Background

Lots of this stuff is already documented elsewhere. Since the unattend file has a lot of weird keywords in it, a good method I found of searching is to do a google on one of em, like dushare. There's always the barely useful Windows XP resource kit too.

This is mainly documenting how we are doing it... Installing from a dos network boot drive means we must install using winnt.exe and not winnt32.exe which means lots of features like dynamic update just aren't available.

Reference sites

• Deploying Windows XP Part I: Planning
• Windows Update Catalog Site (only accessible via IE)
• kb q304930, installing java vm silently and without rebooting

Copying Files to Share

A decent tutorial on the below is currently available on: www.mcmse.com site.

Go into \support\tools dir and open deploy.cab and copy out the setupmgr.exe program (might as well grab the deploy.chm file and read it too). Answer the files as below.

• Create a new answer file (this will be used as our template)
• Windows unattended installation
• Windows XP Professional
• Fully Automated
• Yes, create a distribution folder
• Copy files from CD or browse to where the files are on CD in i386 dir
• Create a new dist folder..., enter a share name, it will probably give an error, continue anyway
• Accept terms of license agreement (do you really have a choice?!)
• Configure answers for a template station so we can create a template unattend.txt file
• Files get copied to dist share/dir specified

Grab a copy of the unattend.doc file out of the deploy.cab file OF A WINDOWS 2000 PRO CD. It's not in the XP Pro deploy.cab file. THis is the only doc I've found that covers everything that can be entered in that file.

Create a cmdlines.txt file and put into it the following:

[Commands]
"cmd"

This will stop the install at this point and let you experiment with how to silently install hotfixes and programs at this point. Before deploying, this line should obviously be removed.

Go to the Windows Update Catalog Site and extract the hotfixes you think these machines will need. Then copy each one into the i386\$oem$ of the above share. The commands to install these will go into cmdlines.txt file after you test each one when cmdlines.txt throws up a cmd prompt during your test installs. You must rename long filenames to an 8.3 format for them to be copied correctly during install. List the hotfixes in cmdlines.txt like this (note, some hotfixes require stupid non-standard unconventional switches and methods to install from CLI):

"cmd /c javaupd8.cmd"
"q307274 -u -n -z"
"q307869 -u -n -z"
"q309376 -u -n -z"
"q309495 -u -n -z"
"q309521 -u -n -z"
"q311889 -u -n -z"
"q311967 -u -n -z"
"q314147 -u -n -z"
"q314862 -u -n -z"
"q315000 -u -n -z"
"q315403 -u -n -z"
"q317277 -u -n -z"
"q319182 /q /r:n"
"q319580 -u -n -z"
"q320174 -u -n -z"
"vbs56nen /q /r:n"
"msxm /q /r:n"
"mmssetup /q /r:n"
"cmd /c stupid1s.cmd"
"del /f /q %UserProfile%\Desktop\Microsoft XML 4.0 Parser SDK.lnk"
"rd /s /q %UserProfile%\Start Menu\Programs\MSXML 4.0"

Contents of stupid1s.cmd is this (can't go into cmdlines.txt because the command itself requires double quotes and ain't no escape char in windows shell...):

start /wait q318202 /q /c:"dahotfix /q /n"
start /wait q318203 /q /c:"dahotfix /q /n"

... and javaupd8.cmd is...

Msjavx86.exe /c:"javatrig.exe /exe_install /l /qq" /q:a /r:n

Windows XP doesn't have the same issues with chaining hotfixes without a reboot like Windows 2000 and earlier had, according to q296861.

Create an IEAK package, distribute cabs onto designated location on web server and copy the .ins file to $oem$ dir. Add a section to the unattend.txt file to activate it as such...

[Branding]
BrandIEUsingUnattended = No
IEBrandingFile = ie60.ins (whatever the proper ins filename is)

Main XP Unattended Install Doc Page