Windows OEM Preinstallation Kit?

[Airbozo]

Anyone here have any experience with it?

I am mostly a unix guy (I do know enough about windows to fix just about any problem I just don't like to advertise it), and have been tasked with getting our system install procedure pushed onto the network. With SGI IRIX, I just point the boot loader to the install directory on the network, With Redhat I use the kickstart services... SUN is Jumpstart. But windows seems to have this complicated setup I am trying to learn and my head hurts.

Anyone been down this path?

[SgtM]

Yeah, I have WinPE. Don't play with it much. What are you trying to do.. I'll see if I can replicate it.

[Airbozo]

Basically I am trying to figure out the convoluted document, M$ refers to as "step by step" guide to OEM...

Really what I am trying to do is this;

We have a customer who orders dell 690's but wants server 2003 x64 installed, but Dell will not install it nor support it. So we have to load the software, and applicable drivers (including the wacom cintiq driver). This was not a really big issue when they were ordering just 2 or 3 a month. Now they are ramping up and the orders are coming in 10-15 a month and I don't have time to babysit the windows install for all those machines (especially when they do a panic order of 6 machines, due yesterday).

So I would like to automate the install. I have tried to follow the document, but get lost with how to set things up. I do not have a disk imaging program that works with server 2003 x64 (yet), so I was just trying to do the unattended install and have all the drivers and extra software loaded. I have gone through the OPK install document a couple of times now and still am unsure how to get my install duplicated on my technician computer.

AHHH! I have when software engineers create "how to" guides that the rest of us can't understand. (OK I admit that I am not that familiar with all the M$ tools).

[XcOM]

if you run the unattended manager locatd on the server 2k3 disk theres an option to create a network install kit,

www.msfn.com is a good place to look for help on this, they have step by step guides, for everything.

[Airbozo]

Thanks for the info XcOM, but the site is "Under Construction".

I will check the disks for the unattended stuff. I would just do the network install, but I have to have the disk repartitioned, then I have to load the controller driver as windows loads then a bunch of other drivers afterward. It is probably just me being thick on this so I will try again with M$'s step by step (yah right) guide.

[XcOM]

sorry, wrong site, its
www.msfn.org

i always get it wrong, just checked fav's, its correct this time

Sorry for the bad link