Strange Windows 8 deployment failure

[Guillaume Fr]

Hello everybody

 

This is my first post here, I hope I'm not breaking any "introduce myself rule", will check that right away. Plus English is not my native language, so please forgive me if I'm a bit inaccurate.

 

Here is my problem. First, let's sum up things.

 

I'm using a quite common scenario for capturing a Windows 8 custom image and deploying it through SCCM 2012 SP1. Here is what I've done so far :

 

1) Got a Windows 8x86 Enterprise standard wim, language neutral. Added .NET 3 feature offline. Added a bunch of fixes offline, and finally, a language pack. (offline as well) Distributed the wim over my DP, as well as all the application packages required.

2) Created a custom deployment Task Sequence with a custom unattend.xml. The TS basically installs my custom wim, installs packages. All of this in a workgroup, on a virtual machine.

3) Please note that during TS deployment, if I hit F8 (checked the option on my boot image) ipconfig says things are fine and I can ping my primary, DP, DC, during both the WinPE stage and after a Restart Computer in OS stage.

4) Performed Start Screen and other minor customizations through the builtin local administrator account, ran sysprep passing it an unattend.xml file including good old CopyProfile setting.

5) Booted on a WinPE ISO generated through PE tools.

6) Captured my custom WIM through DISM, stored it onto the network after a NET USE <Drive>: <\\Share>

7) Distributed the captured WIM over my DP

8) Created a custom Task Sequence to deploy my captured WIM along with the CopyProfile setting, still workgroup for project needs.

9) Went happy, because the default profile looked like I was expecting.

10) Created the "final" Task Sequence to deploy my custom wim and finall applications deployment and customizations that were required to happen after wim installation.

11) Got crazy for the last 20 hours. Here is the really strange thing :

a) wim applies fine

any package that tries to install gets the TS to fail. When checking smsts.log, I see that kind of error : "Failed to resolve the source for SMS PKGID=<My package ID>"

c) when I hit F8 during WinPE stage, if I ipconfig, things are fine, and I can ping primary, DP, DC. But as soon as I restart in OS, before and after the packages fail to install, ipconfig still says things are fine, but ping gives me a PING: Transmit Failed General Failure whenever I ping primary, DP, DC or any computer in my VLAN.

d) to make it complete : if I let things finish after the package install and TS failure, and logon to the computer, I still have an IP and can ping other machines again!

 

I must mention that the package(e) for which the TS fails have been tested in other TS, so they are not the problem cause. I must say this is the first time I'm lost like this. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

I'm starting to believe that something somehow got screwed during my capture.

 

Thank you

Guillaume

[Guillaume Fr]

Well, I don't know if I should feel ashamed or dubitative, but, being in a hurry and having a huge amount of work to do at the same time, I included the bunch of packages that was rquested. Among them was Cisco AnyConnect VPN client.

 

Thing is, I noticed some weird warning messages during installation, so I'm not even sure if including it was a mistake from a logical point of view or if the package that was provided itself has a problem.

Will provide info when I get a chance to know more.