Windows PE, which is supplied
with Windows Vista and in the Windows AIK, is the installation engine
for Windows Vista. It is directly bootable from CD, DVD, and USB Flash
Drives (UFDs). You can also start Windows PE by using Windows Deployment
Services (Windows DS) and the Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) extensions to DHCP (if supported by the network adapters of your computers).
Windows PE is a minimal
Windows operating system that provides limited services based on the
Windows Vista kernel. It also provides the minimal set of features
required to run Windows Vista Setup, install Windows Vista from
networks, script basic repetitive tasks, and validate hardware. For
example, with Windows PE, you can use powerful batch scripts, Windows
Script Host (WSH) scripts, and HTML Applications (HTAs) to fully
automate computer preparation and Windows Vista installation, rather
than the limited batch commands in MS-DOS. Examples of what you can do
with Windows PE include:
Create and format disk partitions,
including NTFS file-system partitions, without rebooting the computer
before installing Windows Vista on them. Formatting disks with NTFS by
using an MS-DOS–bootable disk required third-party utilities. Windows PE
replaces the MS-DOS–bootable disk in this scenario, allowing you to
format disks with NTFS without using third-party utilities. Also, the
file-system utilities that Windows PE provides are scriptable, so you
can completely automate the setup-preparation process. Access
network shares to run preparation tools or install Windows Vista.
Windows PE provides network access comparable to Windows Vista. In fact,
Windows PE provides the same network drivers that come with Windows
Vista, allowing you to access the network quickly and easily.
Customizing MS-DOS–bootable disks to access network shares was
time-consuming and tedious. Use all the
mass-storage devices that rely on Windows Vista device drivers. Windows
PE includes the same mass-storage device drivers that Windows Vista
provides, so you no longer have to customize MS-DOS–bootable disks for
use with specialized mass-storage devices. Once again, Windows PE allows
you to focus on important jobs rather than on maintaining
MS-DOS–bootable disks. Customize Windows
PE by using techniques and technologies that are already familiar to
you. Windows PE is based on Windows Vista, so you are already familiar
with the techniques and tools used to customize Windows PE. You can
customize it in a variety of scenarios: Addition of hardware-specific device drivers Automation through use of Unattend.xml answer files Execution of scripts (batch, WSH, and HTA) to perform specific actions
The
following sections provide more detail about the features and
limitations of Windows PE. They focus specifically on using Windows PE
in high-volume deployment scenarios, rather than in manufacturing
environments.
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Windows PE 2.0, the new version that will be
released with Windows Vista, is a key part of the deployment process.
Even the standard DVD-based installation of Windows Vista uses Windows
PE 2.0, and most organizations will be using it (often customized for
the organization’s specific needs) as part of their deployment
processes.
Compared to MS-DOS-based deployment, Windows PE
2.0 brings numerous benefits, including less time spent trying to find
16-bit real-mode drivers. (It’s not even possible to find these any more
for some newer network cards and mass storage adapters.) Better
performance from 32-bit and 64-bit networking stacks and tools, as well
as large memory support are also advantages. And don’t forget support
for tools such as Windows Scripting Host, VBScript, and hypertext
applications.
Windows PE has been available for a few years
(the latest version, Windows PE 2005, was released at the same time as
Windows XP SP2 and Windows Server 2003 SP1), but not all organizations
could use it; it required that you have Software Assurance on your
Windows desktop operating system licenses. With Windows PE 2.0, that’s
no longer the case. All organizations will be able to download Windows
PE 2.0 from microsoft.com and use it freely for the purposes of
deploying licensed copies of Windows Vista.
Like Windows Vista itself, Windows PE 2.0 is
provided as an image that is componentized and can be serviced both
online and off. As with Windows PE 2005, several optional components can
be added, although Windows PE 2.0 includes some new ones: MSXML 3.0,
Windows Recovery Environment, language packs, font packs, and so on. New
tools like peimg.exe are provided for servicing Windows PE 2.0.
Peimg.exe can also be used for adding drivers—including mass storage
devices, which no longer require any special handling.
Michael Niehaus, Lead Developer for BDD 2007
Management and Infrastructure Solutions
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Capabilities
Windows PE is a bootable image that you can
start by using removable media (CD, DVD, or UFD). You can also use
Windows DS to start Windows PE. Because the Windows Vista deployment
tools do not work in 16-bit environments, Windows PE replaces the
MS-DOS–bootable disk in all deployment
scenarios. It’s a lightweight 32-bit or 64-bit environment that supports
the same set of networking and mass-storage device drivers that Windows
Vista supports, and it provides access to similar features, including
NTFS and stand-alone distributed file system (DFS). Windows PE includes
the following features:
Hardware independence
Windows PE is a hardware-independent Windows environment for both x86
and x64 architectures. You can use the same preinstallation environment
on all the desktop computers and servers without creating and
maintaining different bootable disks for different hardware
configurations. APIs and scripting capabilities
Windows PE contains a subset of the Win32 APIs; a command interpreter
capable of running batch scripts; and support for adding WSH, HTA, and
Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) to create custom tools or scripts.
The scripting capabilities in Windows PE far exceed the capabilities of
MS-DOS–bootable disks. For example, the command interpreter in Windows
PE supports a more robust batch-scripting language than does MS-DOS,
allowing you to use more advanced scripts. Network access
Windows PE uses Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP) to provide network access and supports standard network drivers
for running Windows Vista Setup and installing images from the network
to the computer. You can easily add or remove network drivers from a
customized version of Windows PE. In contrast, customizing
MS-DOS–bootable disks to access network shares is frustrating, mostly
because you need to build and maintain numerous disks. Windows PE
alleviates this frustration by supporting the network drivers that
Windows Vista supports, and Windows PE is easier to customize with
additional network drivers. Mass-storage devices
Windows PE includes support for all mass-storage devices that Windows
Vista supports. As new devices become available, you can easily add or
remove drivers into a customized version of Windows PE. Customizing an
MS-DOS–bootable disk to access atypical mass-storage devices requires
tracking down and installing the 16-bit device drivers. However, Windows
PE supports many of these mass-storage devices out of the box. And
customizing Windows PE to support additional mass-storage devices is
easier because it uses standard, readily available Windows device
drivers. Disk management
Windows PE includes native support for creating, deleting, formatting,
and managing NTFS partitions. Also, Windows PE provides full,
unrestricted access to NTFS file systems. With Windows PE, you don’t
have to restart the computer after formatting a disk. Support for the PXE protocol
If the computer supports PXE, you can start it automatically from a
Windows PE image located on a Windows DS server—and Windows DS doesn’t
install the Windows PE image on the computer’s hard disk. Starting
Windows PE from the network makes it a convenient tool to use in all
deployment scenarios. Also, you can customize a Windows PE image for
recovery and troubleshooting purposes, and adding it to Windows DS makes
it a convenient tool to use in production.
You manage and deploy Windows PE by using the
Windows PE Kit included with the Windows AIK. This tool kit includes the
Windows PE User Guide, the Windows Imaging Interface Reference, and
Windows PE tools such as:
Bootsect A tool for managing boot sectors on hard disks and flash drives DiskPart A command-line disk-partitioning tool Drvload A command-line tool for device-driver management Oscdimg.exe A tool for creating CD and DVD ISO image files Peimg.exe A tool for customizing Windows PE images ImageX
The Windows Vista image-capture and maintenance tool, which you use to
customize Windows PE image files, capture operating-system images, and
apply images to destination computers
Limitations
Windows PE has the following limitations:
To reduce its size, Windows PE includes only a subset of the available Win32 APIs: I/O (disk and network) and core Win32 APIs. Windows PE doesn’t fit on floppy disks, but you can write a custom Windows PE image to a bootable CD or DVD. Windows
PE supports TCP/IP and NetBIOS over TCP/IP for network connectivity,
but it doesn’t support other protocols, such as Internetwork Packet
Exchange/Sequenced Packet Exchange (IPX/SPX). The
Windows on Windows 32 (WOW32) subsystem allows 16-bit applications to
run on the 32-bit Windows platform. The WOW32 subsystem isn’t available
in Windows PE, so 16-bit applications won’t run in 32-bit versions of
Windows PE. Similarly, in the x64 version of Windows PE, the WOW64
subsystem is not available, so applications must be fully 64-bit
compliant. To
install 64-bit Windows Vista, you must use 64-bit Windows PE. Likewise,
installing 32-bit Windows Vista requires 32-bit Windows PE. Drive
letter assignments aren’t persistent between sessions. After you
restart Windows PE, the drive letter assignments will be in the default
order. Changes to the registry aren’t
persistent between sessions. To make permanent changes to the registry,
you must edit the registry offline by mounting the image with ImageX and
then loading hive files into Registry Editor. Windows PE supports distributed file system (DFS) name resolution to stand-alone DFS roots only. You
can’t access files or folders on a computer running Windows PE from
another computer. Likewise, Windows PE can’t act as a terminal server,
so you can’t connect to it by using Remote Desktop. Windows
PE requires a VESA-compatible display device and will use the highest
screen resolution it can determine is supported. If the operating system
can’t detect video settings, it uses a resolution of 640 by 480 pixels. Windows PE doesn’t support the Microsoft .NET Framework or the Common Language Runtime (CLR). Windows PE does not support the installation of Windows Installer package (.msi) files. Windows PE does not support 802.1x. To prevent its use as a pirated operating system, Windows PE automatically reboots after 72 hours.
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