May 07, 2010 a coworker and myself were asked to create a vmware vsphere esx template for server 2008 r2 and its not as easy as you might think. How to sysprep windows server 2008 james kovacs weblog. Windows server 2008 r2 standard x64 volume license edition. How to manually rearm the 10 day activation grace period when the initial 10day activation period nears its end, you can run the slmgr. Select a windows platform directory, and browse to the file. What does sysprep with the generalize option do on windows. How to build a vmware vsphere vm template for windows. Furthermore, i am downloading an ovf of a vm i have on an esx hypervisor and want to open this in vmware workstation 7. Use this workaround until vmware vi allows you run sysprep against a win2008 server change the source or templates guest operating systemsetting to vista 32 bit or vista 64 bit depending on the installation of the windows 2008 server. Aug 14, 2007 windows server 2008, on the other hand, has sysprep built right into the os, found at c. How to sysprep a windows 2008 r2 vm solutions experts. In addition to esx server updates, also download all windows and linux updates.
Sysprep is a critical step to deploying new system images both for client computers and servers. To deploy a windows image to different pcs, you have to first generalize the image to remove computerspecific information such as installed drivers and the computer security identifier sid. Steps by steps how to run sysprep on window server 2008 r2. Copy the xml somwhere in your image and run sysprepin c. The vcenter server installer creates a sysprep directory in allusersprofile. Microsoft sql server 2008 r2 express is a powerful and reliable data management system that delivers a rich set of features, data protection, and performance for embedded applications, lightweight web sites and applications, and local data sto. Windows sysprep for virtual machines thomas maurer. I ran into this problem after cloning an existing windows 2008 r2 server with vmware vcenter when i used the vmware customization wizard and when i used sysprep myself. I am cloning windows server 2008 r2 64bit vms and found that. I want to create a template of windows server 2008 r2 for virtualization. For microsoft vista, server 2008, and later operating systems, the system preparation. When i sysprep the vm it removes the additional hard drive. Creating an activated windows server 2008 r2 vmware template. Jan 04, 2020 1, im using windows server 2012 r2 as vmware vcenter server 2, im using windows 2003 sp2 as guest vm.
The allusersprofile location is usually \documents and settings\all users\. The process has changed significantly since previous versions of windows. Log in to the vmware vcenter server appliance web console and click the vcenter server summary tab. Jul 27, 2015 if you look at the sysprep log in the panther folder for whatever reason, windows creates a panther folder when you run sysprep, it actually lists the particular dll that it is having trouble loading during the process. I should admit that its lot simpler and less painful to sysprep windows server 2008 than any of the previous versions of windows. This is a pretty good sized download almost 2 gb if i remember correctly so go and grab a cup of coffee or something, or watch the jack bauer power hour also known as 24, or something to pass the time while downloading. Creating an activated windows server 2008 r2 vmware.
We plan to deploy hyperv vhd with windows server 2008 r2 and sql server 2012 express installed to multiple hosts. Windows 2008 r2 clone with sysprep on vsphere 5 youtube. You can find complete detail about sysprep on sysprep for windows microsoft web site. We do all our customization on the administrator profile on the image, now in windows 2008 r2, you cannot simply copy the admin profile to the default profile, instead you need to use this a method which calls sysprep.
May 18, 2010 create and activate a windows server 2008 r2 vm. Mar 12, 2007 microsoft windows server 2003 sp1 and windows server 2003 sp2 include an updated version of the system preparation tool sysprep. Although this tool can be used on win2000 and above systems, in fact, the support for win xp is not very good, and it will cause various unforeseen minor problems. Feb 11, 2015 basic sysprep unattend xml file for windows server 2012r2 when sysprep a server and uing an unattended xml to avoid the first screens you often want to get started quickly so i post here a sample clean and mean unattended xml to get you started. However, can i sysprep it while it loads or can this only be done from inside the.
Just remember in the custom specifications, join to domain use the fqdn, otherwise joining the domain will fail. After you download and install the microsoft sysprep tool from the microsoft web site, you can use the vmware vcenter server appliance web console to upload the files to the appliance. Installing windows server 2003 insert server 2003 cdrom into the cdrom drive navigate to x. Waik is modular and requires you to import the install. System preparation tool for windows server 2003 service pack 2 deployment. I was going sysprep a base image of windows server 2008 this morning. I went back and checked the key and it changed back to 3. I thought id document how to setup the new sysprep process equivalent on windows 2008 since the old setupmgr file for making fs doesnt exist anymore and neither does f. Application microsoft sql server 2008 r2 rtm express. When you install a component from this store, my understanding is that it is. Shutdown the server and take an image or clone it to a virtual machine template. After we have allowed windows 2008 servers in our vmware vi. Sysprep file locations and versions 1005593 vmware kb. Sysprep on windows server 2008 r2 template jdptechnc sep 12, 20 1.
Technet basic sysprep unattend xml file for windows server. Microsoft windows server 2003 sp1 and windows server 2003 sp2 include an updated version of the system preparation tool sysprep. Promote one to a domain controller and add the other one to the domain as a member server. Microsoft sql server 2008 r2 express is a powerful and reliable data management system that delivers a rich set of features, data protection, and performance for embedded applications. If you do not run sysprep, you can quickly run in to problems when uniquely identifying information about your source machine is duplicated across the. Learn how to use sysprep for windows 7 and windows server 2008 r2. I have been using vmware workstation personally for the last few years as. Download the waik windows automated installation kit from microsoft. How to copy sysprep files to vcenter server appliance. May 05, 2008 in windows server 2003, creating a master image in which sysprep was used to invoke an unattended installation was a fairly straight forward process. Always sysprep your servers, if you dont you will have major issues windows 2008 r2 clone with sysprep on vsphere 5. Too bad vmware doesnt add this diskpart step to their customization wizard, as it would make it so much simpler. So here is a quick guide to sysprep a windows 2008 server in a vmware vi enviroment.
For instance, you might install windows server, make some. This issue occurs when the virtual machine is running windows vista, windows server 2008, windows 7, or windows server 2008 r2. During bootup i see one cmd prompt window opens up during setting up services screen, throws some red colored text in the cmd prompt and then reboots. Most of us will be running the latest windows operating system such as windows server 2008, windows server 2012 or windows server 2016 in the virtual machine but even now many environments are running with an older version of windows operating systems such as windows server 2003 and earlier for application compatibility or for some other reasons. Sysprep data location with vcenter running on windows 2008. Windows server 2008 r2, windows 7, windows 8 and windows server 2012. Build a windows server 2008 r2 server, apply patches and various tweaks.
Solved fatal error when running sysprep on server 2008 r2. In the utilities panel, click the sysprep files upload button. Windows server 2008 r2 system preparation tools are built into the windows server 2008 r2 operating system and do not have to be downloaded. How to sysprep a windows 2008 r2 vm solutions experts exchange. Apparently, guest customization of windows 2008 is not supported at this time 582008. Server 2008 r2 sysprep is included, we dont need to include the files into vmware s vcenter directories. Jul 30, 2010 build a windows server 2008 r2 server, apply patches and various tweaks. Nov 29, 2009 the way we use to sysprep windows machine are changed in windows server 2008. In windows server 2012 and windows 8, microsoft added an addition to sysprep called the mode switch mode. Troubleshooting windows 2008 r2 sysprep a fatal error. Use sysprep to create images of windows server 2012 for vms.
My question is how can i implement sysprep on windows server 2012 r2 as i will like to create customization. Install the microsoft sysprep tool for vmware vcenter server. Windows server 2008 r2 web edition x64 service pack1. I changed the reg key and tried sysprep but it failed. Always sysprep your servers, if you dont you will have major issues windows 2008 r2. I changed it once again and then ran the msdtc uninstall and the msdtc install commands. Jan 08, 2012 cloninf of a windows 2008 r2 machine with sysprep. On this base machine i have a small system drive of 10gb and a larger data drive of 40gb. How to sysprep in windows server 2008 r2 and windows 7. Install the microsoft sysprep tool for vmware vcenter. Sysprep fatal error occurred while trying to sysprep the.
Sysprep generalize a windows installation microsoft docs. Download windows server 2008 r2 evaluation 180 days from. Sysprep on windows server 2008 r2 template vmware communities. Unattended server 2008 base image creation using wsimsysprep. If you have already copied vhd file vpc or vmdk file vm ware for new virtual. Technet basic sysprep unattend xml file for windows server 2012r2. And after sysprep, i see that the new image is not booting up. Clone the vm or template and you are now able to customize your. Windows server 2008 and sysprep in a vmware enviroment a. How to sysprep in windows vista and windows server 2008. I just wonder what the generalize option is good for.
In windows server 2008 r2, terminal services was renamed remote desktop services, which is also known as remote desktop session host. Uddi services was not included in windows server 2008 r2. A fatal error occurred error message when you run the. May 31, 2016 in windows server 2012 and windows 8, microsoft added an addition to sysprep called the mode switch mode. Creating templates and deploying virtual machines from the vsphere web client duration. Windows sid needs to be changed after copying a virtual machine.
Newsid and server 2008 r2 fixing bsod experts exchange. Learn how to use sysprep for windows vista and windows server 2008. May 09, 2008 may 9, 2008 today, i ran into an interesting problem using virtualcenters clone to new machine which integrates sysprep functionality. Solved vmware template server 2008 r2 sysprep necessary. It saves a lot of time for businesses to quickly deploy large numbers of computers. If you do not run sysprep, you can quickly run in to problems when uniquely identifying information about your source machine is duplicated across the network. The sysprep tool is used to remove systemspecific information from the os so that it can be used for imaging to multiple devices. From my understanding, the correct way to do this is to install sql server in prepartion mode, sysprep windows, then complete sql server installation when the vhd is deployed. Dear all, in order to have vm template for win 2008 r2, i created a standard. Prerequisites verify that you download the correct version for the guest operating system to customize. Over the course of a day and half and through much research and trial and error, we have come up with the perfect template for our organization. How to run sysprep on windows server 2008 r2 plexuk. For windows server 2008 and above the sysprep are already. Download the sysprep files from the microsoft download center and save them to your local system.