattleAngel444]

Hi Mark

Yep... looked in to that too.. but i can not distribute PE on a CD to
customers ;-)

thanks for the input

-Garvin

 

[Scott Figg]

Yes you can distribute WinPE to customers if it is part of recovery CD with
the system or if you are sending it as a Update Image or Field Upgrade image
to an already deployed system.

-Scott Figg
Arrow Electronics

 

[BattleAngel444]

Hi Scott

Are there instruction some where, i.e. msdn, or some where else, that
show how to create/set-up an installation/recovery cd?

thanks
-Garvin

 

[Scott Figg]

The only MSDN article I know is one that explains how to setup to use WinPE
to boot and then SDI to deploy from an installation server. It sounds more
like you would just want to eliminate SDI, as in boot the WinPE and have the
image on the CD and not a server. I don't know of any articles on that.

Here's the one on WinPE and SDI.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/d...tingEmbeddedRecoveryCDByUsingWindowsPESDI.asp

 

[BattleAngel444]

yeah i seem to recall skimming through that article. i currently am
working on a headless device that we want to install XPe on via a cd.
but the thing is we also want to ship that cd as well incase the XPe
needs to be reinstalled. I was going for the more straight forward
solution. (for example. norton ghost was looked @ but to generate a cd
image and ship it with the product would have extra costs... around $20
per cd) so that the customer only needs to place the cd in the cd-rom
drive and boot up out machine and just wait for it to eject the cd when
everything has been copied over

-Garvin

 

[Guest]

BattleAngel444 -

I have a procedure written for this, if somone can offer webspace I can
upload it, I don't know how to get it submitted to MSDN tech articles
otherwise I'd try to do that.

Mark

 

[KM]

Mark,

If acceptable, please upload it on Brad's www.xpefiles.com.
I'd say it is only centralized place now for 3rd party XPe stuff.

 

[Massimiliano Castelletto]

Please, tell us when and where you will upload it.

Thanks
Max

 

[Andy Allred [MS]]

You can also get articles posted to WindowsForDevices.com by going here:
http://www.windowsfordevices.com/cgi-bin/article_post.cgi , they're always
open to new content from the public.

-andy