[sccm 2012] Images - How do you create yours?

[jdoldridge]

Hi everybody,

 

I have been tasked with creating a new image for the school over summer and I just wondered how you create yours. I have a VM setup with all apps and customisations set up but when I try to capture in WDS it can't find the C to pull the image from. Anyway we also are planning on deploying sccm 2012 to do OSD also. Am I doing this right or should there be a different way of doing it (do I setup on a physical pc and capture from there) much appreciated

Josh

[Ephelyon]

The capture image can only see volumes that you have Sysprepped first.

[Arthur]

do I setup on a physical PC and capture from there

VMs are definitely the way to go for capturing images. Not only will you end up with a cleaner image due to not having any driver-specific utilities installed (like the sort you get with AMD, Intel and nVidia graphics drivers and various audio drivers), but you can create snapshots for rolling back to before you ran SysPrep - that's a huge time saver in itself.

[Ephelyon]

^ That. IMMENSE relief if you SysPrep, test deployment and it cocks up to be able to go "... aaaand BACK TO BEFORE!" xD

[free780]

In sccm you specify in the task sequence that it is a build and capture. Also the default wizard makes you choose a os image. You really want the os installer. You can then do windows updates and applications. Its geared so you dont have to do manual steps. If you have software that can be scripted for install. You need to use the ztisuspend scropt within mdt.

[FN-GM]

I dont do a capture Task Sequence, its just extra work. I setup the image in a VM then use the SCCM Capture media, it will sysprep it and convert it to a WIM.

 

I then upload the WIM to SCCM and make a deploy Task Sequence.

[Gatt]

I don't use images at all now with SCCM, I prefer to us a full Task Sequence, giving me a fresh OS installation, and no need to update an entire image when a version of software changes.. All I need to do is create a new package for the new software and the replace it in the TS,

I can also easily clone a TS in seconds and make any software changes to the new sequence

 

The only downside I suppose is updates, even though the TS allows you to run updates, i found that it seriously slows the roll out down whilst it installed the 70+ updates for say Windows 7 SP1...

[FN-GM]

I don't use images at all now with SCCM, I prefer to us a full Task Sequence, giving me a fresh OS installation, and no need to update an entire image when a version of software changes.. All I need to do is create a new package for the new software and the replace it in the TS,

I can also easily clone a TS in seconds and make any software changes to the new sequence

 

The only downside I suppose is updates, even though the TS allows you to run updates, i found that it seriously slows the roll out down whilst it installed the 70+ updates for say Windows 7 SP1...

 

That is nearly what we do. I am going to put Office on the images as Office 2010 takes an age to install!

[free780]

@Gatt Have you tried the offline update to apply windows updates ?

[deano]

I tested the offline updates but i remember it took ages to finish. This may have been because i was using an old image?

[jdoldridge]

Hi Guys, thanks for the replies, looks like I will be creating capture boot media to pull the image up to sccm. Fingers Crossed

[jdoldridge]

So it went like this. I created my capture media, it ran tried rebooted the vm and the boot image errors with the HAL_INITIALIZATION_FAILED error. Updated the boot.wim file with the drivers for the NIC, that didn't work as the boot image then failed to update to distribution point. Tried a capture on our old WDS server and it very kindly pulled up the image to WDS and deployed that way fine. Only niggle is the fact I cannot use sccm which is really what I wanted to do :thumbdown:

[FN-GM]

So it went like this. I created my capture media, it ran tried rebooted the vm and the boot image errors with the HAL_INITIALIZATION_FAILED error. Updated the boot.wim file with the drivers for the NIC, that didn't work as the boot image then failed to update to distribution point. Tried a capture on our old WDS server and it very kindly pulled up the image to WDS and deployed that way fine. Only niggle is the fact I cannot use sccm which is really what I wanted to do :thumbdown:

 

If you are using the capture media it isn't bootable. You run it inside Windows.

[jdoldridge]

I think so. I will check

[Gatt]

@Gatt Have you tried the offline update to apply windows updates ?

 

Yeah - though not on a captured WIM - tried it on the install.wim from the Win7 DVD and out of 206 updates only 10 applied, about 20 failed and the rest were "not applicable"

 

Not sure why...