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I have 2 exactly the same configured Windows installations, both 32bit and 64bit. These Windows installations are referring to other other drives for specific settings, such as:

  • The users folder is redirected to the U:\Users drive
  • Some programs are installed on the P:\ drive.

The OS is installed on the C:\ drive.

For constantly testing these configured machines with the settings, I used a non-generalized sysprep, and booted back into the same virtual machine (I did not test it on another machine yet).

These non-generalized syspreps into OOBE worked perfectly. It refers to this question.

When I was done configuring the machines how I wanted, and knew they both worked in a non-generalized sysprep. I sysprepped them with the generalize option on.

From here I made a WinPE boot environment and captured an image of the OS partition (C:\) and the PROGRAMS partition (P:\).

Now I made a new virtual machine and booted into WinPE with the device connected where the captured images we're on.

Here I created the following (needed) partitions using diskpart:

enter image description here

These are the partitions that correspond to the sysprepped machines that worked without generalize. The system partition was just a try, I also tried doing it without it.

After having created the partitions I applied the images to the corresponding disks (C:\ -> OS partition, P:\ -> Programs partition). This by using the DISM /apply-image command. I am sure I choose the right index of the .WIM file.

Then I used the bcdboot C:\Windows /s C: for creating the boot files, this successfully worked.

After restarting the machine using the exit command and not booting into WinPE, I got the following error message.

Error message

Image taken from this Wintips article

When opening up notepad via SHIFT + F10 and opening the \Windows\Panther\setuperr.log file, there is this line:

2016-08-20 21:13:01, Error [0x0606ae] IBS [SetupCl library] Required profile hive does not exist [\??\E:\WINDOWS\system32\config\systemprofile\NTUSER.DAT].

Note: removed whitespace from the error message

Also, when I open up notepad and check for my drives when opening a file, there are all kind of drives I did NOT make in WinPE.

enter image description here

The only thing that is correct is the C:\ drive, the PROGRAMS drive should be P:\ and the USERS drive should be U:\.

UPDATE 05/09/2016:

After the error shows up when booting into the applied Windows image, I opened up the CMD by pressing SHIFT + F10 and opened up the DISKPART program.

Here I selected the drives with the incorrect drive letters and re-set the drive letters by using

assign letter=X

on the right corresponding drive letter.

After rebooting the machine, it still threw the same error.

Questions

  • Where did these random drive letters come from? I already set them in WinPE before starting the Windows installation.
  • How can I make my generalized sysprep work with these settings?
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Bas
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  • It sounds like you need to inject a a DISKPART command script into your unattended file to assign the drive letters to the appropriate partitions to run as part of your process. See: http://serverfault.com/questions/109683/automatically-set-drive-letters-after-sysprep and see here for another potential workaround: http://jackstromberg.com/2012/12/preventing-drive-letters-from-changing-during-sysprep... I'm not familiar with this type of setup or deployment but quick research shows some potential solutions... the `[GuiRunOnce]` and ServerFault looks like what you may need though. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 05 '16 at 00:21
  • @PIMP_JUICE_IT I already configured the partitions with DISKPART before applying the images to the correct drives (otherwise the drives weren't there right). This has been done in WinPE. Why do I need to use the unattend (answer) file instead of WinPE or something else? That's just something I don't understand, I already set the drive letters before actually booting into the applied windows image. – Bas Sep 05 '16 at 11:43
  • I guess I was thinking you were using WinPE with DISM to push the image to the client & using an attended answer file to set settings as part of the installation such as activating Windows, skip setup screens, setup local admin account(s), and so forth. You might consider looking into this & test with the DISKPART commands in the answer file accordingly to assign the drive letters to the partitions --> [How To Image A Computer With Windows 10 Using dism](http://jacobsalmela.com/how-to-image-a-computer-with-windows-10-using-dism/). I'll be happy to add something as an answer if you find useful. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 05 '16 at 19:50
  • Additionally, since the error message indicates **`Required profile hive does not exist [\??\E:\WINDOWS\system32\config\systemprofile\NTUSER.DAT].`** then try assigning the correlated partition where this **NTUSER.DAT** file pointer exists such as "E" for example. Not sure about "U" but it's for USERS so maybe that one. There's something what you are doing cannot find based on perhaps an non-existing mounted partition or drive letter assignment from what the error indicates. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 05 '16 at 19:59
  • @PIMP_JUICE_IT About your first comment, that is the thing I am doing, I am using WinPE to push the image to the reference machine, but before that I'm creating the partitions in WinPE. The machine has an answer file, but that answer file does not include disk configuration, this because every computer could have a differnet "disk configuration" (different disks). Thats why I wanna do it in WinPE. Isn't that possible? – Bas Sep 06 '16 at 14:52
  • About the error message, I don't really understand where that came from, that should be a file in `C:\` which is present. The only thing that are referring to another drive is the Users folder `U:\` and default installed programs (to `p:\`). – Bas Sep 06 '16 at 14:54
  • To resolve the error, try running these commands pressing **SHIFT + F10** to open a command prompt and run **`NET USER administrator ""`** and press **Enter**, and then run **`NET USER administrator /ACTIVE:yes`**, and press **Enter**. Reboot once both are run on the imaged OS. If this does resolve try to same pressing **SHIFT + F10** to bring up command prompt and then run **`CD /D %systemroot%\system32\oobe`** and press **Enter**, and run **`msoobe`** and press **Enter**, and so on as mentioned in. . . – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 07 '16 at 01:49
  • . . . http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-windows_install/windows-could-not-complete-the-installation-to/bf09c3c5-298b-459f-aed5-4f431b8398f5?page=2&auth=1. . . this post... Yes it states Windows 7 but give it a shot with Windows 10 to confirm this will resolve with it as well. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 07 '16 at 01:49
  • @PIMP_JUICE_IT Thank you for the explaination, but this didn't work. even after removing the references (settings) to the specific other drives in the windows installation and making an image of it again.. it still gives the same error, what could this be? – Bas Sep 07 '16 at 11:59
  • I see two other possible things to try... One a regedit key value change and another is to remove the product key line for the production key from the unattend file... here: http://www.peppercrew.nl/index.php/2011/01/windows-could-not-finish-configuring-the-system-sysprep-fail/ and here: https://emeneye.wordpress.com/2016/02/06/windows-10-osd-error-windows-could-not-finish-configuring-the-system these may be worth a shot and simple enough to test. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 07 '16 at 12:11
  • @PIMP_JUICE_IT i'm trying it in a bit, how could this occur though? when the machine just works in a non-generalized sysprep? – Bas Sep 07 '16 at 12:13
  • Bas - Read over the options from here that you're using to see what exactly each does behind the scenes: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc721973(WS.10).aspx. I suspect that the Windows activation is having an issue or perhaps the local admin account not being active or set with a password, or perhaps the disk partitions are not assigned correctly so I would really consider using the unattended file, etc. from the link on your question to your other question you are using: `sysprep.exe /generalize /oobe /unattend:unattend:xml` options so I assume this is what you're using now. – Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style Sep 08 '16 at 21:41

1 Answers1

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After a load of debuggingg, checking log files I finnaly found the issue. My default program files location in the registry was set to the C:\ drive (as default).

I made a second drive P:\ (PROGRAMS), where some software was installed on. After reading this article, I opened that log file and looked for errors in the registry.

In one of the lines, it stated that it couldn't find the key for the AVAST software, which was installed on the other drive.

After de-installing AVAST, the error didn't occur anymore.

Bas
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