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Quick How-To Boot Windows Diskless with AoE (instead iSCSI)

aoe winaoe boot lan ipxe pxe

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#1 rebit

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Posted 30 June 2012 - 01:54 AM

Quick How-To Guide

Posted Image



1 - Preparing Windows to Boot Diskless with VirtualBox/Vmare Workstation/ESX
  • Install Windows 7/8/2003/2008 on a Virtual Machine ( create a disk type .vhd with fixed size )
  • open a cmd as administrator and type two commands:
C:>bcdedit  -set  TESTSIGNING ON



C:>bcdedit -set loadoptions DDISABLE_INTEGRITY_CHECKS
  • reboot the virtual machine
  • Download and Install WinAoE Driver as Storage Controller
  • Download and Install CCBoot Client without options
  • Shutdown Virtual Machine
2 - On Server
  • Install a DHCP Server with option bootfilename grldr
  • Install a TFTP Server and set tftp-root folder
  • Download grub4dos and extract 'grldr' and 'menu.lst' files to the tftp-root folder
  • Edit menu.lst file only with this content:
title === MENU BOOTS ===

()

title

()



title Windows 7 Diskless

map --mem (pd)/ipxe.iso (0xff)

map --hook

chainloader (0xff)
  • Create a text file 'conf.ipxe' with this content:
#!ipxe

dhcp net0

set keep-san 1

sanboot aoe:e0.0
  • Download ipxe.iso and with UltraISO, open the ipxe.iso with UltraISO and edit ISOLINUX.CFG with this content:
SAY iPXE ISO boot image

TIMEOUT 30

DEFAULT ipxe.lkrn

LABEL ipxe.lkrn

KERNEL ipxe.krn

INITRD conf.ipxe
  • Update the ISOLINUX.CFG on UltraISO with new content
  • Drag the file 'conf.ipxe' to inside UltraISO and save the file.
  • Put ipxe.iso on the tftp-root folder
  • Start DHCP Server
  • Start TFTP Server
  • Download and install WinPCAP and vBlade Target System ( AoE ) and export the target of .vhd.
  • Open vblade from Icon on Program Group
  • First find the Device Name of your Network Card with bogus caracters (xxx).
vblade -b 65 0 0 xxx “d:path_to_you_vhdwindows.vhd”
  • after copy and paste the Device{value}
vblade -b 65 0 0 “Device{value}” “d:path_to_you_vhdwindows.vhd”   <ENTER>
  • Ready ! Boot one machine by LAN Boot, or create a VirtualBox/Vmware Virtual Machine without Disks !
  • You can boot a lot of Machines creating a specific ipxe.iso for each one, dont forget to edit 'conf.ipxe' with diferent targets ( e0.0, e0.1, e0.01), create respective ipxe-e0.0.iso for each workstation, add the menu.lst entry too for each ipxe-e0.x.iso, export each .vhd with vblade changing slots ( 0 1 , 0 2 etc..)
have fun !

More detailed Configuration with Video Tutorials in:

https://windowsdisklessaoe.wordpress.com

Edited by rebit, 30 June 2012 - 02:18 AM.

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#2 TheHive

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Posted 30 June 2012 - 06:57 AM

Thanks for the tutorial. Recommend adding it to tutorial forum also.

#3 rebit

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Posted 15 August 2012 - 10:26 PM

Hello, all the links of dropbox are broken beacuse reach the maximum traffic !

On the website you have all the links are working !

http://windowsdiskle...e.wordpress.com

#4 dns001

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Posted 30 August 2013 - 06:28 AM

Look at this:

 

www.wintarget.net

 

WinTarget AoE Server is an advanced, powerful and full-featured AoE Target software that makes any x86, x64 Windows machine into an AoE Target.

 

Support gPXE and PXE.

 

Support a variety of storage media, such as: .vhd/.vhdx/.vdi/.vmdk vritual disk files, RAM, files, physical dick, and disk partition.

 

Thanks.



#5 erwan.l

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Posted 30 August 2013 - 09:21 AM

Look at this:

 

www.wintarget.net

 

WinTarget AoE Server is an advanced, powerful and full-featured AoE Target software that makes any x86, x64 Windows machine into an AoE Target.

 

Support gPXE and PXE.

 

Support a variety of storage media, such as: .vhd/.vhdx/.vdi/.vmdk vritual disk files, RAM, files, physical dick, and disk partition.

 

Thanks.

 

Mentionned in 3 different threads at once?

Do you have any share in that product? :)

 

Can you tell more on the free/trial mode? Does this work like starwind which is fully free, even after the trial period.

 

By "Support gPXE and PXE." you meant gPxe and iPxe (the boot firmwares) I guess ?



#6 dns001

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Posted 30 August 2013 - 09:37 AM

Mentionned in 3 different threads at once?

Do you have any share in that product? :)

 

Can you tell more on the free/trial mode? Does this work like starwind which is fully free, even after the trial period.

 

By "Support gPXE and PXE." you meant gPxe and iPxe (the boot firmwares) I guess ?

 

Free,  We have to pay for advanced features!

 

iPXE also support.



#7 Wonko the Sane

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Posted 09 September 2013 - 10:56 AM

Free,  We have to pay for advanced features!
 
iPXE also support.

Who are the "we"? ;unsure:

I am asking because since out of your 6 (six) posts on the board, exactly 6 (six) are connected with the mentioned tool (and how good it is), it is reasonable to suspect that "you" are the one that gets the money, different from the "we" that needs to give it.

 

I am sure that if you wish to advertise the product on the board, Nuno can offer you an interesting fee/rate for that.

:cheers:
Wonko



#8 Mike22

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Posted 27 February 2014 - 08:50 PM

Hi!

Have followed this topic exampel but at

http://windowsdiskless.wordpress.com
http://windowsdiskle...e.wordpress.com

 

 

Have tried many, many hours and in diffrent ways but failed to boot diskless. I want to use

the ISCSI to boot 15 computer that i have for a charity for children.

 

The main problem is same and it fails to boot. This is how it looks like.
 

PXE stack unloaded

isolinux 3:03 2009-10-05 ETCD and some copyright text.

IPXE ISO Boot Image
loading Ipxe.krn ......
loading conf.ipxe ready ........
iPXE initializing devices ...

---------------------------------------------
After this the loading are to fast.
even to-use pause / break

Then loading stops and next screen is
--------------------------------------------

PREES KEY TO REBOOT

It always ends with this PRESS KEY TO REBOOT.

 

Does anyone recognize the problem?

 

 

Did find a forum topic somewhere that said that Microsoft NET Framework 4 is importent to have installd on client. Have activate ISCSI in client. Win7 has the built-in but not enabled from the beginning. Also the win AoE and the Starwind driver have some problem to exist together. Three good thing to know for other user. :D

 

Have test diffrent DHCP servers and TFTP. And test AoE and SCSI and with VBlade and Starwind Free ISCSI Target. (Use vGui with vBlade its makes your life easy and its a nice litle tool, use it download it from this site.)

 

I have no problem to boot diskless when I use CCboot. And I have no problem to make a target and add the virtual drive on client. So it must have something with the iPXE boot to do.

 

I have trie to change to gPXE, I made  a ISO file somewhere and I open the ISO and the same file was there

so could use the same code eample to, but Iam new to this code and PXE so cant see if anything is wrong. Anyway got same results "PKTR" :s

 

My setup.

 

I dont use VMware like the example (Ill test to night) Its on real computers.

 

I use Win7 professional as server and same on Client.

 

Regards

Michael


Edited by Mike22, 27 February 2014 - 08:51 PM.





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