Windows Preinstallation Environment
Encyclopedia
Windows Preinstallation Environment (aka Windows PE, WinPE) is a lightweight version of Windows XP
, Windows Server 2003
, Windows Vista
, Windows 7, or Windows Server 2008 R2
that is used for the deployment of workstations and servers. It is intended as a 32-bit
or 64-bit
replacement for MS-DOS
during the installation phase of Windows, and can be booted
via PXE
, CD-ROM
, USB flash drive
, or hard disk
. Traditionally used by large corporations and OEM
s (to preinstall Windows client operating systems to PCs during manufacturing), it is now widely available free of charge via the Windows Automated Installation Kit
(WAIK).
in this respect. WinPE has the following uses:
The package can be used for developer testing or as a recovery CD/DVD
for system administrators. Many customized WinPE boot CDs packaged with third-party applications for different uses are now available from volunteers via the Internet.
The package can also be used as the base of a forensics investigation to either capture a disk image or run analysis tools without mounting any available disks and thus changing state.
Version 2.0 introduced a number of improvements and extended the availability of WinPE to all customers, not just corporate enterprise customers by downloading and installing Microsoft's Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK).
The newest version is 3.1, based on the Windows 7 SP1 kernel.
It was originally designed and built by a small team of engineers in Microsoft's Windows Deployment team, including Vijay Jayaseelan, Ryan Burkhardt, and Richard Bond.
Windows PE 1.0: The first release of Windows Preinstallation Environment.
Windows PE 1.1: Built from Windows XP Professional
with Service Pack 1 (SP1).
Windows PE 1.2: Built from Windows Server 2003
family.
Windows PE 2004 (1.5): Built from Windows XP Professional
with Service Pack 2 (SP2).
Windows PE 2005 (1.6): Built from Windows Server 2003
with Service Pack 1 (SP1).
Windows PE 2.0: Built from the first edition of Windows Vista
. This version differs from the other versions since it doesn't need the disc to load all the files. This means that the download is now 900MB in size instead of 60MB from the previous versions. It's possible to modify the default startup disc to have access to a few plug-ins like WMI
, Windows Scripting Host, additional drivers and other 32-bit applications (or 64-bit applications for 64-bit versions). Other new features include the capability for a rewritable RAM disk
since WinPE version 1.x only has a recordable RAM disk.
Windows PE 2.1: Built from Windows Server 2008, this version uses the same codebase as Windows Vista SP1.
Windows PE 2.2: Built from Windows Server 2008 SP2, this version has the same codebase as Windows Vista SP2.
Windows PE 3.0: Built from Windows 7 code base. It is included in WAIK
2.0.
Windows PE 3.1: Built from Windows 7 SP1 code base. It is included in Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) Supplement for Windows 7 SP1 available from Microsoft's website.
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
, Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...
, Windows Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
, Windows 7, or Windows Server 2008 R2
Windows Server 2008 R2
Windows Server 2008 R2 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009 and launched on October 22, 2009. According to the Windows Server Team blog, the retail availability was September 14, 2009. It is built on Windows NT 6.1, the same core...
that is used for the deployment of workstations and servers. It is intended as a 32-bit
32-bit
The range of integer values that can be stored in 32 bits is 0 through 4,294,967,295. Hence, a processor with 32-bit memory addresses can directly access 4 GB of byte-addressable memory....
or 64-bit
64-bit
64-bit is a word size that defines certain classes of computer architecture, buses, memory and CPUs, and by extension the software that runs on them. 64-bit CPUs have existed in supercomputers since the 1970s and in RISC-based workstations and servers since the early 1990s...
replacement for MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
during the installation phase of Windows, and can be booted
Booting
In computing, booting is a process that begins when a user turns on a computer system and prepares the computer to perform its normal operations. On modern computers, this typically involves loading and starting an operating system. The boot sequence is the initial set of operations that the...
via PXE
Preboot Execution Environment
The Preboot eXecution Environment is an environment to boot computers using a network interface independently of data storage devices or installed operating systems.PXE was introduced as part of the Wired for Management framework by Intel and is described in the specification The Preboot...
, CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
, USB flash drive
USB flash drive
A flash drive is a data storage device that consists of flash memory with an integrated Universal Serial Bus interface. flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than a floppy disk. Most weigh less than 30 g...
, or hard disk
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
. Traditionally used by large corporations and OEM
Original Equipment Manufacturer
An original equipment manufacturer, or OEM, manufactures products or components that are purchased by a company and retailed under that purchasing company's brand name. OEM refers to the company that originally manufactured the product. When referring to automotive parts, OEM designates a...
s (to preinstall Windows client operating systems to PCs during manufacturing), it is now widely available free of charge via the Windows Automated Installation Kit
Windows Automated Installation Kit
Windows Automated Installation Kit is a collection of tools and technologies produced by Microsoft designed to help deploy Microsoft Windows operating system images to target computers or to a VHD . It was first introduced with Windows Vista.- History :Windows AIK Version 1.0 was released with...
(WAIK).
Overview
WinPE was originally intended to be used only as a pre-installation platform for deploying Microsoft Windows operating systems, specifically to replace DOSDOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
in this respect. WinPE has the following uses:
- Deployment of workstations and servers in large corporations as well as pre-installation by system builders of workstations and servers to be sold to end users.
- Recovery platform to run 32-bit or 64-bit recovery tools such as WinternalsSysinternalsWindows Sysinternals is a part of the Microsoft TechNet website which offers technical resources and utilities to manage, diagnose, troubleshoot, and monitor a Microsoft Windows environment. Originally, the Sysinternals website was created in 1996 and was operated by the company Winternals...
ERD Commander or the Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE). - Platform for running 3rd party 32-bit or 64-bit disk cloningDisk cloningDisk cloning is the process of copying the contents of one computer hard disk to another disk or to an "image" file. Often, the contents of the first disk are written to an image file as an intermediate step, and the second disk is loaded with the contents of the image...
utilities.
The package can be used for developer testing or as a recovery CD/DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
for system administrators. Many customized WinPE boot CDs packaged with third-party applications for different uses are now available from volunteers via the Internet.
The package can also be used as the base of a forensics investigation to either capture a disk image or run analysis tools without mounting any available disks and thus changing state.
Version 2.0 introduced a number of improvements and extended the availability of WinPE to all customers, not just corporate enterprise customers by downloading and installing Microsoft's Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK).
The newest version is 3.1, based on the Windows 7 SP1 kernel.
It was originally designed and built by a small team of engineers in Microsoft's Windows Deployment team, including Vijay Jayaseelan, Ryan Burkhardt, and Richard Bond.
Versions
The following versions are known to exist:Windows PE 1.0: The first release of Windows Preinstallation Environment.
Windows PE 1.1: Built from Windows XP Professional
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
with Service Pack 1 (SP1).
Windows PE 1.2: Built from Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...
family.
Windows PE 2004 (1.5): Built from Windows XP Professional
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
with Service Pack 2 (SP2).
Windows PE 2005 (1.6): Built from Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...
with Service Pack 1 (SP1).
Windows PE 2.0: Built from the first edition of Windows Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
. This version differs from the other versions since it doesn't need the disc to load all the files. This means that the download is now 900MB in size instead of 60MB from the previous versions. It's possible to modify the default startup disc to have access to a few plug-ins like WMI
WMI
WMI may refer to:* Windows Management Instrumentation, in Microsoft Windows operating systems, a set of extensions to the Windows Driver Model* Waste Management, Inc, a provider of waste management services...
, Windows Scripting Host, additional drivers and other 32-bit applications (or 64-bit applications for 64-bit versions). Other new features include the capability for a rewritable RAM disk
RAM disk
A RAM disk or RAM drive is a block of RAM that a computer's software is treating as if the memory were a disk drive...
since WinPE version 1.x only has a recordable RAM disk.
Windows PE 2.1: Built from Windows Server 2008, this version uses the same codebase as Windows Vista SP1.
Windows PE 2.2: Built from Windows Server 2008 SP2, this version has the same codebase as Windows Vista SP2.
Windows PE 3.0: Built from Windows 7 code base. It is included in WAIK
Windows Automated Installation Kit
Windows Automated Installation Kit is a collection of tools and technologies produced by Microsoft designed to help deploy Microsoft Windows operating system images to target computers or to a VHD . It was first introduced with Windows Vista.- History :Windows AIK Version 1.0 was released with...
2.0.
Windows PE 3.1: Built from Windows 7 SP1 code base. It is included in Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) Supplement for Windows 7 SP1 available from Microsoft's website.
See also
- Live CDLive CDA live CD, live DVD, or live disc is a CD or DVD containing a bootable computer operating system. Live CDs are unique in that they have the ability to run a complete, modern operating system on a computer lacking mutable secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive...
- WinBuilderWinBuilderWinBuilder is a free application designed to build and customize boot disks based on Microsoft Windows .-Scripts:Scripts are the building blocks of Live CD compiled with Winbuilder are used to build the core components of the Live CD, for adding applications, and for configuration of a specific...
, a tool for creating Windows PE-based live CD/DVD or USB boot disks in a modular way - WiNToBootic, a free one-click-tool for creating bootable USB flash drive (NTFS) and burning/extracting Windows 7 based ISO (supports WinPE 2/3 and original Win7 installation ISO as well)
- VistaPEVistaPEVistaPE is a project for WinBuilder to create a Live CD based on the kernel of Windows Vista. VistaPE uses technology from and largely resembles Windows Preinstallation Environment 2.0 , but has a graphical shell, expanded set of supported devices and functions, and can run almost any Windows...
, free tool for creating Vista live CDs (Windows PE 2.x) - nLite and vLite, applications that create customized installation CDs of some Windows Systems.
- BartPEBartPEBartPE is a lightweight variant of the 32-bit version of Microsoft Windows XP or Windows Server 2003, similar to Windows Preinstallation Environment, which can be run from a Live CD or Live USB drive....
, a free third-party alternative to WinPE based on Windows XP - Windows To GoWindows To GoWindows To Go is a feature in Windows 8 that allows the entire system to run from USB mass storage devices such as flash drives and external hard drives....
, upcoming feature in Windows 8Windows 8Windows 8 is the codename for the next version of the Microsoft Windows computer operating system following Windows 7. It has many changes from previous versions. In particular it adds support for ARM microprocessors in addition to the previously supported x86 microprocessors from Intel and AMD...