Questions tagged [sysprep]

Sysprep is the name of Microsoft's System Preparation Utility for Microsoft Windows operating system deployment.

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What happens if you don't sysprep an image?

I've been researching WDS and other imaging tools, and the best practice seems to be to sysprep the master machine before imaging. However, where I've been working they simply build a machine then ...
Eric Haskins's user avatar
9 votes
2 answers
4k views

Editing Sysprep Unattend.xml after Sysprep

I have an image of a Server 2008 R2 system which has been Sysprepped and was shutdown prior to its first boot. Now, it would seem I screwed the XML file up as it fails halfway through the Serialize ...
Dan's user avatar
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8 votes
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Does doing sysprep too many times cause issues?

I've been told that one should not sysprep a Windows image too many times... kinda like using a Nuralizer too many times on one person :) Can anyone provide additional information on this? We like to ...
newmanth's user avatar
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8 votes
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Are the SID, admin tokens, etc. created on the first boot after SysPrep, before going through setup?

I have a virtual machine running in hyper-v that I would like to clone a dozen times. I ran sysprep, shutdown and then duplicated the VHD, assigning it to the other servers already setup in Hyper-V. ...
Blackjack00's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
66k views

What is a minimal useful unattend.xml file for SysPrep on Windows 7

Could you provide a minimal unattend.xml file for use in Windows 7, which will be manually installed, updated and configured on one workstation, then SysPrep will be run like this: C:\Windows\...
Tometzky's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
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WS2008R2 First run after sysprep did not prompt for new administrator password, I'm completely locked out

After running sysprep to OOBE and generalize a master disk for cloning, at first run it prompted only for language/region and a machine name, then proceeded on to the CTRL+ALT+DELETE to login screen. ...
Chris's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
52k views

SysPrep Windows 10 Pro Error (0x0f0070 & 0x0f00d8)

So I seem to be experiencing an issue where Windows 10 and Windows Store apps (I am assuming) are interfering with Sysprep /oobe /generalize. When I attempt to run the above command, I receive the ...
Proxy's user avatar
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6 votes
5 answers
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Moving Vmware Workstation VM to another host causes reactivation

I need to find a solution for developers using virtual environments with VMWare Workstation 7. We develop in different and incompatible environments. Presently almost a week is lost when modifying a ...
PaulWaldman's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
4k views

Where can I find a beginner's guide to using sysprep for deploying Windows 7?

I am new to Windows 7, but want to deploy it in a Netware (read: no Active Directory, no domain, etc.) environment. I have used Novell Zenworks for imaging and deploying Windows XP in the past, and ...
eleven81's user avatar
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4 votes
4 answers
9k views

Is a new SID applied when sysprep-ping a Windows image or when deploying?

My organisation currently has Windows XP (yes, I know official support for it ceases in less than 24 hours) and Windows 7 system images made with Symantec Ghost 11 that we routinely deploy to machines....
hpy's user avatar
  • 875
4 votes
2 answers
4k views

Can I take a domain pc hard drive and put it in the exact same hardware and leave it as it is on the domain without running any sys prep?

I have a workstation in a domain that has failed with hardware related issues. The actual hard drive is fine and is not the issue with with the workstation. Since we have spares of these workstations, ...
dasko's user avatar
  • 1,244
4 votes
3 answers
5k views

How to sysprep SQL Server Express?

We plan to deploy Hyper-V VHD with Windows Server 2008 R2 and SQL Server 2012 Express installed to multiple hosts. From my understanding, the correct way to do this is to install SQL Server in ...
Jim's user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
34k views

What is the proper way to change the product key for Office 2010 Professional Plus?

I am trying to clone a VM. I've done sysprep successfully and all is well with my new box, except Office 2010 Professional Plus product key did not get wiped by sysprep (not too surprising), and I am ...
Barumpus's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
317 views

Remove Windows Server from Domain While it is Airgapped?

I am working on a scheme to clone a production, domain-joined virtual machine, bring that machine up off the network in order to prepare it to be converted to a template. One issue that comes to my ...
MattUebel's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
112k views

Windows Server 2008 R2 - Remove Product Key to Force Reactivation after Deployment

I have a VM configured with internal software that needs to be sent to an outside party for evaluation. As it stands, the user who configured it also activated the software with a company issued MSDN ...
Jack's user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
12k views

How to determine sysprep status

I have a requirement to be able to determine how far Windows is through a sysprep sequence. After running sysprep /generalize we are creating an image of the OS which is then being used to create ...
0E322070's user avatar
  • 141
4 votes
1 answer
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Deploying XP machines fails to use Prestaged Computer Name

I have been happily deploying Windows 7 images using WDS for a few months now and everything has been working smoothly. I have prestaged the computernames in AD because one of our clients wants ...
Joe Taylor's user avatar
4 votes
4 answers
10k views

Accept License terms with sysprep and unattend.xml Windows Server 2016

I am trying to create a Windows Server 2016 Datacentre template for cloud deployment using sysprep and unattend.xml. After syspreping, on first logon I am still getting License terms screen where I ...
Tom's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
1k views

KMS Activation for Windows and Office Fails

I have cloned and deployed several PCs with similar hardware as they are of the same model. The steps are as follows: Computer A: Install Windows Install applications/drivers/updates Capture Image ...
user1508820's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
258 views

Win 8 - how to prepare an image so it does not run through setup?

I am preparing a Win8 image to use as base for automatic deployments in Hyper-V at the moment. It seems that whenever a sysprepped image starts, it is running through the whole setup routine - which ...
TomTom's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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Sysprep Automatic computer name

I'd like to sysprep to give an automatic name to each new computer, but not fully automatic. I'd like it to be "Client1", "Client2" and so on. Is it possible? Thanks.
Alex's user avatar
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4 votes
0 answers
5k views

Is there a way to prevent Sysprep from destroying your IIS installation? [closed]

Ok, so that may sound a bit cataclysmic, but at least in many cases this is true. I have done a lot of searching but not found a great thread that has it simply stated like this. In fact, the KB ...
ebol2000's user avatar
  • 141
3 votes
4 answers
22k views

Does Running Sysprep Remove Applications Previously Installed

I have a virtualized copy of Windows Server 2008 R2 installed with some applications already installed on it (not server roles) and I would like to re-deploy it on a number of other servers across my ...
slickboy's user avatar
  • 319
3 votes
5 answers
2k views

NewSid program for linux?

i was reading this question How to rename machines after image install and I was wondering what you do for a linux machine. I am a windows guy and am clueless about linux. If i have a linux image or ...
BLAKE's user avatar
  • 716
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

Alternatives to DriverPacks for Windows system deployment images?

I managed to prepare a Windows 7 Professional image with sysprep for deployment to a wide variety of hardware, and so far it works fairly well. It currently installs drivers upon first boot after ...
hpy's user avatar
  • 875
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

Should you defrag before capturing an image?

If I'm capturing an image with imagex.exe /capture ..., does it matter if I defrag the hard disk prior to doing so (or strictly speaking, before sysprep)? Is there any benefit to doing so with a file-...
Tim Lehner's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
3k views

Packer - AWS Windows 2016 SysPrep returns exit code 1

When attempting to SysPrep an AWS Windows Server 2016 instance using Packer the following error is thrown: Build 'amazon-ebs' errored: Script exited with non-zero exit status: 1. Allowed exit codes ...
Castrohenge's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
887 views

Upgrade from "audit mode" (pre-cloning) Windows 8 to Windows 8.1?

I have a Windows 8 in audit mode with a lot of applications installed, custom configurations done, and an answer file prepared, ready to be sysprepped for cloning. How do I upgrade to Windows 8.1, ...
Display Name's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
4k views

IS there a guide how to copy and sysprep Windows 2012 with Sql Server 2014 installed and running?

We have a server that is installed and running and now we would like to make copies of it. The server is Windows 2012 with Sql Server 2014 Standard. I havn't found any information regarding this, so ...
Mathias Rönnlund's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
41k views

What does sysprep with the generalize option do on Windows Server 2008 R2?

I want to create a template of Windows Server 2008 R2 for virtualization. Therefore I use the sysprep tool by Microsoft. This works fine. I just wonder what the generalize option is good for. Thanks
3 votes
3 answers
6k views

Windows 7 Unattended install - Not really 'unattended'

I have been trying for a few days to get a correct and working Unattended.xml answerfile for Windows 7. Trying to create a completely unattended install of Windows 7 to where a tech can insert USB ...
PenguinCoder's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to use sysprep for a vhd

We have a vhd copy of physical a windows vista machine. Since we don't want to touch the physical machine, we like to run sysprep on the vhd. Unfortunately this vhd does not boot on hyper-v. Is there ...
BetaRide's user avatar
  • 445
3 votes
2 answers
3k views

How can I sysprep a VMware image and retain my additional hard drive

I am creating a base VM as the start of what I hope to be a VM tree of all the machine configurations that I regularly use. On this base machine I have a small system drive of 10GB and a larger data ...
Charlie's user avatar
  • 181
3 votes
4 answers
1k views

How do I provide sysprep a list of servernames and IPs

I would like to have sysprep make a call out to a server somewhere (SCCM, MDT, etc) that provides an answer during bootup to get the computer name and IP address to use. Any pointers on which ...
Scott Forsyth's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

Is it possible to update syspreped parent image without affecting the child diff disk in hyper-v

This ties to the SO: Can you update a Hyper-V parent differencing disk to push updates to all children? I have setup where parent disk is the syspreped image of the OS. I have created a child VM with ...
Petar Vučetin's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
619 views

Sysprep on Windows 7 for a non-windows admin?

I'm needing to use sysprep to deploy some Windows 7 machines. I can't find any resources that explain this very easily. In particular, I've loaded all of the programs I want for the image onto a ...
askvictor's user avatar
  • 864
3 votes
1 answer
462 views

Disable Security Center on SYSPREP-ed Windows XP

I am deploying Windows XP SP3 images in a stand-alone environment using SYSPREP. I am updating an existing image with patches, drivers, etc. Although my first images never launched Windows Security ...
Steve Kalemkiewicz's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
4k views

Sysprep fails when using Microsoft Virtual Machine Manager

Sysprep Fails when creating a new Template in Microsoft Virtual Machine Manager: Error (706) Sysprep failed for virtual machine VMName Recommended Action Try the operation again. Is there a more ...
Chris Ballance's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
1k views

HTTP proxy settings in unattend.xml only take effect after a user has logged on

I am creating a Windows "golden image" that will be rolled out to a network which does not have direct Internet access. Instead, HTTP/HTTPS traffic must be carried over a proxy server. When running ...
Richard Downer's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

Cannot SysPrep Windows 10 Enterprise (spring creators update): "A fatal error occurred..."

I have been creating our Windows 10 "golden image" from a VM, but since I installed the "Spring Creators update" I now cannot SysPrep it. Typically, this is the process I would follow, using ...
SamAndrew81's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
3k views

Unable to connect to an Azure VM (sysprepped image)

I created a Server 2008R2 VM in Hyper V, ran Sysprep on it, then uploaded the VHD to Azure via Azcopy. Then I converted the VHD file into a managed disk, and created a VM from the managed disk. Now ...
Jon's user avatar
  • 35
2 votes
1 answer
10k views

Choose time zone after sysprep

Is it possible to file unattend.xml setting to be able to choose a time zone from the list? Please give me some advice My file: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <unattend xmlns="...
Mick's user avatar
  • 347
2 votes
2 answers
3k views

How to fix 7B stop errors when cloning Windows images to different HBA types

When Windows is installed it searches it's driver database and installs the appropriate HBA driver so the boot loader can access the drive and boot the system. When an image is taken and cloned to a ...
Andy Arismendi's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
181 views

Virtual PC duplication process

This is the process I use for duplicating a Virtual PC (on Windows 7): 1 - Create a new VPC. 2 - Install Windows 7 on the new VPC. 3 - Configure the new Windows 7 installation (install Windows ...
Sabuncu's user avatar
  • 161
2 votes
2 answers
6k views

What steps are needed after cloning from a image Ubuntu to new system? (sysprep, unconfig)

I have an imaged (clonezilla) system image of a Ubuntu setup with a bunch of settings. Now I am wondering, what needs to be changed if I use the clonezilla image to create always new systems from this ...
cilap's user avatar
  • 277
2 votes
3 answers
375 views

SharePoint crashed after sysprep

We have a Windows Server 2008 R2 machine that ends up being replicated multiple times a week for development purposes. Each time the server is replicated, the machine name changes. This completely ...
Brad's user avatar
  • 165
2 votes
2 answers
3k views

Do I need to run SysPrep on a cloned Windows 8.1 image?

When using VMware Workstation to clone a Windows 8.1 image, do I need to run SysPrep? If so, where do I get that program?
Jonathan Allen's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
236 views

Prevent creation of default shortcuts and Favorites in Windows XP SP3?

(1) Whenever a new user is created on a Windows XP SP3 system running Internet Explorer 8, their Favorites folder is automatically populated with a "Microsoft websites" folder and several links in the ...
hpy's user avatar
  • 875
2 votes
1 answer
995 views

sysprep: fix "no system BCD store to be generalized"

Now that I've identified why my sysprep is failing, what do I do to fix this error? There is no system BCD store to be generalized. This image will not be bootable unless a system store is later ...
MikeyB's user avatar
  • 39.7k
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

Sysprep on an already deployed system?

I've done some digging on the site and around, and I haven't seen anything that quite addresses my problem. I have recently deployed a WSUS 3.0 SP2 hierarchy to a new data center and a pair of ...
David Broaddus's user avatar