How to Easily Customize
Windows Install and
Troubleshooting CDs
Minh Vuong
Yale University
minh.vuong@yale.edu
Yale University
• Medium-sized private institution located
in New Haven, CT
• 5300 undergraduate students
• 6000 graduate/professional students
Yale University, cont.
• 87% of undergraduates live on-campus
in residential colleges
• Graduate students live either off-
campus or in one of three dormitories
Undergraduate Life
•Most freshmen live on Old Campus
Undergraduate Life,
cont.one of twelve
• Upperclassmen live in
residential colleges
• Each college has its own dining hall,
library, laundry machines, and special
facilities, such as a climbing wall,
small theater spaces, etc.
Our Technology
• Full hardware and software support provided
Support
free
• Hardware
• Hard drive data recovery
• Dell & Apple warranty support
• Peripherals: routers, printers, iPods, etc.
• Software
• Clean OS installs
• Anything except for p2p software support :)
Staff
• 90-100 student Computing Assistants
(CAs)
• 16 are experienced CA coordinators
who supervise support in each
residential college
• 2 full-time staff members, adding a third
Presentation
Summary
• Customizing Windows Install Discs
• nLite
• DriverPacks
• RyanVM
• $OEM$ folders
• PowerPacker
• Creating a UBCD/UBCD4Win disc
Customizing
Windows Install CDs
Why?
• Save time & money whenever you or
your techs do Windows reinstalls
• Windows is fully patched on first startup
• Most (if not all) hardware device drivers
already installed
• Computer is up and running faster!
What You Need
• Original Windows discs
• Testing and building environment
• What I use: Mac Pro + Parallels
• No programming skills required!
Your Options
Software
Difficulty Result
Needed
Integrated individual
Easy WinXP discs with nLite + RyanVM
patches
Integrated individual nLite + RyanVM +
Almost as
WinXP discs with DriverPacks +
Easy
patches AND drivers PowerPacker
• Software We’ll Use
Download freeware:
• nLite - Customize discs
• RyanVM Windows XP Post-SP2
Update Pack - Integrate Windows
patches & fixes
• DriverPacks - Integrate hardware
drivers
• Windows XP PowerPacker - Create
Multiboot Windows XP discs
• UltraISO - Edit ISOs directly
• Nero - Burn discs
Testing Your ISOs
• Microsoft
VirtualPC -
Free but slow
• Parallels - Not
free but very
fast on Core
Duos
nLite
• Download from nliteos.com
nLite
• Install nLite
nLite
• Start nLite
nLite
• Select an original Windows install disc
nLite
• Remembers your past settings (if
available)
nLite
• Your options
nLite
• Integrating Windows updates
• RyanVM gets most updates
• You may want to add your own
patches and Addons manually
nLite
• Application add-ins:
http://www.nliteos.com/addons/index.ht
ml
• Firefox, Windows Defender, etc.
RyanVM
• Install most Windows updates during
the setup process
nLite
• Automating the setup
Select
ProvideDefault
s
nLite
• Creating login accounts
nLite
• Setting default computer name
nLite
• Setting automatic updating
nLite
• Disable duplicate files
nLite
• Disable Windows File Protection (SFC)
nLite
• Further customizations
nLite
• Build the disc
nLite
• Finished!
If you want to
continue....
• Your WinXP ISO is ready to go, but if
you want to further enhance your disc,
please continue!
Integrating Drivers
• Download DriverPacks -
driverpacks.net
DriverPacks
• Download DriverPacks BASE
DriverPacks
• Various DriverPacks are available
DriverPacks
• Extract DriverPacks BASE and drag
downloaded DriverPacks to the
DriverPacks folder
• Run DPs_BASE.exe
DriverPacks
• Select the Windows folder you created
from nLite
DriverPacks
• Select which DriverPacks to integrate
DriverPacks
• Select Method 2 - Better compression
and driver support
DriverPacks
• GuiRunOnce for simplicity
• RunOnceEx for PowerPacker
DriverPacks
• Disable Keep The Drivers (KTD) to
save hard drive space
DriverPacks
• Select the option to go with which
Method you picked before
DriverPacks
• Select any additional options for the
various DriverPacks
DriverPacks
• A summary of your options
DriverPacks
• UpdateChecker never works for me
DriverPacks
• Export your settings for PowerPacker
OR
DriverPacks
• Slipstream if you don’t want to use
PowerPacker
Using $OEM$ folders
• $OEM$ folders are
copied to the new
Windows install
• Different folders do
different things: $1,
$$, $Docs, $Progs
• Good reference:
http://unattended.msf
n.org/unattended.xp/
view/web/18/
Using $OEM$
Foldersin the /i386
• Edit winnt.sif file, located
folder
• Copy over batch scripts to runonce, e.g.
automated installation/configuration of
SAV
XP PowerPacker
• Download from
http://powerpacker.siginetsoftware.com/
XP PowerPacker
• Pack and repeat with another WinXP
install disc!
No spaces in any of these
fields
Save in the root, e.g.
c:\driverpack.ini
XP PowerPacker
• Advanced features
Editing ISOs
• UltraISO - $30 at
http://www.ezbsystems.com/ultraiso/
Creating UBCD &
UBCD4Win CDs
Why?
• Troubleshoot
non-booting
Windows hard
drives
• Data recovery
off dying hard
drives
Why?
• Hardware diagnostics
What You Need
• Test environment
• What I use: Mac Pro + Parallels
• No programming skills required!
Download
• UBCD -
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/downloa
d.html
• UBCD4Win -
http://www.ubcd4win.com/downloads.ht
m
Install UBCD4Win
Install UBCD4Win,
cont.
2
1
3
Installing UBCD4Win,
cont.
UBCD4Win
UBCD4Win
UBCD4Win
• Drag UBCD iso to the new window
UBCD4Win
Build UBCD4Win!
Done!
• Make sure you test!
Testing Your Discs
• First test in VirtualPC or Parallels to
make sure your discs work
• Burn to disc and test on as many
different computers as possible
• Test on computers you’re fixing
• Ask for feedback and bugs before
rolling out!
Future Plans
• Vista - vlite.com (beta)
• Combine UBCD/UBCD4Win/WinXP
into one big disc
• Using UBCD/UBCD4Win on a USB
key
Conclusion
• Tools you’ll need:
• nLite - nliteos.com
• DriverPacks - www.driverpacks.net
• RyanVM’s Post-SP2 Patches -
ryanvm.net/msfn/updatepack.html
• PowerPacker -
powerpacker.siginetsoftware.com
• Test environment
• Patience!
Conclusion, cont.
• What you don’t need:
• Money to buy the software
• Programming skills
Contact Info:
• Minh Vuong
minh.vuong@yale.edu
203.432.0081
Please fill out an online evaluation at
resnetsymposium.org/resnet2007
Questions?