Create media for automated unattended install of Windows 10  

Kari said:

OK. After checking your files, I do not know what to say, where to begin!

Your autounattend.xml file is about as wrong as it could be. Please tell if it was created by following instructions on some website, and if yes, please post a link to it. I mean, it is quite clear you have not followed the instructions in this tutorial.
Kari

Thank you for checking. It was created with this guide but i removed the disk steps, i want to make them manually. It looks like the guide here too.
Windows 10 Unattended install media – Part 2: Answer file for Windows Setup – Win10.Guru

hsehestedt said:

The other answer file, the unattend.xml is also way off. It has an entire pass, the Windows PE pass, that should not even be there. Most of those settings, such as the Locale information, should appear in the "oobeSystem" pass.

I have made adjustments to unattend.xml But that file was working.
unattend1903-2.pdf

Kari said:

I must admit how lazy I was: I checked first the autounattend.xml, saw how terribly wrong it was, and didn't bother to check the other file before replying.
Kari

It´s okay. It is the autounattend issue i really need help with. But also good to know any other issues.

Regarding this in 3.4 "and end with build number of the install.wim file used to create the catalog"
Does it matter if my catalog file is created with 18363.1 but the wim i have created is 18363.145?

Step 3.10 - 3.18 (disk) Is not needed for me. I want to make that manual.

- - - Updated - - -

This is the things i want to pass.

autounattend-2.pdf

@Kari,

Tried to install from the ISO I made via oscdimg on a Oracle VM after getting everything built via WSIM and sysprep. There was no OS to select. I didn't think that choice should have even been presented.



Attaching the xml files. I don't see anything wrong:

autounattend.txt
unattend.txt

The ISO looks okay, unless Description : <undefined> is the problem.

Code:

>dism /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:K:\sources\install.wim

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.18362.1

Details for image : K:\sources\install.wim

Index : 1
Name : 'W10'
Description : <undefined>
Size : 20,366,223,138 bytes

The operation completed successfully.

C:\Users\ztruk>dism /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:K:\sources\install.wim /index:1

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.18362.1

Details for image : K:\sources\install.wim

Index : 1
Name : 'W10'
Description : <undefined>
Size : 20,366,223,138 bytes
WIM Bootable : No
Architecture : x64
Hal : acpiapic
Version : 10.0.18362
ServicePack Build : 30
ServicePack Level : 0
Edition : Professional
Installation : Client
ProductType : WinNT
ProductSuite : Terminal Server
System Root : WINDOWS
Directories : 21220
Files : 97532
Created : 08/03/2019 - 12:59:58 AM
Modified : 08/03/2019 - 12:59:59 AM
Languages :
        en-US (Default)

The operation completed successfully.

Ztruker said:

The ISO looks okay, unless Description : <undefined> is the problem.

Yes, the missing description is a problem. Use the following command in elevated Deployment and Imaging Tools Environment (it does not work in normal elevated Command Prompt):

imagex /info X:\MyCustomImage.wim 1 "Win10 PRO x64" "Windows 10 PRO x64"


In the command, X:\MyCustomImage.wim is path and name of your custom WIM file, 1 is the index (in custom captured WIM, it's always 1), "Win10 PRO x64" is the name of that index / edition, and "Windows 10 PRO x64" is the description.

Funny enough, description is required, whereas name is not.

When WSIM is installed, it also installs Deployment and Imaging Tools Environment.You'll find it in Start under Windows Kits:


Kari

That worked:

Code:

C:\>imagex /info C:\WSIMInst\sources\install.wim 1 "Win10 Pro X64" "Windows 10 Pro X64"

ImageX Tool for Windows
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corp. All rights reserved.
Version: 10.0.10011.16384

Successfully set image name: [Win10 Pro X64]

Successfully set image description: [Windows 10 Pro X64]

Code:

C:\>dism /get-wiminfo /wimfile:C:\WSIMInst\sources\install.wim /index:1

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.17763.1

Details for image : C:\WSIMInst\sources\install.wim

Index : 1
Name : Win10 Pro X64
Description : Windows 10 Pro X64
Size : 20,366,223,138 bytes
WIM Bootable : No
Architecture : x64
Hal : acpiapic
Version : 10.0.18362
ServicePack Build : 30
ServicePack Level : 0
Edition : Professional
Installation : Client
ProductType : WinNT
ProductSuite : Terminal Server
System Root : WINDOWS
Directories : 21220
Files : 97532
Created : 8/3/2019 - 12:59:58 AM
Modified : 8/3/2019 - 9:00:40 PM
Languages :
        en-US (Default)

The operation completed successfully.

Now I need to run Sysprep again then dism /capture-image.
Once they are done I can run oscdimg to create a new ISO and try installing again.

Edit: I guess I don't need to redo Sysprep or dism. Just run oscdimg to create a new ISO and try installing again.

Got a little further then ran into partitioning problems:



autounattend.xml looks okay though the DiskConfiguration order is mixed up.

Code:

            <DiskConfiguration>
                <Disk wcm:action="add">
                    <CreatePartitions>
                        <CreatePartition wcm:action="add">
                            <Order>2</Order>
                            <Type>Primary</Type>
                        </CreatePartition>
                        <CreatePartition wcm:action="add">
                            <Order>1</Order>
                            <Size>450</Size>
                            <Type>Primary</Type>
                        </CreatePartition>
                    </CreatePartitions>
                    <ModifyPartitions>
                        <ModifyPartition wcm:action="add">
                            <Format>NTFS</Format>
                            <Label>System</Label>
                            <Order>1</Order>
                            <PartitionID>1</PartitionID>
                            <TypeID></TypeID>
                            <Active>true</Active>
                        </ModifyPartition>
                        <ModifyPartition wcm:action="add">
                            <Format>NTFS</Format>
                            <Label>Win10</Label>
                            <Letter>C</Letter>
                            <Order>2</Order>
                            <PartitionID>2</PartitionID>
                        </ModifyPartition>
                    </ModifyPartitions>
                    <DiskID>0</DiskID>
                    <WillWipeDisk>true</WillWipeDisk>
                </Disk>
            </DiskConfiguration>

I think I need to go through the p[rocess from scratch again and try to be very careful of what I do.

Two errors in autounattend.xml.

Code:

Missing: <extend>true</extend> for Disk 2 (Win10)
Null <TypeID></TypeID>

Moving right along now though it is taking a lot longer. The install.wim is a tad over 7GB.




Was here for a long time.



Was here for a long time too




Got this for a 2nd time



Finally got the modified desktop with a theme and programs installed and other tweaks I made
seem to be there as well. Looks real good.


Install took about an hour, start to finish on a Oracle VB VM, 4GB single processor setup.

So I now have a working BIOS/MBR ISO/autounattend.xml/unattend.xml for Pro X64. Need one for Home.
I should be able to use Kari's autounattend.xml for a UEFI/GPT setup. Pro and Home..

So all told looks like I'll need 4 ISOs.