384 replies to this topic

[alacran]

There is Do you want to use x86 version? yet, on WinHex script, but this time all scripts were successful.

 

Build made on OS Win7 x64, i3-3225 3.3 Ghz, 8 GB RAM DDR-3 1333 Ghz, Sata III HDD, PROGRAMS.IN.WIM=YES

 

From log: 42 scripts processed. Project time: 2 minutes, 33 seconds and 239 milliseconds (NO WinFE)

 

It seams to me for people runing Win7 (as me) or Win8.x, WB 0.82 is the best alternative for this project (MistyPE) and no need to install more than 1 GB of .NET Framework 4.7.1 just to run PEBakery.

On the other hand people runing last version of Win10 already have it into OS and then PEBakery is a very good option for them.

 

This is not the case if you are building a 10 PE SE on Win7, then PEBakery is very much faster than WB 0.82
 

Iso booted fine, I didn't find a problem in it.

 

Almost forget to comment, I used both Firmware Type, oscdimg and Optimise to make the ISO, size is 557 MB.

 

EDIT: Just made a new ISO, now using both Firmware Type, mkisofs and Optimise, ISO size is 555 MB.

 

Didn't take time but it seams to me oscdimg is faster, mkisofs took a lot of time just to prepare the ISO and then wrote it very fast.   

 

 

alacran

Edited by alacran, 18 December 2017 - 08:21 PM.

[Wonko the Sane]

 

Build made on OS Win7 x64, i3-3225 3.3 Ghz, 8 GB RAM DDR-3 1333 Ghz, Sata III HDD, PROGRAMS.IN.WIM=YES

 

From log: 42 scripts processed. Project time: 2 minutes, 33 seconds and 239 milliseconds (NO WinFE)

 

It seams to me for people runing Win7 (as me) or Win8.x, WB 0.82 is the best alternative for this project (MistyPE) and no need to install more than 1 GB of .NET Framework 4.7.1 just to run PEBakery.

On the other hand people runing last version of Win10 already have it into OS and then PEBakery is a very good option for them.

 

This is not the case if you are building a 10 PE SE on Win7, then PEBakery is very much faster than WB 0.82

 

I see that you are starting to see the light .

 

In any case, how much faster is PEbakery (few seconds vs. several minutes or few minutes vs. a few more minutes)?

How many build does an average user create daily?

How saving a few minutes at build time will affect the lives of these end users?

 

The real issue (that hopefully PEbakery will resolve in next iterations, i.e. once it will complete the compatibility check) is about the (handful of) developers that will have a faster way to test their .scripts, but (still hopefully) will have the possibility to write .scripts in a new, readable scripting language.

 

Additionally, by running on the same .scripts a completely different parser/interpreter a number of syntax errors (that went unnoticed for years under Winbuilder because by sheer coincidence or because of undocumented behaviour) have become evident (and hopefully will be "fixed" in the .scripts/projects)  .

 

And let us not forget that - before or later - almost everyone (and almost certainly the end users) will anyway be running the stupid crappy bloat that Windows 10 is, and build (hopefully slightly less stupid) Windows 10 based PE's, sso PEbakery, once rounded a few corners is going to be (largely) everyone's choice, which is good but not because of the increased speed.

 

It is IMHO a mistake to promote the increased speed as a "feature" of PEbakery, it has the potentiality to better the experience of both developers and end-users, the increased speed is only a (IMHO very minor overall) side effect.

 

Wonko

[misty]

@alacran
Thank you very much for the testing and detailed feedback. So far nothing significant appears wrong or broken - if I escape with just typo errors then I'm a very happy man!

On to some of the individual points raised.
 

...1- (AmmyyAdmin.script) aida64 is missing - exiting script...

Well spotted
A problem resulting from copy and paste and then not fully editing the text. I will fix this in the next release.
 

...Also found a Typo on Boot.Media-Create Iso-Optimise-Help: It should say: At the end of first paragraph "if mkisoft.exe is used". And at the end of last paraghaph "if storage optimization is used"...

Another good find my eagle eyed friend I will also fix this in the next release.
 

....2- (WinHex.script) WinHex is missing - exiting script...

....2 - I added to MistyPE\Projects\Cache\Programs\WinHex (copy-paste) the old version I have since last time I made a good build, and project builder said someting like there is not x64 version on folder Do you want to use x86 version? but you need sysWoW64 (wich was enabled) I acepted and anyway script failed....

There is Do you want to use x86 version? yet, on WinHex script, but this time all scripts were successful....

The previous version of the WinHex script used following path (relative to the project program Cache) -
\WinHex\winhex.exe

New script uses one of the following -
\WinHex\x86\winhex.exe
\WinHex\x64\winhex64.exe

Using the add to cache button will place the program in the correct path.
 

...I went to http://www.winhex.co...hex-editor.htmland didn't find any x64 version on it, so someting is wrong with this script.......

There is a 64-bit executeable (WinHex64.exe), however it is not available in the evaluation license download from the WinHex website. It's also not available with the Professional license (see https://www.x-ways.n...comparison.html).

My thoughts on the very promising looking PEBakery to follow later tonight.

Misty

[alacran]

There is something else I forgot to add, for selecting install.wim index we actually have up to number 6 (the one I selected in my previous build = version E), but the source ISO has 9 diferent versions in it, I think this is the case for all European languages multi-edition versions.

 

So please increase selection index up to number 9.

 

alacran.

[misty]

There is something else I forgot to add, for selecting install.wim index we actually have up to number 6 (the one I selected in my previous build = version E), but the source ISO has 9 diferent versions in it, I think this is the case for all European languages multi-edition versions.
 
So please increase selection index up to number 9.
 
alacran.

Another straightforward fix. Will do.

Misty

[misty]

Three program packages available for download -

• JustManager (File Manager)
• OperaUSB v12.18
• SumatraPDF v3.1.2

Add to the project in the WinBuilder UI via the Tools > Add Program script.

I may merge JustManager into the project with the next release as it is a very useful file manager despite no longer being in development. It's one of the only file managers I've found that supports drag and drop in a Windows 10 based MistyPE and also refreshers the screen after file operations are completed.

File copy progress is not displayed on recent Windows 10 builds (1703 and 1709 and possibly others), however this is an issue with the WinPE and not the file manager.

Interestingly the 7-zip file manager fully supports drag and drop, screen refresh and file copy progress - unfortunately 7zfm.exe does not support the (shell) right-click context menu.

Enjoy.

Misty

[misty]

...It seams to me for people runing Win7 (as me) or Win8.x, WB 0.82 is the best alternative for this project (MistyPE) and no need to install more than 1 GB of .NET Framework 4.7.1 just to run PEBakery.

On the other hand people runing last version of Win10 already have it into OS and then PEBakery is a very good option for them.

This is not the case if you are building a 10 PE SE on Win7, then PEBakery is very much faster than WB 0.82...

@alacran
I attempted to run PEBakery on a Windows 7 SP1 host OS after installing .NET Framework - a tremendous ammount of bloat (.NET - not PEBakery). Unfortunately this was the wrong .NET package and the program failed to run with error PEBakery has stopped working (see screenshot below) -



Same error on Windows 8.1 Update host OS. No warning about not having the wrong .NET Framework version - just the error.

Started ok on my newly installed (for testing purposes) Windows 10 host OS partition. Also now running on Windows 8.1 Update host OS after installing the correct .NET package. A warning about an incompatible version of .NET would be useful.

I haven't played around with PEBakery much due to testing recent additions to MistyPE. First impresssions - a very very promising bit of software.

Brief note on PEBakery compatibility with MistyPE - it's not working with all project scripts.

Tools > Cache Files - Option 3
This script is used to create a Cache using files copied from the host OS. Using PEBakery the script fails to copy required file dependencies to the cache. This is likely to be due to failing to redirect to the Sysnative directory. The Sysnative redirects are required in the 32-bit WinBuilder, however if PEBakery is a native 64-bit application then the current coding will fail and will need some significant changes to work in PEBakery and WinBuilder. I'm not sure how many project scripts are affected and will check this shortly.

Build time comparison with same settings -

• PEBakery - 1 minute 23 seconds
• WinBuilder - 1 minute 3 seconds

Regards,

Misty

UPDATE - Three program scripts have references to sysnative

• Core\required.files.hostos.script
• Core\syswow64.files.hostos.script
• Core\verify.script

[alacran]

Also for your next version you may update wimlib-imagex to last version 1.12 (released July 29, 2017): https://wimlib.net/

 

Just downloaded the 3 packages from post 331 & will try them.

[alacran]

After new build this are my findings:

 

LinuxReader is not runing (wasn't enabled on previous build) AFAIR this is an old problem that's why I had it disabled, but wanted to try againg with new updated version.

JustManager is runing fine.

SumatraPDF312 is runing fine.

OperaUSB1218int is runing fine but in English, did not open in my language and can't be changed, in order to fix this (before building) you need to go to MistyPE\Projects\Cache\Programs\OperaUSB1218int\x64 and x86 folders and locate and open:  operaprefs_default.ini

Go to lines:

[User Prefs]
Language Files Directory={Resources}locale\en
Language File={Resources}locale\en\en.lng

For Spanish-Spain Change to (apply as required for other language):

[User Prefs]
Language Files Directory={Resources}locale\es-ES
Language File={Resources}locale\es-ES\es-ES.lng

 

alacran

[misty]

Discussion has continued whilst the reboot.pro site has been down. Refer to Page 5 on the PEBakery topic on MSFN.

MistyPE has been updated -
 

A test build of MistyPE is available. The test version is hopefully fully PEBakery compatible - I've done a few initial tests using PEBakery version 0.9.1. alpha (Build 20171216).

Update the MistyPE project using the Tools > Update Project script whilst MistyPE is loaded (in either PEBakery or WinBuilder).

A number of scripts have been updated. I can't remember all of the changes/updates as the reboot.pro site is down - a number of the changes are listed on the reboot.pro site following the release of other test builds since the MistyPE April Fools release (build 2017-04-01).

Changes since the last test build (2017-12-17) that Alacran has been very actively testing include -
- wimlib updated to version 1.12 (as suggested by alacran)
- Spelling corrections to some scripts (as suggested by alacran)
- Main project script option 6] Set 'Install.wim' Image Number - index/number increased to 9 (as suggested by alacran)
- JustManager (file manager) included in the project
- WinHex script updated - Evaluation version can now be downloaded

Following programs updated -
- dmde
- Q-Dir
- HWiNFO

Regards,

Misty

Also, OperaUSB version 12.18 package updated - http://mistyprojects..._Package_v2.zip

[misty]

Project updated to Build 2017.12.26. Changelog

Other than the updates in beta releases the most significant change is the inclusion of PEBakery in the download package - thanks ied206

Thanks also to Atari800xl and alacran for testing/feedback/suggestions/etc.



Misty

P.s. It is not possible to update to this build via the built in project update script - please download the full package.

[Atari800XL]

Thank you so much for this DSLD release! (Drunken Santa's Late Delivery).

 

Great to see JustManager is included, I have been using it in some of my own X64-only (test) PEs. Until XYPlorer will be available in a 64bit release (which will probably be: never), this is a very good alternative. No dependencies and straight to the point. Too bad it's not actively developed anymore; on the other hand, "old" is not "bad": I still use XYPlorer 11.90 [free giveaway version, no restrictions], which happens to be exactly 5 years old at the moment, I can live without most of the recent "features"...

Edited by Atari800XL, 26 December 2017 - 12:18 PM.

[misty]

Thank you so much for this DSLD release! (Drunken Santa's Late Delivery)...

Let's just hope that Santa wasn't so drunk that he rushed the delivery!
 

...Great to see JustManager is included, I have been using it in some of my own X64-only (test) PEs. Until XYPlorer will be available in a 64bit release (which will probably be: never), this is a very good alternative. No dependencies and straight to the point. Too bad it's not actively developed anymore; on the other hand, "old" is not "bad"...

I noticed from your comment on the portablefreeware site (here) that you are a fan of JustManager -

Great for bare bones Windows PE, it runs without any dependencies, it seems, very useful in x64, too bad it's not supported anymore...

You sure do get around

Misty

[alacran]

Let's just hope that Santa wasn't so drunk that he rushed the delivery!

 

After all it seems he was a little drunk.  OperaUSB1218int & SumatraPDF312 are not included in download.

 

alacran

[Wonko the Sane]

After all it seems he was a little drunk.  OperaUSB1218int & SumatraPDF312 are not included in download.

Or maybe the kids weren't good enough to deserve them gifts ...

 

Wonko

[alex52]

I need WinPe with sound support, but can not found  Audio.script and dependency for MistyPE.2017.12.26

What scripts are necessary  for audio, and where to take they?

 

.

[misty]

I need WinPe with sound support, but can not found  Audio.script and dependency for MistyPE.2017.12.26
What scripts are necessary  for audio, and where to take they?
 
.

@alex52 - audio is not supported in the project. Sorry. Whilst it should be possible to add audio support due to the modular approach of MistyPE, it is beyond the scope of the project.

...This is a minimalist 32 or 64-bit WinPE/WinFE with a GUI shell (BBLean - based on BlackBox for Windows) - originally created for system deployment, backup, restore and recovery...

Regards,

Misty

[misty]

After the latest project update I noticed some issues in the ADK script that have hopefully been fixed over the holiday period.

The ADK script now includes options for downloading and installing additional ADK for Windows 10 builds - the previous version only included links for the ADK for Windows 10.0.14393.

Whilst updating I have also decided to include a new option to facilitate multiple source file caches for project rebuilds. Please read the documents in the update for a detailed explanation - and in particular the following sections in the "Project Options" page of the docs -
1] Attempt to use Existing Cache?
2] Select Cache for Windows version/build
3] WinPE Processor Architecture

Essentially this new option will create separate caches for all officially supported builds. For example, if the project has been run successfully using source files from Windows 7 SP1 (32-bit) and also Windows 8.1 (64-bit) then the following file caches will have been created -
\Project\Cache\source\6.1.7601\x86
\Project\Cache\source\6.3.9600\x64

Toggle the settings in options 1, 2 and 3 in the main project script to use different caches.

As I'm now doing my best to test across two separate build engines (WinBuilder and PEBakery) there is an increased risk of errors - particularly with such a big code change to facilitate the multiple caches. This version is for testing purposes only. Feeback welcome.



Misty

EDIT - forgot to mention that the new test build is available via the Tools > Update Project script!!!!!

[Ickey778]

You'll have to forgive me as I am a newbie. Looking to create a WinFE bootable usb from Windows 8.1 Pro iso. Open Misty's WinBuilder, select source (Win8.1Pro?), select destination (USB), select iso file (where I get confused). Any help would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Edited by Ickey778, 03 January 2018 - 05:22 PM.

[Wonko the Sane]

You'll have to forgive me as I am a newbie. Looking to create a WinFE bootable usb from Windows 8.1 Pro iso. Open Misty's WinBuilder, select source (Win8.1Pro?), select destination (USB), select iso file (where I get confused). Any help would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Check the docs first:

http://mistyprojects...ocs/readme.html

 

namely:

http://mistyprojects...nstructions.htm

 

Wonko

[misty]

@Ickey778
What Wonko said. He has referred you to links for the Mini-WinFE project - a scaled down version of MistyPE that would appear to be more suitable for your needs. I would also suggest that you read http://mistyprojects...files/quick.htm. If your source file is an .iso file then you will need to mount it and then set the source as the mounted root directory. E.g. if the .iso is mounted as D:\, then set the source as D:\

@Wonko

[Ickey778]

@misty

@Wonko

 

Thank you

[misty]

Project updated.

Testing only - please feedback regarding any errors that may have been unintentionally introduced.

For those that missed it, most of the recent additions are covered here

This release has improved error checking and also improves on the multiple source file Cache feature. The source cache will be scanned and options dynamically added to the option 2] picklist in the main project script during the build process. The last MistyPE release had a fixed list of builds to pick from. This release does not so it should hopefully only be possible to use a cache that actually exists.

There's also an extra option in the Boot.media > Create ISO script to create an iso file using a dynamic name (based on date and time) that will be created in the project root directory - so it shouldn't be deleted or overwritten during reruns/rebuilds. Have a look at the help info under the Advanced tab > option 6] WinPE.iso.

Update the project via the Tools > Update Project script.



Misty

[alacran]

@ misty

 

After making builds using as source 8.1Ux86.iso, 8.1Ux64.iso and 10x64.iso using PEBakery as builder all of them were fine, no problems reported.   But when booting from Iso's LinuxReader still not working.

 

Now I have on:

MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source\ 6.3.9600\x86           From 8.1Ux86

MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source\6.3.9600\x64            From 8.1Ux64

MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source\10.0.16299\x64        From 10x64

 

It seems all is working as intended. This feature is very helpful if you want to keep a cache from previous builds.

 

But on the other hand cache keeps growing every time you use a new source and for some users this may be a waste of disk space, in my case MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source is 1.56 GB now, so for that reason I suggest to add on Tools a single separate script to clean Cache\source, you could give user options to clean selective versions and/or all.  I know this may seems unnecesary been so simple as going to MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source and manually delete whatever you want but we must remember not all people using this great project is an advanced user.  About MistyPE\Projects\Cache\temp this is only 48.7 KB in my case so I do not see a reason to make anything to save this amount of space.

 

alacran

[alacran]

Forgot to mention MistyPE\MistyPE.Project.Output is another big folder mine is now 1.04 GB. Perhaps it deserves same treatment as MistyPE\Projects\Cache\source.