9 replies to this topic

[tonewill]

Hello,
I have an XP SP3 source folder. I'm trying to determine how to know whether a file should come from i386, driver.cab, sp3, sp2 or sp1 or is it just a case of trial and error? pebuilder seems to know where to get the file but winbuilder gives an error when I use CopyOrExtract on certain files. Is it a case of trial and error? Are all files that are in Sp1.cab also in sp2.cab and all files in SP2.cab also in sp3.cab? Is there a way to determine from the source where a file is located?

Hope someone can help,

I thank thee.

[MedEvil]

The newer the cab the newer the file version.
Assuming you have SP3 installed, search first in SP3.cab then in SP2.cab then in SP1.cab then in drivers.cab. The first occurence of the file you find is the one you should use.

[tonewill]

Okay, thanks MedEvil. Presumably when windows installs or when pebuilder copies the files it doesn't search in this manner, there must be a marker somewhere that says where each file is located. I've just been reading about the parameters after each file name in textsetup.sif and layout.inf.

bootvid.dll  = 1,,,,,,3_,2,0,0,,1,2

Apparently the first number is usually either 1 or 100, 100 signifying a service pack. Maybe this can be used to tell us where the file is? Perhaps one of the other "unknown" parameters tells us it's from driver.cab. Just thinking aloud here.

Also, I noticed that each service pack cab is larger than the previous. Are we sure that all files are not included in the next higher one, in other words, if the file isn't in SP3, should we not skip straight to driver.cab because all files in SP2 are in SP3 even if their the same version?

Would be nice to be sure.

Anyway, I thank thee.

[MedEvil]

You are not listening!
All the named cab archives are the 'same archive' just newer versions.

No idea how pebuilder decides, but M$-install-files get updated along with archives and therefore know where the uptodate version is.

[Lancelot]

tonewill

for nativeex barabone based projects (ex: livexp)
use variables in your script:
%spCabFile%=
%drCabFile%=

for xpsp2 source:
%spCabFile%=SP2.cab
%drCabFile%=driver.cab
for xpsp3 source:
%spCabFile%=SP3.cab
%drCabFile%=driver.cab

so when you use %spCabFile% in your script, it will be always the one that is available, i hope this is the marker you are looking for.

further is up to you, check some scripts including %spCabFile% to see how it is used.

Good luck

[tonewill]

You are not listening!
All the named cab archives are the 'same archive' just newer versions

Then why:

search first in SP3.cab then in SP2.cab then in SP1.cab

[tonewill]

Thanks a lot Lancelot, I'll check those scripts and see what is going on. Still interested in how ms or pebuilder does it. Will have to keep searching.

Thanks again.

[Lancelot]

tonewill
as Medevil also indicated:

All the named cab archives are the 'same archive' just newer versions.

i dont know a file that exists in sp2.cab but doesnt exists in sp3.cab. simply using %spCabFile% will solve most your problems.
But also opposite not true
some files in sp3.cab dont exists in sp2.cab (that is why i guess Medevil told you to start seaching with sp3.cab and continue with sp2.cab, to be sure file exists in both)
example: hdaudio
so you need to check sp3.cab as well as sp2.cab to make your script works all the time with different sources user uses.
sth like that probably:
if %spCabFile%=sp2.cab ....
if %spCabFile%=sp3.cab ....
this is what pebuilder can not, with some plugins you have to manually change .inf file when source is different (well explained in .inf files)


Good luck

[MedEvil]

Actually the reason i said to start with the latest cab and then move down is, that M$ does not delete the old cab file when slipstreaming.
Hence i think, that the newer cab does not completely replace the former ones.

[tonewill]

Okay, "we're not sure" I think is what you chaps are saying, which is fine, neither am I.

If anyone knows of any good accurate on-line info on how windows set-up works, please leave a link. I suspect this maybe the wrong forum for this sort of question, maybe msfn is a better bet, unless it's changed since I was last there a few years ago.

I thank thee.