PE-BUILDER/XPE
CREATE DRIVER PLUGIN
PE2USB
SCREENSHOTS
SELF-EXTRACTING PLUGIN
TFTPD32/RIS
XPE SKINS
Windows XP Preinstalled Environment (PE-Builder + XPE Plugin)This page was last updated on April 30, 2007
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| _volid | is the title of the Image. |
| _sortfile | to pass to mkisofs for sorting order of files, I've tracked down a possible order (xpe optimized), but you can use your own. |
| _mkisofspriority | can be low | normal | high | realtime | abovenormal | belownormal, the priority for mkisofs process. |
| _runinfcache | if yes the script will call InfCacheBuild, it will remove CopyFiles, RenFiles
and DelFiles sections from inf files, then it will build INFCACHE.1 to speedup pnp detection, also if filecase.ini is included it uppercases files from this file and it will add -U option to mkisofs so you will not get all files on Image in uppercase but only needed. |
| _copyhives | if yes the script will copy registry hives for hdinstall, you should also edit
plugin\peinst\peinst.cmd and add: copy /y %_source%\programs\peinst\default %_target%\minint\system32\config >NUL: copy /y %_source%\programs\peinst\software %_target%\minint\system32\config >NUL: before line saying "PEINST: Installation completed...". |
| _setupisolinux | if yes it will copy isolinux directory in the Image, also will setup needed
mkisofs options, a sample config togheter with base files is included. |
| _mkisofs | set this to no only for debug, it will prevent mkisofs call. |
NOTES:
- don't press stop button while mkisofs is running or you will need to kill it
by hand (taskmanager) or wait its end.
- if sortfile doesn't exists -sort option will not be used
- if filecase.ini is processed and no errors (except not found) occur, then -U option
is added to mkisofs
Sources (GPL) for InfCacheBuild program can be found on my winpe page: http://oss.netfarm.it/winpe/
What is Auto Ramdisk Resizer
AutoRamDisk resizer: base concept by Sergio Neddi, C-Native port by Sherpya, you need also Ramdisk plugin active since this does only the resizing
To format the ramdrive with NTFS compressed filesystem after the resize, uncomment
the reg key in autoramresizer.inf
Usage:
AutoRamResizer.exe [-w] [-d n] [-l min] [-h max] [-f minfree]
-w wipe ramdrive before processing it
-d divisor - the divisor (decimal) for physical ram to calculate new size, defaults
to 3, must be > 1
-l minimum - the minimum ram size to set, defaults to 4mb
-h maximum - the maximum ram size to set, defaults to physical memory / divisor
-f minfree - the minimum free memory after the resize
-l -h -f accept megabytes as arguments
Note: If you are not using xpe but another explorer plugin, you should change this
line:
0x1,"Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx\100","100","||xpeinit.exe -f -m AutoRamResizer AutoRamResizer.exe -h 64 -f 64"
with this:
0x1, "Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx\100","100","||AutoRamResizer.exe
-h 64 -f 64"
What is HWPnP.
This plugin is used to detect and install devices which currently have no driver installed. This plugin is used by the Windows XPE plugin.
By default it will install devices with device ids that start with:
- PCI\VEN
- ACPI_HAL\
- ACPI\
- IDE\
- PCIIDE\
- ISAPNP\
- LPTENUM\
- ROOT\ACPI
- ROOT\DMIO
- ROOT\SYSTEM
- SERENUM\
- STORAGE\
- SW\
- USB\
- USBSTOR\
If the installation of a device results in the popup of the 'Found New Device' dialog then the <next> and <finish> buttons will automatically be clicked so that no user intervention is required for device detection to continue. The buttons are identified in the dialog by looking for controls with particular control ids so hopefully this will work in all languages. Its only been tested in US english.
Downloads
Here is the latest version of PE-Builder:
PE
Builder v3.1.10
Here is the latest version of the XPE Plugin and other tools from Sherpya:
Windows
XPE Plugin v1.0.6
AutoRamDiskResizer
Build
Scripts
Here is the latest version of the HWPnP Plugin:
HWPnP
1.0.0.22
Starting Building steps
- Download the latest version of PE Builder and Windows XPE Plugin, see the Download section on this page.
Just unpack the PE Builder files from the zipfile to some location you like. Copy also the Windows XPE plugin files in the plugin directory of PE Builder.
Make sure you also unpack the subdirectories! - Add other PE Builder plugins to the plugin directory. You can find this on the plugin link page.
- Run pebuilder.exe. Follow the instructions that PE Builder gives you.
If some option is not clear hit the Help button.
Some plugins require that you download the program and put the files in the right location. PE Builder will tell you so. For example, if you enabled a plugin, without adding the required files, PE Builder will display an error message saying Missing files: file1, file2, .... If this happens hit the [PluginHelp] button to get more information about what files are needed.
Adding Windows XPE Plugin
This plugin (together with the HWPnP plugin) is the best combination for a PnP working rescue CD. To let it work for the 100%, you must add four directories (DRIVERS, INF, SYSTEM, FILES). This information you don't find in de manuals but it work for me. For some people is this a brute force to use this kind of solution, but it’s work with all kind of hardware.
You don’t need the driver, inf and system folder you can also add all your hardware as a separate plugin. The three sub folder are there to make it 100% plug and play for many hardware configurations and AGAIN you only add the three directories if you are NOT sure about the miscellaneous range of hardware configurations.
I often leave these directories away for testing (for example PXE Boot) and everything works fine for that specific hardware.
- You can find the driver.cab and sp*.cab file's in the i386 directory on the installation CD (including SP2 slipstreamed). Or if the i386 directory is copied to the hard disk you can find it in there.
NOTE: you must update the drivers that you extract from driver.cab with the ones from sp1.cab or sp2.cab depending on which service pack you use. The service pack files update some of the existing drivers but not all of them. (from Paraglider).
- Expand all inf files from XP source by running the following command from commando
prompt or run box.
expand -r "[xp\i386 path\]*.in_" ["XPE plugin\inf sub folder path"]
Delete the expanded .inc .ins and .ini files in the xpe\inf subfolder. Just leave .inf files.
- OPTIONAL: Download Tweakui (for Windows 9x and Windows XP) from www.systemsmedic.com. Uncompact this and put tweakui.exe and tweakui.cpl in the files directory.
- Rename the z_xpe-custom.inf.sample file to z_xpe-custom.inf and edit the files z_xpe-custom.inf and xpe-defaults.inf to your needs.
- NOTE Important: you should DISABLE Startup Group and PELoader/Nu2Shell plugins if you run XPELogon as shell (Default configuration, btw xpe provides same features).
Windows XPE with Windows 2003
Windows 2003 server also works with the PXE plugin, but some stuff could not work as expected. Please note on Windows 2003 SP1, you will have some file type names not currently named, they appears like %FILE_FOLDER% or similar. The problem is in hivecls.inf file, this has two [Strings] sections, and pebuilder (since 3.1.3) doesn't support multiple [Strings] sections. To fix this you should manually edit hivecls.inf file (in i386 of source directory), go at the end of the file to find the following lines.
[Strings] Remove. FilePathMSHTA="%SystemRoot%\system32\mshta.exe" Move to the second [string] section.
you must move FilePathMSHTA line into the second [Strings] section, then remove the first [Strings] identifier (line).
new hivecls.inf
EXCEL_4_CHART_FILE="Excel 4 Chart File"
EXECUTABLE_FILES="Executable Files"
FILE_FOLDER="File Folder"
FILE_SYSTEM_ATTRIBUTES="File system attributes"
FilePathMSHTA="%SystemRoot%\system32\mshta.exe"
FOLDER="Folder"
FOLDER_REDIRECTION_EDITOR="Folder Redirection Editor"
FONT_FILE="Font file"
FONTS="Fonts"
GCCPL_DEFAULT="Game Controllers CPL Shell Extension Default Property Sheets"
HANG__UP="Hang &up"
HELP_FILE="Help File"
HYPERTERMINAL_ICON_EXT="HyperTerminal Icon Ext" etc...
Adding XPE Password
Sherpya has create a solution to add a password on your Windows XPE disc. Run from the command promt the following command to generate your hash, the value will be copied in your clipboard.
xpelogon.exe -5 your_password
Check the following line's into your xpe-custom.inf
;0x1,"Sherpya\XPEinit\Proxy","Exclusion","localhost,;127.0.0.1;<local>" ;0x1,"Sherpya\XPEinit\Proxy","AutoUrl","http://www.mydomain.com/config_url" ; Setup Internet Explorer Proxy ;0x1,"Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx\900","160","||xpeinit.exe -p" ; XPELogon password lock, generate your hash using xpelogon.exe -5 your_password, the value will be ; copied in your clipboard, then paste it here, uncommenting the line. ; As example "{Copy the md5 hash from your clipboard}" is the md5 hash for "Sherpya",without quotes 0x1,"Sherpya\XPELogon","Password","{Copy the md5 hash from your clipboard}" ; Disable password check for a specific boot media, i.e. setting CDLock to 0 will disable
; password prompt when it boots from a cd but net and hdd will be enabled ; The default is all to 1, password check for all media (only if above Password option is enabled)
;0x4,"Sherpya\XPELogon","HDDLock",0x0
;0x4,"Sherpya\XPELogon","CDLock",0x0
;0x4,"Sherpya\XPELogon","NetLock",0x0 ; XPELogon Coordinates ;0x4,"Sherpya\XPELogon","XPos",0x70 ;0x4,"Sherpya\XPELogon","YPos",0x50
How to create XPE menu entries.
How to put icons in the start menu root by editing the z_xpe-custom.inf.sample file
Do it like the example
Example
[Software.AddReg]
0x2,"Sherpya\XPEinit\StartMenu","Internet Explorer","%SystemRoot%\iexplore.exe"
How to put icons in the Desktop
Do it like the example
Example
[Software.AddReg]
0x2,"Sherpya\XPEinit\Desktop","Command Prompt","%comspec%"
How to put icons in the Programs Menu
Doit like the example
Example
[Software.AddReg]
0x2,"Sherpya\XPEinit\Programs","Calculator","%SystemRoot%\system32\calc.exe"
How to put icons in the Send To Menu
Doit like the example
Example
[Software.AddReg]
0x2,"Sherpya\XPEinit\SendTo","Wordpad","%SystemRoot%\system32\wordpad.exe"
How to create a subdirectory in the menu
This is a submenu caled Accessories in the Programs menu
Example
[Software.AddReg]
0x2,"Sherpya\XPEinit\Programs","Accessories\Calculator","%SystemRoot%\system32\calc.exe
Adding the HwPnP Plugin
Copy HwPnP.Exe and HwPnP.Dll files from the HwPnP plugin (HwPnP.cab) to the SYSTEM directory of the XPE plugin directory. The XPE plugin directory use the file automaticly. Place also this HwPnP plugin also as a normal plugin in the plugin directory of PE-Builder.
Adding the Auto Ramdisk Resizer
Add this as a normal plugin to the plugin directory of PE-Builder and change the INF file to the required parameters. In this case we change the INF file to use a 128MB ram drive. Don't forget the mb behind the amounts
autoramresizer.inf example;[Software.AddReg] 0x1,"Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx\100","100", \ "||xpeinit.exe -f -m AutoRamResizer AutoRamResizer.exe -l 64mb -h 128mb -f 32mb"
Adding Building steps
Bart has removed the abilty to start custom commands with versions >= 3.1.0. of PE-Builder, therefore we need a other file to start the building proces.
Rename mkisofs.exe to mymkisofs.exe, then unpack the content of this archive into pebuilder directory.
Copy filecase.ini, InfCacheBuild.exe, mkisofs.exe, sort.txt and wrapper.cmd into the root of the PEBuilder directory. Edit wrapper.cmd to change your options.
Edit wrapper.cmd to change your options:
wrapper.cmd example@echo off :settings rem ------------------ SETTINGS ----------------- rem set _volid=BartPE set _volid=Windows_XPE {the title of the Image} set _sortfile=sort.txt set _mkisofsexe=mymkisofs.exe set _duponce=-duplicates-once rem set _duponce= rem low | normal | high | realtime | abovenormal | belownormal rem set _mkisofspriority=belownormal set _mkisofspriority=normal rem Actions set _runinfcache=yes set _copyhives=yes set _setupisolinux=no set _mkisofs=yes rem ------------------ SETTINGS ----------------- :copyright echo _ echo ******************************* echo Build Script for BartPE v1.1 echo Copyright (c) 2005 Sherpya echo ******************************* :getparams for %%i in (%1) do set iso=%%~i for %%i in (%2) do set pedir=%%~i Enz...
- _volid is the title of the Image.
- _sortfile to pass to mkisofs for sorting order of files, I've tracked down a
possible order (xpe optimized), but you can use your own.
- _duponce if you want to add -duplicates-once to mkisofs (if supported)
- _mkisofspriority can be low | normal | high | realtime | abovenormal | belownormal,
the priority for mkisofs process.
- _runinfcache if yes the script will call InfCacheBuild, it will removeCopyFiles,
RenFiles and DelFiles sections from inf files, then it will build INFCACHE.1 to
speedup pnp detection, also if filecase.ini is included it uppercases files from
this file and it will add -U option to mkisofs so you will not get all files on
Image in uppercase but only needed.
- _copyhives if yes the script will copy registry hives for hdinstall, you should
also edit plugin\peinst\peinst.cmd and add:
copy /y %_source%\programs\peinst\default %_target%\minint\system32\config >NUL:
copy /y %_source%\programs\peinst\software %_target%\minint\system32\config >NUL: - before line saying "PEINST: Installation completed...".
- _setupisolinux if yes it will copy isolinux directory in the Image, also will
setup needed mkisofs options, a sample config togheter with base files is included.
- _mkisofs set this to no only for debug, it will prevent mkisofs call.
NOTES:
- don't press stop button while real mkisofs is running or you will need to kill it by hand (taskmanager) or wait its end.
- if sortfile doesn't exists -sort option will not be used
- if filecase.ini is processed and no errors (except not found) occur, then -U option is added to mkisof
Closing Building steps
At the main PE Builder dialog, disable the "Burn to CD" option and click on "Build" button.
- Start the building process by clicking on the Builder button to start building
BartPE. This will take a few minutes. You will see a lot of files getting copied
and/or decompressed, the ISO image build.
- After the building process we can burn the ISO file to CD, boot from this CD!
Plugin's That I use
The following plugin's are additional added or changed (on top of the BartPE plugin's) to make the ultimate rescue disc and do the most important jobs or tasks on a crash system.
NOTE: The htm info pages are from the cab files, this info pages don't have a download link. Look in the plugin database where to find this plugin.
| astlog | Many applications, like CuteFTP, VNC, IncrediMail, Outlook Express, and others, allows you to type a password for using it in the application . |
| autoramresizer | AutoRamDisk resizer: base concept by Sergio Neddi, C-Native port by Sherpya, you need also Ramdisk plugin active since this does only the resizing. |
| bginfo | It automatically displays relevant information about a Windows computer on the desktop's background, such as the computer name, IP address, service pack version, and more. |
| ccrp | The CCRP Server Registration Utility offered here allows registering and unregistering of both COM Servers (dll, ocx) or Type Libraries (tlb) files selected through a File Open dialog, anywhere on the drive |
| easyrecovery | The complete solution for your data recovery, file repair, and disk diagnostic needs. |
| erdc2003 | You'll have full access to the dead system's volumes, so you can diagnose and repair problems. |
| foldersize | Folder Size Shell Extension is a free shell extension for Windows 95/98 and NT 4.0 or above. It adds a new tab to the Properties dialog that displays a folder's and drive's size. |
| freshdiagnose | Fresh Diagnose is an utility designed to analyze and benchmark your computer system. It can analyze and benchmark many kinds of hardware, such as CPU performance, hard disk performance, video system information, mainboard information, and much more... |
| ghostv8 |
Ghost32 is certified to run on Microsoft Windows Preinstallation Environment
(WinPE). |
| hd_speed | Measures both sustained and burst data transfer rates of your hard disks, cd/dvd-roms and floppy. Realtime graphical display. |
| hdm6 | Universal tool for hard disks! Hard Disk Manager affords everything you may need for managing hard disks; it's suitable for both everyday and rare needs, for either inexperienced user or advanced professional. |
| hwpnp | This plugin is used to detect and install devices which currently have no driver installed. |
| iptools | 19 TCP/IP utilities in one program. |
| jv16 PowerTools 2005 |
An amazing set of tools to help you fix, repair, optimize and tune up your computer easier than ever! Does your computer seem to get slower day by day? Are you experiencing any computer problems such as crashes? |
| loadhive | LoadHive is a little utility to load a registry-hive as a subkey under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE for editing a remote registry. |
| massstoragedrivers | Supported Mass Storage Drivers. Unfortunately the creator of this plugin is not pleased with his success and hides his plugin. I hope you can find it by searching the internet, if not send me a e-mail. |
| mcafeeram | McAfee virus scanner RamDisk + Updater + BartGui. |
| nero burning rom | Nero Burning Rom v6.x v0.1 |
| office_pe | This is a plugin for 2 applications, Spread32 (Excel replacement), and Atlantis Ocean Mind (Word replacement) – I called it simply “Atlantis”. |
| passware | Passware Kit combines over 25 password recovery modules in a convenient and cost-saving software pack. |
| pmagic8 v2.0.0 | PowerQuest Partition Magic v8.01. |
| pstools | The Windows NT and Windows 2000 Resource Kits come with a number of command line tools that help you administer your Windows NT/2K systems. |
| putty | PuTTY by Simon Tatham (PuTTY/MIT licence) is a Free Win32 Telnet/SSH Client. |
| registryeditorpe | Registry Editor PE was written to make editing registry hives in Windows PE a little more user-friendly. |
| Registry Workshop |
Registry Workshop is an advanced registry editor. It is a perfect replacement for RegEdit and RegEdt32 which shipped with Windows. In addition to all the standard features, Registry Workshop adds a variety of powerful features that allow you to work faster and more efficiently with registry related tasks. |
| reset5 | Once installed, Reset 5.02 will completely hide the unactivated state of your OS from you, it will never ask to be activated. |
| salapasswd | - (re)set the passwords of any user that has a valid local account - create a new local user with administrator rights - and set administrator rights to existing user on your NT system. |
| serviwin | ServiWin utility displays the list of installed drivers and services on your system. For some of them, additional useful information is displayed: file description, version, product name, company that created the driver file, and more. |
| stinger | McAfee AVERT Stinger |
| sysinternals | The Sysinternals web site provides you with advanced utilities, technical information, and source code related to Windows NT/2000/XP/2K3 and Windows 9x, Windows Me internals that you won't find anywhere else. |
| total commander v2.0.0 | A shareware file manager for Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP. I can really recomment it. |
| vmware | VMware 4.5.1 plugin for XPE - Version 1.1 |
| wul | WinUpdatesList displays the list of all Windows updates (Service Packs and Hotfixes) installed on your local computer. |
| xpe | The Windows XPE plugin is Gianluigi Tiesi attempt to make BartPE closer to Windows XP (XP + PE = XPE), it's almost localized, tell hem if some "important" stuff is not inculded. The plugin is currently splitted for better customization/implementation. |
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