using Offline Mode in Windows PE using USMT 4 via a task sequence in SCCM 2007 SP2

[anyweb]

hi all,

 

Note: This post has been reproduced in a webcast, so if you'd like to see a video of Offline Mode in WinPE then click here

 

 

 

well this feature in USMT 4 is handy, as it allows you to do a scanstate while in Windows PE in other words, not in the OS so no problems with services running or applications running meaning that you get to backup everything you want without any locked files stopping from doing so.

 

Offline mode does however have some restrictions, read this page on Technet for details of that. To get around these restrictions and to migrate wallpaper see here, to migrate your network printers see here.

 

 

Great, but how do I do Offline Mode in Windows PE using SCCM ?

 

according to Microsoft, we can use the /offlinewindir switch in USMT 4 with scanstate.

 

/offlinewindir: "path to a windows directory"

 

 

This option specifies the offline Windows directory that the ScanState command gathers user state from. The offline directory can be Windows.old when you run the ScanState command in Windows or a Windows directory when you run the ScanState command in Windows PE. This option is incompatible with the /offline option.

 

However, implementing it isn't so straigtforward as you've probably already discovered and documentation about getting it to work within SCCM is as far as I can see pretty much non-existant,

so here courtesy of windows-noob.com is one way of doing it, feel free to show us other ways.

 

The theory behind this:-

 

As the Capture User State Step in a standard task sequence can only run in Windows, we cannot use that step to do our scanstate while in Windows PE, therefore we will use some tricks to run scanstate from WinPE.

 

To do this we create two special packages, the first package contains a batch file which calls the scanstate.exe file and the second package is the entire USMT X86 scanstate files and folders, (note: in this example we are using scanstate from the X86 folder).

 

This means that we create a separate package to the normal USMT4 package and this is only because this example is a workaround or proof of concept to prove that Offline Mode in Windows PE can be done via a Task Sequence in SCCM.

 

Update: If you would like sample code to check for and use the correct USMT architecture in offline mode then see Peters post here

 

 

Get your lab ready

 

We need a Windows XP client machine to test scanstate on and you should enable the F8 command prompt option in your boot.wim (you'll need it).

 

 

The Task Sequence

 

You can use this Task Sequence in SCCM by importing it. Please note this task sequence only has the 4 groups in it, if you want the 4 groups plus OSD then use the other Task Sequence further down.

 

Offline Mode in Windows PE using USMT 4.xml

 

The task sequence depends on three packages, the X86 bits from your USMT 4 (ie: copy everything in the X86 folder from C:\Program Files\Windows AIK\Tools\USMT folder. There are two versions, one for 32bit (X86) and one for 64bit (amd64), we are only using the X86 bits in this guide), the Batchfile

 

 

 

I break up my task sequence into four distinct groups, Set, Create, xcopy and Run

 

SET

 

 

In the Set group I set SystemDrive to c: (otherwise it will try and do this on the windows PE x: drive)

 

 

Next we set the OSDStateStorePath Task Sequence Variable to %systemdrive%\USMToffline which translates to c:\USMToffline, this directory will store our migration data during scanstate operations and when the new os is being applied.

 

 

Finally we set the hardlink load parameters

 

 

 

CREATE

 

In the Create group we just create two folders, c:\USMToffline,

 

 

and c:\USMTbits\X86

 

 

 

the c:\USMTbits\X86 will store all our scanstate native files.

 

 

XCOPY

 

In the xcopy group we do the clever stuff, we copy the X86 USMT stuff to the newly created folder, and then we copy our batch file for later user.

 

 

The batch file itself has the following contents

 

 

@set USMT_WORKING_DIR=%~2%\USMTbits\x86

"%~2\USMTbits\x86\scanstate.exe" "%~1" /c /o /hardlink /efs:hardlink /nocompress /offlinewindir:c:\windows /v:5 /l:%~2\windows\TEMP\SMSTSLog\scanstate.log /progress:%~2\windows\TEMP\SMSTSLog\scanstateprogress.log /i:%~2\USMTbits\x86\miguser.xml /i:%~2\USMTbits\x86\migapp.xml

 

 

You can download the batchfile below however you must rename it back to .bat

 

runscanstate-offlinewindir.bat.txt

 

 

RUN

 

The Run group does the actual running of the batch file and passes two variables to the file.

 

 

 

 

Testing Offline Mode.

 

Create an optional advertisement to a Migrate XP to W7 X86 collection for the Task Sequence and PXE boot your XP client (press F12 first....), select the Task Sequence when the wizard appears,

 

 

at this point press F8 to bring up the command prompt, you are doing this to verify that your data is getting migrated in OFFLINE mode. So here we can see the command prompt is open.

 

 

Ok switch back to the TS and start the task sequence. You will see it starts creating the folders, copying the USMT stuff and our batch file(s) and then actually running the scanstate command.

 

 

 

Once it is completed your migrated data will now be stored in C:\USMToffline\USMT

 

browse it and verify

 

 

If you want to see a working SMSTS.log file from the above test see below

 

smsts.log

 

 

Ok now what ?

[anyweb]

Migrate XP to Windows 7 using Offline mode in Windows PE

 

 

 

Once you have the above working you'll want to actually Migrate XP to Windows 7 using Offline Mode in Windows PE.

 

Ok now you know it works, use the above theory and task sequence within a working Migrate XP to Windows 7 Task sequence.

 

Here's how,

 

Import the following task sequence

 

XP to W7 Demo - X86 Offline Mode in WinPE-USMT 4.xml

 

Once imported resolve the package requirements namely

 

* X86 boot image

* USMT 4 X86 package *special usmt 4 package containing only the x86 folder)

* Operating System image (captured Windows 7 image if you don't have one yet read this)

* ConfigMgr client package from definition

* USMT 4 (both) package containing the native x86 and x64 folders for USMT 4...

* runscanstate.bat package from above

 

the key bits in the TS are set hard-link load parameters

 

 

and

 

 

the rest is the same as above

 

I'll post some more screenshots soon but here's two to get you excited

 

XP desktop before migration

 

 

 

Windows 7 desktop after migration

 

 

If you are having problems understanding the USMT4 packages used in this workaroun/proof of concept then please read all of this post

 

Related reading:

 

How to use USMT 4 hardlinking in a Configuration Manager 2007 Task Sequence

http://blogs.technet.com/b/configurationmgr/archive/2010/06/30/how-to-use-usmt-4-hardlinking-in-a-configuration-manager-2007-task-sequence.aspx

 

How can I use Offline Mode in Windows PE using USMT 4

Using a scanstate (using offlinewindir in winpe ) Task Sequence in SCCM 2007 SP2

 

Some Sample XP to Windows 7 task sequences showing Hardlinking

hardlinking and SMP

 

Customise the XML files

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd560786%28WS.10%29.aspx

 

What does USMT 4 migrate ?

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff383238(WS.10).aspx

 

have fun !

 

cheers

niall

[anyweb]

screenshots describing the above process are here

[jtbenn]

Man your guides are great they make it look like I know what the heck I am doing here.

I followed this one as close as I could but I must be having a brain fart.

My profiles (documents, favorites, desktop …) are not being restored to the user folders they are being left in the “C:\USMToffline\USMT” folder.

This is all that was in my c:\Windows\System32\CCM\Logs\smsts.log after Windows 7 was installed and the report for the task said success.

 

<![LOG[successfully finalized logs to SMS client log directory from C:\Windows\system32\CCM\Logs]LOG]!><time="18:04:42.671+-60" date="03-07-2010" component="OSDSetupHook" context="" type="1" thread="1588" file="tslogging.cpp:1536">
<![LOG[Cleaning up task sequencing logging configuration.]LOG]!><time="18:04:42.671+-60" date="03-07-2010" component="OSDSetupHook" context="" type="0" thread="1588" file="tslogging.cpp:578">

 

I am not supposed to edit the miguser.xml and migapp.xml files. Am I?

The same package is used for “Restore User Files and Settings” step as for the “xcopy x86 USMTbits\X86” steps, right?

 

And that package has no Program (or Command Line), but only points to the source files?

I did learn (the hard way) you do not want to use “Access content directly from a distribution point when needed by the running task” in the package. That will cause it to try to copy every package folder from the server to the target machine. (I thought it was taking a bit too long)

 

Well, I am about to remove the tick that says “Continue if some files cannot be restored. To see if that lets me look at a log file to see what is going wrong. I think it may be trying to map the network drives or something like that.

 

Then reimage my test computer with XP so that I can start all over for the sixth time.

I really do appreciate all your hard work. It really helps a lot of people.

[anyweb]

there are two USMT packages in this task sequence (apart from the batch file etc...)

 

the first one is special (a workaround), as it only points to the USMT/x86 folder (containing all files and folders within there...)

 

the second USMT package is normal and points to both the X86 and X64 folders (containing all files and folders within there)

 

does that help your problem ?

 

cheers

niall

[jtbenn]

there are two USMT packages in this task sequence (apart from the batch file etc...)

 

the first one is special (a workaround), as it only points to the USMT/x86 folder (containing all files and folders within there...)

 

the second USMT package is normal and points to both the X86 and X64 folders (containing all files and folders within there)

 

does that help your problem ?

 

cheers

niall

 

That did it! You are "The MAN"

Thanks so much.

[jtbenn]

I do have another question. Is there a way to force a PXE boot without going to each machine and physically setting up the bios? I read something about the Dell Client Configuration Utility but it looks fairly complicated and only works on Dells. We mostly have Dells but we have several IBMs too. I know, if anyone knows, You Know.

Thank You.

[anyweb]

using the DCCU is really really easy, download it, create a package to apply the bios setting you want (eg: boot order in bios) save that EXE file, create a package in sccm and deploy it to a test box, verify it works, deploy it to more boxes.

 

i don't know how IBM handles this

 

cheers

niall

[FCM]

Guys great work by the way!! although my TS fails on the Run (group) do X86 scanstate part... which sccm package should I be using at this part? thanks in advance :-)

[anyweb]

the first package, which I mentioned above

 

 

there are two USMT packages in this task sequence (apart from the batch file etc...)

 

the first one is special (a workaround), as it only points to the USMT/x86 folder (containing all files and folders within there...)

the second USMT package is normal and points to both the X86 and X64 folders (containing all files and folders within there)

[FCM]

the first package, which I mentioned above

 

 

also I have some really crazy stuff happening ..like the xcopy stuff is copying all packages from my DP to the to the USMTbits folder.. what have I done wrong :-( I have checked the task sequence and it seems as per the download...? please help... thanks

 

frank