1-2 Installing 2000 Professional Part 2

Posted February 21st, 2007 by admin

> Create unattended answer files by using Setup Manager to automate the installation of Windows 2000 Professional.

Setup Manager

Is a Win32 application that runs only on Windows 2000. It can create answer files that can be used to automate the installation of Windows 2000 on multiple computers. Setup Manager can also extract the configuration information from a preconfigured system into an answer file to replicate that configuration on other machines.

Answer Files

Unattended Setup in Windows 2000 uses an ASCII text file called an answer file to supply data that would otherwise be entered manually when you run the Setup Wizard. The answer file is specified on either a Winnt.exe or Winnt32.exe command line when the unattended setup option is used.

Answer files answer the questions that Setup would normally ask the user while it is installing or upgrading Windows 2000. For example, Setup normally asks the user to supply a name for the computer. But if you supply the name for the computer in the answer file, Setup does not have to prompt the user.

The following answer file is the default Unattend.txt

[Unattended]

UnattendMode = FullUnattended

OemPreinstall = No

TargetPath = Winnt

Filesystem = LeaveAlone

[UserData]

FullName = "Your user name"

OrgName = "Your organization name"

It is recommended that you avoid using spaces in the ComputerName value.

ComputerName = "YourComputer_name"

To ensure a fully unattended installation, you must provide a value for the ProductId key

ProductId = "Your product ID"

[GuiUnattended]

Sets the TimeZone. For example, to set the TimeZone for the Pacific Northwest, use a value of "004." Be sure to use the numeric value that represents your own time zone. To look up a numeric value, see the Unattend.doc file on the Windows 2000 CD.

TimeZone = "YourTimeZone"

It is recommended that you change the administrator password before the computer is placed at its final destination.

AdminPassword = AdminPassword

Tells Unattended Setup to turn AutoLogon on and log on once.

AutoLogon = Yes

AutoLogonCount = 1

[LicenseFilePrintData]

This section is used for server installs.

AutoMode = "PerServer"

AutoUsers = "5"

[GuiRunOnce]

List the programs that you want to start when you log on to the computer for the first time.

[Display]

BitsPerPel = 8

XResolution = 800

YResolution = 600

VRefresh = 70

[Networking]

When you set the value of the InstallDefaultComponents key to Yes, Setup will install default networking components. The components to be set are TCP/IP, File and Print Sharing, and Client for Microsoft Networks.

InstallDefaultComponents = Yes

[Identification]

Identifies your workgroup. It is recommended that you avoid using spaces in this value. JoinWorkgroup = "YourWorkgroup"

> Upgrade to Windows 2000 Professional.

To upgrade from Windows 95/98, or Windows NT 4.0

You must uncompress any DriveSpace or DoubleSpace volumes before upgrading to Windows 2000

  1. Start your current operating system, and then insert the Win 2000 CD.
  2. If Windows automatically detects the CD and asks if you would like to upgrade your computer to Win 2000, click Yes. Otherwise, click Run. At the prompt, type d:\i386\winnt32.exe
  3. Follow the instructions that appear

Apply update packs to installed software applications.

If you are installing Win 2000 with NT 4 on a partition and will be using NTFS, you must have Service Pack 4 for NT 4 which contains updates that enable NT 4 to be able to read and write files on an NTFS 5 volume.

Prepare a computer to meet upgrade requirements.

Minimum hardware requirements

  • 133 MHz Pentium or higher microprocessor (or equivalent).
  • 64 megabytes of RAM recommended minimum 32 MB of RAM is the minimum supported. 4 gigabytes (GB) of RAM is the maximum.
  • 2 GB hard disk with 650 MB of free space.
  • VGA or higher resolution monitor.

    • Dual boot Windows 9x/ NT 4.0/2000

    Windows 2000 supports dual booting with the following operating systems

  • Windows NT 3.51, Windows NT 4.0
  • Windows 95, Windows 98
  • Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups 3.11
  • MS-DOS
  • OS/2

    • Windows 2000 supports multiple booting with MS-DOS, OS/2, Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 3.51, and Windows NT 4.0.

    If you intend to create a dual-boot system with Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 as the only installed operating systems, you must ensure that you have installed Service Pack 4 for Windows NT 4.0. Windows 2000 will automatically upgrade any NTFS partitions it finds on your system to NTFS 5. Windows NT 4.0 requires Service Pack 4 to be able to read and write files on an NTFS 5 volume.

    • Each operating system should be installed on a separate drive or disk partition.
    • You should use a FAT file system for dual-boot configurations. Although using NTFS in a dual boot is supported, such a configuration introduces additional complexity into the choice of file systems.
    • You cannot install both Windows 95 and Windows 98 in a multiple-boot configuration. Windows 98 is intended as an upgrade to Windows 95 and will try to use the same boot file.
    • To set up a dual-boot configuration between MS-DOS or Windows 95 and Windows 2000, you should install Windows 2000 last. Otherwise, important files needed to start Windows 2000 could be overwritten.
    • For a dual boot between Windows 98 and Windows 2000, it isn't necessary to install the operating systems in a particular order.
    • For a dual boot of Windows 2000 with Windows 95 or MS-DOS, the primary partition must be formatted as FAT; for a dual boot with Windows 95 OSR2 or Windows 98, the primary partition must be formatted as FAT or FAT32, not NTFS.
    • If you're upgrading a dual-boot computer, you can't gain access to NTFS partitions from any operating system other than Windows NT 4.0 with SP4.
    • If you install Windows 2000 on a computer that dual boots OS/2 and MS-DOS, Windows 2000 Setup configures your system so you can dual boot between Windows 2000 and the operating system (MS-DOS or OS/2) you most recently used before running Windows 2000 Setup.
    • Don't install Windows 2000 on a compressed drive unless the drive was compressed with the NTFS file system compression utility.
    • Windows 95 or Windows 98 might reconfigure hardware settings the first time you use them, which can cause problems if you're dual booting with Windows 2000. So run these OS's first before installing 2000.
    • If you want your programs to run on both operating systems on a dual-boot computer, you need to install them from within each operating system. You can't share programs across operating systems.

    Steps for Dual Booting MS-DOS, Win 95/98, 2000

    1. Create partitions for the different Operating Systems, for MS-DOS, 95 the primary partition must be formatted as FAT, and for 95 OSR2 or Win 98, the primary partition must be formatted as FAT or FAT32, not NTFS
    2. Install these operating systems in the following order: MS-DOS, Windows 95 or Windows 98
    3. Install Win 2000
    4. After Set up is complete Win 2000 will present a boot menu with a choice of which installed OS you would like to boot.

    Steps for Dual Booting NT 4, Win 2000

    1. Reformat and repartition your hard drive if you have only one partition.
    2. If you are installing Win 2000 with NT 4 on a partition using NTFS, you must have Service Pack 4 for NT 4 which contains updates that enable NT 4 to be able to read and write files on an NTFS 5 volume.
    3. Install Windows NT 4
    4. Install Windows 2000.

    > Deploy service packs.

    Service packs are the means by which product updates are distributed. Service packs may contain updates for system reliability, program compatibility, security, and more. All of these updates are conveniently bundled for easy downloading.

    Before installing any Service Pack, you should make sure that you have a working backup of your system.

    Disable/Close all third party services, other programs or screen savers.

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