Installing Windows to an SRP target

You can create customised Windows Server 2008 installation media that will allow you to install Windows directly to your SRP¹⁾ SAN target. (You cannot do this using the standard installation DVD-ROM; you must customize it first.)

Download and install the Automated Installation Kit (AIK) for Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=94BB6E34-D890-4932-81A5-5B50C657DE08.

Insert the Windows Server 2008 DVD-ROM and a blank USB key. Start up a command prompt and use diskpart to list the disks on your system:

  C:\Users\Administrator> diskpart
  
  Microsoft DiskPart version 6.0.6002
  Copyright (C) 1999-2007 Microsoft Corporation.
  On computer: WIN-8AHI8ZB7YBM
  
  DISKPART> list disk
  
    Disk ###  Status      Size     Free     Dyn  Gpt
    --------  ----------  -------  -------  ---  ---
    Disk 0    Online       466 GB      0 B
    Disk 1    Offline       40 GB      0 B
    Disk 2    Online      3817 MB      0 B

Select the USB key:

  DISKPART> select disk N

where N is the number of the disk corresponding to your blank USB key (“Disk 2” in the above example). Create a new bootable partition on the USB key:

  DISKPART> clean
  DISKPART> uniqueid disk id=12345678
  DISKPART> create partition primary
  DISKPART> select partition 1
  DISKPART> active
  DISKPART> format fs=fat32
  DISKPART> assign
  DISKPART> exit

(where 12345678 can be any non-zero 8-digit hexadecimal string that you choose).

Copy the contents of the Windows Server 2008 DVD-ROM to the USB key:

  xcopy /e /f D:\*.* E:\

(where D: is the drive letter of your DVD-ROM drive, and E: is the drive letter of your newly-formatted USB key).

Use Notepad to create a file containing:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<unattend xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:unattend">
  <settings pass="windowsPE">
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-Setup"
               processorArchitecture="amd64"
               publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35"
               language="neutral"
               versionScope="nonSxS"
               xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State">
      <RunSynchronous>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>1</Order>
          <Path>cmd.exe /c for /f %i in (&apos;dir /s /b %WINDIR%\inf\oem*.inf&apos;) do drvload %i || echo Ignoring error</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
      </RunSynchronous>
    </component>
  </settings>
  <settings pass="generalize">
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-PnpSysprep"
               processorArchitecture="amd64"
               publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35"
               language="neutral"
               versionScope="nonSxS">
      <PersistAllDeviceInstalls>true</PersistAllDeviceInstalls>
    </component>
  </settings>
</unattend>

(modifying “amd64” to “x86” if you are using a non-64-bit version of Windows) and save it as E:\autounattend.xml (where E: is the drive letter of your USB key).

Use Notepad to create a file containing:

[ExclusionList]
ntfs.log
hiberfil.sys
pagefile.sys
"System Volume Information"
RECYCLER
Windows\CSC

[CompressionExclusionList]
*.mp3
*.zip
*.cab
\WINDOWS\inf\*.pnf

and save it as E:\wimscript.ini (where E: is the drive letter of your USB key).

Download the correct version of Windows OpenFabrics from http://www.openfabrics.org/downloads/WinOF/ and unzip the .msi installer file. Unpack the driver files to a temporary location:

  msiexec -a WinOF_2-1_wlh_x64.msi -qb TARGETDIR=%TMP%\WinOF

Start up a Windows PE Tools Command Prompt (Start→All Programs→Microsoft Windows AIK→Windows PE Tools Command Prompt) and mount the boot image file:

  mkdir %TMP%\Mount
  imagex /mountrw E:\sources\boot.wim 2 %TMP%\Mount

(where E: is the drive letter of your USB key). Add the imagex command and configuration file to the boot image:

  copy ..\%PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE%\imagex.exe %TMP%\Mount
  copy E:\wimscript.ini %TMP%\Mount

Add the WinOF drivers to the boot image:

  cd %TMP%\WinOF\PFiles\WinOF\Drivers
  for /f %i in ('dir *.inf /s /b') do peimg /inf=%i %TMP%\Mount

Commit the changes to the boot image:

  imagex /unmount /commit %TMP%\Mount

Download sanbootconf from http://git.ipxe.org/releases/sanbootconf/sanbootconf-latest.zip and save it as E:\sanbootconf.zip (where E: is the drive letter of your USB key).

Boot from your USB key, and install Windows Server 2008 to a blank physical disk on a new machine. (This step is sadly necessary due to limitations in the Windows Setup infrastructure.)

In the newly-installed Windows Server 2008, install sanbootconf from your USB key.

Start up a command prompt and prepare the machine for capturing the installation image:

  cd %WINDIR%\System32\sysprep
  sysprep /oobe /generalize /shutdown /unattend:E:\autounattend.xml

(where E: is the drive letter of your USB key, which may have changed from earlier).

Boot from your USB key. At the language selection screen, press Shift-F10 to start up a command prompt window and capture the image:

  cd \
  imagex /append C: E:\sources\install.wim "Windows Server 2008 (SRP boot)" "Windows Server 2008 with SRP boot support" /flags "SERVERENTERPRISE"

(where SERVERENTERPRISE may need to be changed to SERVERSTANDARD or SERVERDATACENTER depending on which version of Windows Server 2008 you are installing).

Quit the Windows installer and shut down the machine.

You may want to convert your bootable USB key back to a DVD-ROM. To do this, start up a Windows PE Tools Command Prompt (Start→All Programs→Microsoft Windows AIK→Windows PE Tools Command Prompt) and generate an ISO image file:

  oscdimg -m -n -o -bE:\boot\etfsboot.com E:\ C:\win2k8.iso

(where E: is the drive letter of your USB key, and C:\win2k8.iso is the place that you want to store the ISO image file).

You can burn this ISO image file to a blank DVD-ROM, or continue to use the USB key. Either will work for installing Windows Server 2008.