5. HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS Chapter 2: INSTALLING WINDOWS XP PROFESSIONAL CPU Pentium-compatible 233 MHz or higher (Pentium II 300 MHz or higher recommended) Memory 64 MB minimum (128 MB or higher recommended) Free Hard Disk Space Minimum 650 MB free on 2-GB partition (2 GB free recommended) Networking Network adapter card and related cable Disk Drives CD-ROM (for CD-ROM installation) 3.5-inch floppy disk (if system will not boot from CD-ROM) Accessories Keyboard and mouse (or other pointing device)
21. UPGRADE PATHS Chapter 2: INSTALLING WINDOWS XP PROFESSIONAL Upgrade from Upgrade to Windows 98 Windows XP Professional Windows Me Windows XP Professional Windows NT Workstation 4 Windows XP Professional Windows 2000 Professional Windows XP Professional Windows 95 Windows 98 and then Windows XP Professional Windows NT 3.1, 3.5, or 3.51 Windows NT 4 Workstation and then Windows XP Professional
This chapter covers the various methods of installation for Windows XP Professional. We will discuss verifying installation requirements, upgrading from previous versions of Windows, and user state migration. We will also present options for automated installations using Remote Installation Services (RIS) with Windows Server 2003 and unattended installation answer files.
In this section, we’ll present the hardware requirements for Windows XP Professional and ways to confirm hardware compatibility. We’ll then discuss disk storage requirements and file system types. We will cover operating Windows XP in dual boot environments with other operating systems. Finally, we will discuss requirements for joining Windows XP to domains and workgroups.
Microsoft tests hardware and posts approved hardware and components on its Web site. In addition, the Windows XP 32-bit Setup program (Winnt32.exe) can perform a compatibility test when you use it with the /checkupgradeonly switch.
This table lists the minimum requirements for running Windows XP Professional. Be sure to emphasize that few would be satisfied with a system running even the recommended specifications listed here. Software developed for the rich features of Windows XP quickly pushes required memory into the 256 to 512 MB range, and hard disks in the range of 80 to 120 GB are commonplace. Display technology is now using terms such as XGA (1024×768) and UXGA (1600×1200).
This slide shows Figure 2-1 from the textbook. As you discuss it, be sure to indicate which file systems would be required to enable various multiboot scenarios.
NTFS has it all (except support from the Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Me families). Explain that support for encryption and quotas is not available in NTFS version 4 (Windows NT 4).
If a system must multi-boot Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Me with Windows XP, the system partition must be FAT or FAT32. FAT file systems do not support security, encryption, or quotas. If you are converting to NTFS, you can use the Convert.exe command-line program to convert the file system. Convert.exe will not convert NTFS to FAT, however.
Discuss whether to join a workgroup or a domain as part of the installation. If you will be demonstrating an installation in class, be sure to go into more detail at the appropriate time. Be sure to discuss who has authority to join a computer to a domain.
Attended installations are done in four basic steps: The Setup program performs disk and file system setup and copies files required for the Setup Wizard. The computer is then restarted and the Setup Wizard begins. The Setup Wizard obtains computer name and password information and regional information. The Installing Networking Components phase installs the appropriate networking configuration. The Completing The Installation phase copies necessary files and finalizes the installation.
Installation over a network requires the configuration of a distribution server and a means for the client computers to connect to it. This typically entails having a bootable disk or existing operating system to initiate a client connection to the server. Once the connection is made, the client can execute Winnt.exe or Winnt32.exe, depending on whether the client operating system is capable of running 32-bit applications.
Preparing for network installations might seem like a lot of work. It is. Where it pays off is in upgrading existing computers. By locating the distribution share and executing the installation program, you can ensure speed and consistency in your upgraded systems. CD-ROM installations take longer, cannot be run concurrently (without multiple disks), and cannot be automated (as discussed in the next section). As you outline the steps, make it clear that administrators can simply copy the i386 folder from the CD-ROM to the network folder. How they connect does not matter—you can use an existing operating system or a network boot disk.
Winnt.exe is executed from MS-DOS or 16-bit Windows clients to initiate a Windows XP installation. It creates the $Win_nt$.~ls folder and copies the necessary files into it. It then restarts the computer and Setup continues as with the CD-ROM installation.
Winnt32.exe can copy files from multiple distribution servers, speeding the file copy process. In addition, it can run setup steps while the file copy is still proceeding.
This slide depicts some of the more common installation option switches used with Winnt.exe and Winnt32.exe. Note the differing syntax on some of the options. Also note the additional switches listed in the textbook that are supported by Winnt32.exe.
Microsoft provides the Setup Manager utility to allow the creation of answer files and Uniqueness Database Files (UDFs) to support unattended installations. It is possible to specify the entire configuration of a system, including custom options such as system name, by configuring an answer file to be used with the appropriate command switch in Winnt.exe ( /u ) or Winnt32.exe ( /unattend ). The custom options are placed in a uniqueness database that replaces certain sections of the answer file with unique sections of the UDF. In this way, it is possible to script the unattended installation of hundreds of systems to be performed simultaneously over a network. Setup Manager can also be used to create answer files for use with the Sysprep tool for installation image creation and RIS for Windows Server 2003.
Setup Manager builds the unattended installation files automatically and even creates the entire installation share if so directed. In this sequence of images, we build an unattended installation for five computers. Note that the act of naming five computers is what creates the UDF.
This slide completes the Setup Manager Wizard and builds the Unattend.bat, Unattend.txt, and Unattend.udb files. Unattend.bat is simply a batch language file that eases the use of the required command-line switches to run the unattended installation.
This slide shows the results of Setup Manager. Point out some of the options that were chosen in the previous slides, and explain why the UDF is necessary in this scenario.
This section covers upgrading to Windows XP from earlier versions of Windows. We will show the upgrade path from various earlier versions and cover generation of hardware compatibility reports. Finally, we will discuss the migration of user settings.
This slide depicts the legal migration paths for Windows XP Professional. Emphasize that the Windows 95 and Windows NT 3.x paths might also come with hardware incompatibility issues (old systems).
Generate a compatibility report using d :\\i386\\winnt32 /checkupgradeonly (where d is the CD-ROM drive). This slide depicts the process of updating the compatibility tools files from the Internet and running the compatibility check. Results might include unsupported hardware or applications, or a recommendation to upgrade a certain application for compatibility.
The CD-ROM will initiate the upgrade if asked. To customize how it is run, exit the Autorun program and use Winnt32.exe with the appropriate switches. Windows NT family systems will already have domain computer accounts, but they will have to be created for Windows 9x family systems.
Using the Files And Settings Transfer Wizard, you can collect files and settings for transfer to a new computer. If the user has a large amount of data to be migrated, you should save it to a location on a large removable drive or transfer it over the network. Floppy disks will probably not be large enough for the task.
After the collection is complete, run the wizard on the new system to restore the collected settings.
RIS is covered more extensively in the Windows Server 2003 courses, but familiarity with it is important for understanding all the installation options available for Windows XP Professional. Be sure to cover system requirements such as PXE boot capabilities (included in the Net PC specification). Also explain that a Remote Boot Disk can be used on noncompliant systems but might be a challenge to create if they use unsupported network adapters. Remote Boot Disk Generator (Rbdg.exe) is used to create remote boot disks for systems with supported network adapters.
RIS pre-setup is accomplished in advance by a network administrator and can include a standard operating system image or a specific system image created using the Riprep.exe utility included with RIS to copy the configuration of a fully customized system. The target system is then booted using the PXE boot features of the system BIOS or by using the remote boot disks generated with Rbfg.exe. RIS installs the operating system according to the setup requirements stored in the RIS server for the client system. There are two options: Risetup Installs the client as an unattended installation using an answer file created using Setup Manager Riprep Installs a system image created using the Riprep.exe utility
Sysprep.exe removes system-specific security identifiers (SID) and prepares a system for disk imaging. After a system is prepared, it can be imaged and duplicated to other systems. Note that Plug and Play makes up for some hardware differences, but you can never apply a disk image from one system to another that would require a different hardware abstraction layer (HAL). The mini-setup wizard that runs after imaging asks for unique information such as computer name, regional settings, and time zone. You can automate mini-setup by building a file using Setup Manager. This file can then be included in the image and will control the mini-setup after the system starts for the first time.
Keeping Windows XP up-to-date is perhaps the most important step in any installation. Emphasize that an installation or upgrade is never complete until the updates have been installed because unpatched systems are vulnerable to attack until all security fixes have been applied.
Microsoft’s Windows Update Web site provides updates for each supported version of Windows. If possible, demonstrate using Windows Update to scan for and download updates.
Service packs roll up all available updates to be applied at once. They often include important new functionality, such as the Security Center. They are extensively tested and should be applied to all systems as soon as possible. Production systems should be tested first to ensure that no incompatibilities exist with production applications.
Automatic updates allows you to retrieve and apply important updates automatically. It should be enabled on all systems. Hackers exploit known operating system flaws more quickly than ever, so it is important to get the patches for these flaws applied as soon as possible.
Windows Product Activation fights casual copying by requiring systems to be activated. A retail CD-ROM is allowed a certain number of activations before the activations must be explained. OEM versions are preactivated by the manufacturer and require activation only if the hardware they are installed on changes substantially. Volume-licensed versions of Windows XP do not require activation.
When troubleshooting problems with Windows XP Setup, look at the following logs for clues about the cause of the trouble: Setupact.log (Setup Action Log) Setuperr.log (Setup Error Log) Running Setup a second (or third) time can often resolve errors that occur during installation because Setup looks for errors in the log file and tries alternative installation methods.
This summary paraphrases the textbook summary. Be sure to emphasize the importance of updates to the success of an installation.
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