Media distribution is useful if you are deploying computers
in remote locations that do not
have high-speed network connections, or in locations that do not have a local
IT department available to set up and perform the unattended installation.
Media distribution is also useful
as an alternative installation method when network congestion limits your ability
to access a distribution share, or when a destination computer has a
malfunctioning network adapter.
To use media distribution instead of a distribution share, you use the oper 10110k1012k ating system CD to start the destination computer. Then, you insert a floppy disk containing an answer file into the floppy disk drive. Setup reads the answer file, copies the appropriate installation files from the operating system CD to the destination computer's hard disk, and then configures the destination computer based on the parameters specified in the answer file.
Using an operating system CD to perform an unattended installation has the following requirements:
The destination computer must have a bootable CD-ROM drive, and the boot-order sequence in the destination computer's BIOS must list the CD-ROM drive before the hard disk.
The destination computer must have a floppy disk drive.
The answer file must be named Winnt.sif, and it must be saved on a floppy disk.
The installation files must all be present on the operating system CD; you cannot access supplemental device drivers or files that are not on the CD.
The answer file must have a [Data] section, and the entries within the [Data] section must be configured appropriately for an unattended installation that uses an operating system CD.
In addition, using an operating system CD to perform an unattended installation has the following limitations:
You cannot perform an upgrade, only a clean installation. To perform an upgrade, you must have an operating system running on the destination computer, which you do not have when you start a computer with the operating system CD.
You cannot use a uniqueness database file (.udf) to modify the answer file. A .udf file overrides answer file settings, and is typically used to set the computer name during an unattended installation. For example, you might have a .udf file that contains a list of predetermined computer names for your organization. Instead of creating numerous answer files, each containing a unique computer name, you can configure the answer file so it obtains a computer name from the .udf file.
You cannot use Dynamic Update to add updated installation files and device driver files during setup.
You cannot stage the installation of applications. For more information about staging the installation of applications, see "Preinstalling Applications" in Microsoft Windows Corporate Deployment Tools User's Guide (Deploy.chm). Deploy.chm is included in the Deploy.cab file in the Support folder on the Windows Server 2003 operating system CD.
Despite the requirements and limitations, there are some
advantages to performing an unattended installation with the operating system
CD. Namely, you can configure the answer file to do
the following:
Configure disks. By using the Repartition parameter in the [Unattended] section, you can delete all partitions on the destination computer and create a new partition that is formatted with the NTFS file system.
Skip Mini-Setup. By using the UnattendSwitch parameter in the [Unattended] section, you can prevent the Mini-Setup program from running when the destination computer is started for the first time after unattended installation is completed.
Force BIOS startup. By using the UseBIOSToBoot parameter in the [Data] section, you can force a destination computer to use the BIOS to start, even though Setup detects that it is more appropriate to use a device miniport driver to start the computer. The current generation of hardware uses the BIOS to start the computer, so this entry is rarely required. However, on computers with large drives that support extended int13 BIOS calls, this might not be the default behavior. Using the BIOS starts computers faster by eliminating possible delays caused by a miniport driver. Do not use this entry unless you are sure that the BIOS supports the extended int13 functions.
For more information about configuring an answer file for unattended installations, see "Designing Automated Installation Tasks" later in this chapter, and Microsoft Windows Corporate Deployment Tools User's Guide (Deploy.chm). Deploy.chm is included in the Deploy.cab file in the Support folder on the Windows Server 2003 operating system CD.
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