Install Windows XP Professional

We Can Install Windows XP Professional In Two Ways, Using Interactive Setup Program And Automatic Installation.

In a large computer network organization with many computers, automating the process to deploy and install windows XP professional is more efficient and cost effective than using the interactive Setup program. Commonly you have the computer network infrastructure in place such as directory services, name services, and dynamic address DHCP services. You can use Windows XP Professional tools to add specific files and applications and to distribute customized installations with little or no user interaction.

Automated and Customized Installations

Unlike having a simple network at home when you install windows XP, you will do it manually – attended installation. For large organization with thousands of computers, Windows XP Professional includes several tools that enable you to design and deploy automated and customized installations. These tools provide different types of functionality for a variety of deployment scenarios.

To Install Windows XP Professional, the following automated and customized installation tools are included:

• Unattended Installation (unattended Setup). The two unattended installation tools, Winnt32.exe and Winnt.exe, are in the \i386 folder on the Windows XP Professional CD.
• System Preparation Tool (Sysprep). Sysprep is in the Deploy.cab file in the \Support\Tools folder on the Windows XP Professional CD.
• Remote Installation Services (RIS). RIS is included in Windows 2000 Server.

You can also use Systems Management Server (SMS) to deploy and install Windows XP Professional. For information about Systems Management Server (SMS), see the Microsoft Systems Management Server link on the Web Resources page here.

An automated installation runs with minimal or no user interaction. During an automated installation, the Setup program uses configuration information provided by an answer file. Answer files are text files containing settings that would otherwise be manually provided by end-users. Answer files provide answers to questions that the Setup program asks during installation Windows XP Professional. In addition, answer files can contain instructions for running programs and applications.

A custom installation is a modification of a standard procedure to install Windows XP Professional that supports specific hardware and software configurations and meets specific user needs. You can customize an installation by modifying the answer file to provide the Setup program with specific answers and instructions. You can also design a custom installation to add custom files, applications, and programs to the distribution folder.

For specific hardware installation and setup can be done after complete installation, such as installing USB wireless adapter that allow the computers to connect to the wireless network environment, or specific setup for corporate security software (usually deploy centrally).

You can automate and customize to install Windows XP Professional to include applications, additional language support, service packs, and device drivers.

Design an Automated and Customized Installation

Windows XP Professional provides several tools for automating and customizing installations for a variety of software and hardware configurations. Before you choose a tool, assess your current configuration and evaluate your needs. With this information, you can choose the deployment tool that is most appropriate for your organization. The tool you choose also affects the customization options that you use and the procedures you must follow to implement your deployment scenario.

You can automate and customize how you install Windows XP Professional by following this process:

Assess your current configuration and plan your deployment.

Before you choose a tool to install Windows XP professional, collect information about the types of users in your company and their needs, about the desktop environments of your users, and about your network

Choose an automated installation and customization tool.

The automated installation and customization tools support a variety of installation scenarios. Each of the tools is designed to take advantage of specific environments. Evaluate the tools to determine which tool or combination of tools best fits your organization

Prepare for the installations.

Before starting to install Widows XP professional, verify that you have the software and hardware you need, create a distribution folder, and use Setup Manager to create an answer file

Customize the installations

Design the Windows XP Professional desktop by adding hardware devices, device drivers, support information, passwords, custom language options, and applications.

Install the operating system

Test the customized installation of Windows XP Professional. After successful testing, conduct the full-scale deployment

Supporting installation

In addition to running Setup, you might need additional tools to aid you to deploy and install Windows XP Professional. The following discussion describes the setup process, optional Windows Support Tools, service pack and hotfix deployment, and troubleshooting tips for issues that you might encounter during setup.

The Setup Process

Windows XP Professional includes Dynamic Update and Uninstall, two new Setup features. The following discussion describes these features and what occurs during a new installation before and after each restart. During a non-scripted installation, Setup restarts your computer three times.

New Setup Features

Windows XP Professional includes new features that enhance the setup process.

Dynamic Update

Using Dynamic Update, a process that occurs during setup and install Windows XP Professional, the computer connects to the Microsoft Windows Update Web site and searches for the following:

• Updated Windows XP Professional installation files
• Device driver files not included or updated on the Windows XP Professional operating system CD

Dynamic Update downloads the installation and device driver files to your computer and incorporates them into the setup process. To initiate Dynamic Update, your computer must have the following:

• Internet connection capability
• Microsoft^® Internet Explorer 4.0 or later installed

If you install Windows XP Professional by using the CD ROM boot method, Dynamic Update does not start.

Uninstall

If your hardware or software does not function as expected after installing Windows XP Professional, you can use Uninstall to restore your computer to its previous operating system with little interruption. Uninstall removes all setup files from your computer and restores your previous operating system. Uninstall is available if you upgrade to install Windows XP Professional from any of the following operating systems:

• Microsoft^® Windows^® 98
• Microsoft^® Windows^® 98, Second Edition (SE)
• Microsoft^® Windows^® Millennium Edition (Me)

The following are factors to consider when using the Uninstall feature:

• Setup requires about 300 megabytes (MB) of additional space, in order to save the information it needs to be able to uninstall. Setup notifies you if your disk space is insufficient for saving the backup information.
• Thirty days after you complete Setup, the Disk Cleanup Wizard asks whether you want to remove the Uninstall file from your computer.
• Before removing Windows XP Professional from your computer, back up all of your important data.

If you install an application on your computer after you have upgraded to Windows XP Professional and then decide to remove Windows XP Professional from your computer, you must reinstall the application after restoring the previous operating system.

If you convert a volume to NTFS or to dynamic disk, or if you create or delete any volume, you can no longer use the uninstall feature.

Running Setup

The following processes occur before and after each of three restarts during you setup and install Windows XP Professional.

Before the first restart

As it begins the installation, Setup does the following:

• Collects information about your computer, such as whether you want to accept your license agreement or enter your product key. You can also specify installation options, including whether you want to perform an upgrade or a clean installation.
• Runs Dynamic Update.
• Checks disk space and builds a list of backup files to support Uninstall.

To cancel Setup at this point, click Cancel when prompted or close the Setup dialog box. Your computer’s previous operating system and settings return immediately.

After the first restart

Setup runs in text mode, and does the following:

• Provides an option to repair your existing installation.
• Provides an option to specify a partition in which to install Windows XP Professional. Setup can also format partitions.
• Copies files to the installation folder on your hard disk.

To cancel Setup and uninstall Windows XP Professional at this point, restart your computer, and then choose Cancel Windows XP Professional Setup instead of Microsoft® Windows XP Professional Setup on the menu that appears after your computer restarts.

Your computer’s previous operating system and setting^s are restored.

After the second restart

Setup runs in graphical user interface (GUI) mode, and does the following:

• Installs devices.
• Sets system locale and customizes your keyboard.
• Prompts you to specify your name, organization, computer name, and administrator password.
• Installs networking components, including Client for Microsoft Networks, File and Print Sharing for Microsoft Networks, and the TCP/IP protocol with automatic addressing. Setup also determines whether your computer uses automatic IP addressing or a DHCP server to connect to the Internet, and then installs the appropriate components.
• Prompts you to join a workgroup or domain.
• Performs the basic operating system configuration.
• Installs Start menu items.
• Updates the backup file list and prepares the restore environment to support Uninstall.
• Registers components, and then saves and backs up the registry.
• Removes temporary files used during setup.

To cancel Setup and uninstall Windows XP Professional at this point, choose Cancel Windows XP Professional Setup instead of Microsoft Windows XP Professional Setup on the menu that appears after your computer restarts.

Your computer’s previous operating system and settings are restored.

After the third restart

Setup has completed the installation process, and you can log on and start using Windows XP Professional. To remove Windows XP Professional after the setup process is complete, in Control Panel, double-click Add or Remove Programs, and then select Uninstall Windows XP Professional. Your computer’s previous operating system and settings are restored.

If you convert a volume to NTFS or to a dynamic disk or if you create or delete any volume, you can no longer use the uninstall feature.

See also:

• Windows Patch Management System – WSUS
• Computer Security devices – security appliances
• Wireless computer network – home network