Mount Disk with DHCP bios

[reydet.michel]

Hi,

I want mount a target disk.

My XPE Image include RamDisk Component but don't include a network
component.

I would like only use the DHCP Network include in my BIOS.

That can me to mount with my server a target disk without install a specific
network component for each target type.

Thks.

 

[Slobodan Brcin]

Hi,

Can you be more specific regarding what you want to do?

Slobodan

 

[reydet.michel]

Hi Slobodan,

I product the media terminals and I would like use XPE inside.

I have developed five XPE image for my five different terminals.

Now I want install these XPE images in my terminals. I product average ten
terminals by day.

Each Terminal include a blank disk drive (without partition).

I want connect my terminals by the LAN to my product server. Each terminal
boot in RAM disk the standard XPE image (standard for my fives different
terminals) by the LAN (Remote Boot function).

The terminals under control can partitioning and formatting its disk and
copying via the LAN the XPE image.

The terminals reboot and finish the installations of these local images.

The terminals are ready.

I try to clarify my needs.

Thank you for your attention.

Regards.



Michel.

 

[reydet.michel]

I forgot the principal information...

The Standard image don't include the specific LAN driver. This image must
use by the different terminals type. It must use the BIOS components use by
the Remote Boot function.



Thks.

 

[Slobodan Brcin]

This sounds ok,

What problems have you encountered?

If you can use NTFS then you can:
1. You can use diskpart and write text command script that will partition
disk set active partition, etc.
2. format to make it NTFS
3. copy files from server to partition using for instance rcp.exe

Alternatively you can write to physical disk by your own application.


I don't understand original question:
You can't mount remote disk using only BIOS.

But if you have SDI image that can boot from network, you can place another
SDI in this image, so you wont need network support in deploy XPE.

Also check rcp.exe command.


Best regards,
Slobodan

 

[Michel REYDET]

Hi Slobodan,

Ok for the rcp command. But how my server can access to Clients for prepare
the disk Clients and coping the XPE image?

If I use the Remote Boot Manager, the size of SDI file is fixe (pe 40Go). If
I use five different Images, I have 5x40Go on my server !!! And I must
always use the same disk capacity. Moreover, I don't know recognise
automatically the hard of my Client.

It's for these raisons that I don't want use the SDI file.

Server with XPE image ------ LAN ------- Client hard A with blank disk

' ------- Client
hard B with blank disk

' ------- Client
hard C with blank disk

My idea is to remote boot in RAM with a standard XPE image who run on all
Clients. This image identify the Client and mount the disk server for
copying the XPE image for this Client.

I know generate a standard XPE image. But when I mount the disk server for
copying the XPE image, I use the NET command. This command use the specific
hard LAN driver who don't install in the standard XPE image.

I would like use a standard XPE image who use the BIOS of each Client. This
communication exist when the Client connect itself on the server during the
remote boot phase.

I think that is similar to the 'Remote Recover' www.winternals.com . But
this software must use manually and I want automate this sequence.

Thks.

Michel

 

[Slobodan Brcin]

In windows 95, 98, etc it was possible to use any resource in virtual x86
mode.

I have newer seen doc or example for drivers that uses BIOS int calls in XP.
I don't think that it is possible to switch back to user x86 mode safely. So
we must leave our hopes to use BIOS support for HDD or Network from XPE.


This would be easily possible if you made all deployment routines in ASM.

Probably it would be possible to make deployment program in 512 bytes.
That would pool image from server and write it to disk.

Using int 13h function for read and write, you could make program that would
read 64KB in one call and then write that 64KB to HDD in second call. You
can do this enough times to copy all info to disk.
Also when copy is finished loader could tell BIOS to boot from next device
so you would have 100% unmanned install. XPE would boot from HDD and reseal
would happen.

I would write this but network deployment is not relevant for what we are
doing. I'm surprised that MS has not done something like this.

Regards,
Slobodan

PS:
I have responded to your email some kind of answer to your prev question.