Automating Windows Server 2008 Installation

If you need to install Windows Server 2008 on a series of computers in your organization, the following methods are available:

• Answer files— This is an XML-based file (unattend.xml) that contains the operating system settings required for an unattended installation of Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008. If you have prepared the answer file properly, the server installation proceeds without intervention. Windows Server 2008 provides the Windows System Image Manager utility to facilitate the creation of properly formatted answer files.

• Sysprep— As already discussed, Sysprep prepares a Windows installation for copying to additional computers. It removes computer-specific information such as the server name. You can use third-party disk imaging software to prepare multiple copies for distribution to new servers. In addition to the Windows Server 2008 installation, images can include installations of a common set of software to be used on all servers.

• Windows Deployment Services (WDS)— WDS is an upgrade to Remote Installation Services (RIS), which was used for deploying installations of Windows 2000/XP/Server 2003 in a domain environment. Similar to RIS, you must have an Active Directory domain, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server, and Domain Name System (DNS) to use WDS. WDS can deploy images of either Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008. For more information, refer to “Windows Deployment Services Step-byStep Guide” in Appendix A.