E2B #2: How to install Microsoft Windows using Easy2Boot [rev 1.10]

This 120pp eBook (PDF) mainly concentrates on how to Install Windows 10/11 using Easy2Boot but the information can be applied to other versions of Windows too. Note that Windows XP and earlier versions are not covered in this eBook

As well as containing Exercises for you to follow, it contains information on how to automate Windows installs, how to quickly make, use and edit XML files, the Windows Setup installation phases, how to fully automate the OS installation and automate the installation of hardware drivers and applications, how to automatically change the ComputerName to match the computers serial number, how to install using WinNTSetup and how to boot from E2B via UEFI.

It also covers how to add large install.wim/install.esd files (>4GB) by splitting them or by using an NTFS partition plus a FAT32 UEFI boot partition.

Even if you are only interested in unattended Windows installations without using Easy2Boot, you should find the information in this eBook useful.

Contents (subject to change)

Glossary 5
Introduction - Please read! 9
'Fixed-disk' or 'Removable-disk'? 9
'How-to' articles 9
Free Bonus! 10
Feedback 10
Important tips 10
Choosing your USB drive 12
Testing USB drive speed 13
Size is important - 'BIOS BAD'! 13
Removable USB drives 14
Fixed-disk USB drives 15
SD cards (not recommended) 17
Using USB drives with computers 17
Make an E2B drive 18
Make an E2B WinHelper drive 19
How to use the WinHelper Flash drive 20
Troubleshooting when using an E2B USB WinHelper flash drive 21
What is on an E2B USB drive? 23
Files in the top level (root) folder 23
E2B Menu folders 24
\_ISO\docs folder 24
\_ISO\e2b folder 24
Adding your personal files 24
Updating E2B 24
Booting to E2B 25
Legacy\MBR\BIOS\CSM 25
UEFI 25
Testing the E2B menu using ‘QEMU Menu test’ 26
Exercise 1: Test using QEMU 26
Booting on a real system 29
Legacy BIOS 29
UEFI Systems 29
Exercise 2: Boot to the E2B menu 31
Using E2B 32
Add some ISOs (add payload files) 32
About the E2B Menu Folders 32
The 'Special' Sub-Menu folders 33
\_ISO\AUTO 33
\_ISO\WINDOWS\xxxx 33
Where to put Windows Install ISOs 34
All-In-One Install ISOs 35
Adding Windows Install ISOs and .imgPTN files 35
List of tested payload files 36
Make files contiguous 37
Defraggler 37
How to 'refresh' a fragmented E2B drive 38
Methods of Installing Windows 8\10 using E2B 39
Windows Install - the traps, pitfalls and workarounds 40
About Windows 8\10 Activation 41
Installing Windows from an ISO 42
Windows 8\10 Install from ISO file (MBR-boot) 44
Exercise 3: Windows 10 Install from ISO (MBR-boot) 44
Exercise 4: Windows 10 Install from ISO (MBR-boot) automated install 48
Exercise 5: Windows 10 Install from ISO (MBR-boot) with pre-set UserName and ComputerName 49
Prompting for more XML values before installation 53
Exercise 6: Windows 10 Install from ISO (MBR-boot) with ComputerName pre-set to the PC Serial number 54
About Windows Setup answer files 57
How Windows searches for a valid XML file 57
The WindowsPE pass 59
Setup log files 60
The Specialize pass 60
The oobeSystem pass 60
Windows Product Keys and Image Index Numbers 60
How to add more .KEY and .XML files to E2B 64
Adding .KEY files 64
List of installation-only Product Keys 65
Adding .XML Files 66
How to make your own unattend XML file 67
Exercise 7: Make your own Windows 10 unattended XML file 67
XMLtoE2B 70
Tips and Tricks with XML files 71
ComputerName 71
Product Keys 71
User Accounts\User Name 72
SkipMachineOOBE 72
Administrator Account 72
WipeDisk 73
Troubleshooting Windows Setup errors 74
SDI_CHOCO (automated install of drivers and applications) 75
How SDI_CHOCO works 76
Order of execution 76
Using .tag files 77
The \_ISO\WINDOWS\installs folder structure 77
Exercise 8: Automating a Win10 installation using SDI_CHOCO 78
Testing Chocolatey 81
SDI (Snappy) 82
How to add another SDI_CHOCO configuration set 83
Exercise 9: Add the SDI_ONLINE_APPS configuration set 84
SDI_CHOCO tips 85
Installing offline packages using ChocBox 87
Exercise 10: Add an offline Chocolatey package using ChocBox 87
How to add your own offline packages 91
Exercise 11: Create a WinRar 64-bit offline package 91
WinNTSetup 94
Exercise 12: Use WinNTSetup to install Windows 10 95
Using WinNTSetup on UEFI-only systems 100
UEFI Booting 101
UEFI and E2B 101
MemTest86 .imgPTN file 103
Exercise 13: UEFI-boot to MemTest86 using an .imgPTN file 103
MakePartImage and the MPI Tool Kit 108
.imgPTN File extensions 108
Adding suffixes 108
Switching in a .imgPTN image 109
Exercise 14: UEFI Windows 10 install 110
About installing Windows + unattend.xml from 'flat-files' 114
Exercise 15: Automated UEFI Windows 10 install 114
Workarounds for \AutoUnattend.xml not detected 116
Exercise 16: How to add multiple XML files into a .imgPTN file (+files >4GB) 116
Windows Install file is larger than 4GB? 120
Using an NTFS partition for >4Gb files 121
Exercise 17: UEFI-boot to an NTFS partition (no need to split a large Install.wim file) 121
Support for E2B 123
Appendix 124
Valid file extensions for files in the \_ISO\WINDOWS subfolders 124
.ISO files 124
.imgPTN files 124
.TXT files 124
Acknowledgements 125
Feedback please! 125