Getting hostname at boot

[Adeline]

Two Windows XP Embedded images, booted using PXE in RAM, are on a same
network.
The only difference between these 2 images is the hostname.
The DHCP/TFTP server used to boot the image is a FreeBSD package.
Everything is working well. But as the images are almost the same,
keeping two images is a waste of space.

We would like to have only one image and change the hostname at boot.
Several possibilities may allow to get the hostname reading hardware
values or by DHCP. But, we don't have the possibility to reboot the
machine to set up the hostname because the OS is stored in RAM (PXE
boot).
Other machines on this embedded network are Unix machines. They take
their hostname by DHCP. Is it possible that the XP Embedded machine
gets the hostname at boot using DHCP ? Is there any component to add
to do it ? Is there any necessary change among registry keys ?


As we use the same image for several machines, is there a component
that allows to create different SID for each machine ? How does it
work ?
Can we run the FBA on a unique machine, create a unique SDI file to
boot on LAN and have a different SID for each machine on the network
that uses this SDI file ?

 

[Slobodan Brcin \(eMVP\)]

Hi Adeline,

Read about XPe cloning support it might help you:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/xpehelp/html/xeconCloning.asp

Regards,
Slobodan

 

[Adeline]

- first problem : SID
I have read this page before. But my problem is that I have to create
a SDI to boot on LAN and I would like to use the same SDI for both
targets.
However, if I understand the process, I have to clone images at phase
12000 of the FBA on all the targets.
FBA phases after 12000 are done on each target and not only on the
master.

If I create my SDI file at phase 12000, the end of the FBA is done at
boot (in RAM as I use boot on LAN) but at the end of the FBA, the OS
restarts to launch Windows XP Embedded and the end of the FBA will be
redone as the OS was loaded in RAM !

If I create my SDI file at the end of the FBA, one SDI for all the
machines cannot work as I have the same SID for all my machines...


Moreover, I have to launch a script that customise user profiles at
the end of the FBA with an automatic login of the users and a patch of
their own NTUSER.DATA, that requires many reboots (one per user to
login everybody ones). So my SDI has to be created after this step as
OS in RAM does not support reboot.

Do you have any solution for this point ?

- Second Problem : Hostnames
The names of machines is randomly chosen with this component. Isn't it
possible to set it using DHCP ? I cannot have a random name as many
applications need to access this target, basing name on DNS.


Thanks in advance

 

[Slobodan Brcin \(eMVP\)]

Hi Adeline,

I never tried remote boot and to change SID at the same time.
But if it can be done then procedure would be like:
1. set reseal to manual (phase 0)
2. Do all changes to XPe.
3. call fbreseal.exe
4. shutdown and make sdi file.

Look also at:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/sysinfo/base/setcomputername.asp
http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/source/newsid.shtml

Regards,
Slobodan