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[project] PWBoot <Latest version: 3.0.2>

usb windows boot full pwboot vhd patch

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#101 Dhilip89

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Posted 03 September 2011 - 04:23 PM

Hi
After I go through Welcome (OOBE) and it goes to the Desktop, the first message is 'C:\Windows\system32\systemprofile\Desktop refers to a location that is unavailable. ...'

I should mention that the system I ran your app on is Win 7 64-bit Ultimate. Would this make any difference when installing Win 7 32-bit to a USB HDD?


The problem you mentioned is nothing to do with the PWBoot, it might be a user profile problem.
I think this will be useful: http://answers.micro...41-3aee83d69daa

Also, there are no differences between host system(in which you ran the PWBoot application), the output should be identical.

#102 Dhilip89

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Posted 03 September 2011 - 04:45 PM

Another experiment:

Storage: Kingston DataTraveler 100 (8GB)

Testing OS: Windows 7 Thin PC
Install method: Physical drive

tpc-dt_8g.png

Comment: Terribly slow, but it works.

#103 amalux

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Posted 03 September 2011 - 05:38 PM

Just reporting...

Running patch on external hard drive with Win 7 SP1 x64 installed from both Win 7 SP1 x64 host and Win7PE_SE x86 PE result in expected, issue free outcome. USB hard drive boots normally and all OS/programs/internet/devices etc. work exactly as on the original installation which I backed up with Acronis and restored to USB-HDD.

Thanks again for great utility.

:cheers:

#104 Dhilip89

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Posted 03 September 2011 - 05:54 PM

Just reporting...

Running patch on external hard drive with Win 7 SP1 x64 installed from both Win 7 SP1 x64 host and Win7PE_SE x86 PE result in expected, issue free outcome. USB hard drive boots normally and all OS/programs/internet/devices etc. work exactly as on the original installation which I backed up with Acronis and restored to USB-HDD.

Thanks again for great utility.

:cheers:


Thanks for your report! :)

Glad to know that it worked without any problem for you :cheers:

#105 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 07:26 AM

Nice,

can you post changelog? Any chances to unpatch option in incoming releases?

#106 Dhilip89

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 09:00 AM

Nice,

can you post changelog? Any chances to unpatch option in incoming releases?


Isn't the change log is listed on first post? :unsure:
Unpatch option still not in the consideration because the patch doesn't affect the normal boot, therefore unpatching makes no difference.

#107 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 09:26 AM

Changelog - oops :) thnx, unpatch would be useful due the not working usb boot, ex. after sp1 install i couldn't boot from usb (before it was possible), and i couldnt patch system because it was already patched

right now im having another issue - usb boot works great with my notebook, but when plugging hdd via usb to another one i get 07b bsod :( safe mode fails with disk.sys file loading. any solution to this problem? I supose it is same error which occurs while changing windows hardware configuration.

redgards :)

Edited by ejkejej, 04 September 2011 - 09:27 AM.


#108 Dhilip89

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 12:37 PM

Changelog - oops :) thnx, unpatch would be useful due the not working usb boot, ex. after sp1 install i couldn't boot from usb (before it was possible), and i couldnt patch system because it was already patched

right now im having another issue - usb boot works great with my notebook, but when plugging hdd via usb to another one i get 07b bsod :( safe mode fails with disk.sys file loading. any solution to this problem? I supose it is same error which occurs while changing windows hardware configuration.

redgards :)



For the Service Pack, if SP update does change anything sensitive to USB boot, the PWBoot will detect and report as "Unpatched" (This is by design, but not fully tested).

For the BSoD issue,
I guess there might be some problems with the USB port or hub (Is there any other devices connected to USB during boot time?)

#109 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 01:05 PM

No, only USB HDD. I've even unplugged internal SSD from not booting notebook :(

edit:

i've done some research and it is said that running system recovery on another computer should fix this issue. I supose it will also rewrite USB boot config

Edited by ejkejej, 04 September 2011 - 01:08 PM.


#110 Dhilip89

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 01:07 PM

No, only USB HDD. I've even unplugged internal SSD from not booting notebook :(


Have you tested every USB port?

#111 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 02:06 PM

No, but tried right now. System booted from diffrent port. Windows installed drivers, rebooted and bsod appeared again, and computer is not booting - so i'm back to begining. HDD 'home' notebook boots up fine in every computer switc

#112 Dhilip89

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 02:38 PM

No, but tried right now. System booted from diffrent port. Windows installed drivers, rebooted and bsod appeared again, and computer is not booting - so i'm back to begining. HDD 'home' notebook boots up fine in every computer switc


Based on your situation, it is USB port related problem (or anything else? :dubbio: ) on that notebook computer.
Your external HDD boots fine mean there are no problems with the Windows installation, no repair is needed.

#113 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 04:01 PM

Each time it fails i need to apply set_7_usb_boot.cmd from second hdd (internal) and it boots fine. THere are some problems with USB 3.0 hub - devices is being mounted and unmounted in some time. USB 2.0, which has connected USB-HDD works great for all devices

Thanks for help :)

#114 steve6375

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 04:22 PM

Just reporting...

Running patch on external hard drive with Win 7 SP1 x64 installed from both Win 7 SP1 x64 host and Win7PE_SE x86 PE result in expected, issue free outcome. USB hard drive boots normally and all OS/programs/internet/devices etc. work exactly as on the original installation which I backed up with Acronis and restored to USB-HDD.

Thanks again for great utility.

:cheers:


Hmm - I don't understand what I am doing wrong! I tried RTM and SP1 x86 Win 7 three times now - also Starter and Pro. Result is same for all. Appears to install and get to Desktop OK, but after reboot I get the same error and no Explorer or Desktop or wallpaper. Presumably you can reboot as many times as you like and it always boots fine (on real h/w)?

#115 Dhilip89

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 05:24 PM

Each time it fails i need to apply set_7_usb_boot.cmd from second hdd (internal) and it boots fine. THere are some problems with USB 3.0 hub - devices is being mounted and unmounted in some time. USB 2.0, which has connected USB-HDD works great for all devices

Thanks for help :)

Do you mean that you need to apply "set_7_usb_boot.cmd" before boot by every time?
Maybe you can try to use another USB cable for test whether the devices still being mounted and dismounted again.


Hmm - I don't understand what I am doing wrong! I tried RTM and SP1 x86 Win 7 three times now - also Starter and Pro. Result is same for all. Appears to install and get to Desktop OK, but after reboot I get the same error and no Explorer or Desktop or wallpaper. Presumably you can reboot as many times as you like and it always boots fine (on real h/w)?


How about the install.wim from another Windows installation ISO? :dubbio:

#116 ejkejej

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 05:58 PM

yes, i did. Right now i don't need it. Only in case of crash. These devices which are mounted and dismounted are mouse and flash stick with no any extra cable

#117 amalux

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 07:43 PM

Hmm - I don't understand what I am doing wrong! I tried RTM and SP1 x86 Win 7 three times now - also Starter and Pro. Result is same for all. Appears to install and get to Desktop OK, but after reboot I get the same error and no Explorer or Desktop or wallpaper. Presumably you can reboot as many times as you like and it always boots fine (on real h/w)?

Yes, boots repeatedly from real h/w and once booted is indistinguishable from host installation; everything works normally.
Posted Image

The only difference I see with your setup is x86 install, mine is x64 and not a fresh install; I restored a backup image of the host install to USB so everything is setup the way I want. The WD 300GB USB-HDD is setup with two NTFS partitions, Win 7 being restored to first, active on USB.
Posted Image

:cheers:

#118 steve6375

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 08:07 PM

An existing installation would not got through the OOBE (i.e. sysprep) and would have existing user profiles...

#119 amalux

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Posted 04 September 2011 - 09:01 PM

An existing installation would not got through the OOBE (i.e. sysprep) and would have existing user profiles...

I use Universal Restore, can't say for sure what the differences are but booting to dissimilar h/w is not an issue. Personally, I can't see doing this any other way than using an image restore, too much time and too many hassles installing direct to USB.

;)

#120 Dhilip89

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Posted 05 September 2011 - 02:42 AM

Version 3.0.2 released (check first post) :)

Experiment with my old desktop computer:
s1.png s2.png s3.png s4.png s5.png

#121 Dhilip89

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Posted 05 September 2011 - 02:10 PM

Testing Windows 8 (Build 7955) on USB HDD, multiboot VHD:

win8_7955-1.png

#122 Brito

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Posted 12 September 2011 - 09:28 AM

Hi,

Is it possible to make available a non-compressed executable?

My antivirus (AVG) goes crazy with this file and doesn't even allow to execute. Tried disabling the AV but it was stubborn, eventually uninstalled AVG to test pwboot.exe but I'm sure many other folks out there will not like to see this warning message.

I'm starting to test out the tool, so far I'm liking it.

:cheers:

#123 Dhilip89

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Posted 12 September 2011 - 09:49 AM

Hi,

Is it possible to make available a non-compressed executable?

My antivirus (AVG) goes crazy with this file and doesn't even allow to execute. Tried disabling the AV but it was stubborn, eventually uninstalled AVG to test pwboot.exe but I'm sure many other folks out there will not like to see this warning message.

I'm starting to test out the tool, so far I'm liking it.

:cheers:


I am not aware of sensitivity of the UPX-ed executable to anti-virus program. (I don't use them)
I had disabled UPX on compiling process.

Here you go:
PWBoot 3.0.2 (No-UPX).exe (1.61MB)
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#124 sionicion

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Posted 14 September 2011 - 09:08 PM

Testing Windows 8 (Build 7955) on USB HDD, multiboot VHD:

win8_7955-1.png

Umm, you don't need PWBoot for Windows 8. It has a bootable USB stack. It should run fine off a external USB device. Also, Windows 8 can boot off literally any machine compared to Windows 7 because it has more drivers built-in ready for the job. You can't exactly boot Windows 7 from USB on Intel and then switch to AMD out of nowhere, it'll fail boot-up or BSOD.

Also, certain USB hubs just aren't fast enough or simply won't work with Windows 7 booting from USB. Windows 8 gets the bootable USB stack from Windows Embedded Standard 7, which is a fully componentized release of Windows 7, it's the same Windows 7 but you can take parts out or put your own parts in, for example, the option to use a bootable USB stack instead of a normal USB stack. It's a supported scenario out-of-the-box, unlike Windows 7.

Edited by sionicion, 14 September 2011 - 09:09 PM.


#125 cdob

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Posted 14 September 2011 - 09:53 PM

Windows 8. It has a bootable USB stack.

Thanks, that's greate news.
Let's read from install.wim.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Control]

"BootDriverFlags"=dword:0000001c

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Control\PnP]

"PollBootPartitionTimeout"=dword:00007530

 

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Services\usbhub]

"Start"=dword:00000003

"BootFlags"=dword:00000004

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Services\usbehci]

"Start"=dword:00000003

"BootFlags"=dword:00000004

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Services\USBSTOR]

"Start"=dword:00000003

"BootFlags"=dword:00000014

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Services\USBHUB3]

"Start"=dword:00000003

"BootFlags"=dword:00000010

 

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\8\ControlSet001\Services\USBXHCI]

"Start"=dword:00000003

"BootFlags"=dword:00000010
Yes, boot USB stack is enabled by default. And USB 3.0 drivers are available too.



Also, certain USB hubs just aren't fast enough or simply won't work with Windows 7 booting from USB. Windows 8 gets the bootable USB stack from Windows Embedded Standard 7

This explains different behaviour at Windows 7 USB stack.





Also tagged with one or more of these keywords: usb, windows, boot, full, pwboot, vhd, patch

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