Seems similar to Hirens Windows PE boot USB. I stupidly forgot my password the other day and was locked out. Hirens removed password, and I was able to get back in without any loss of data. Created using Rufus and Hirens with options for MBR or GPT. Many other utilities as well as security. Maybe I am missing something, but sysyem restore and unlocking system are main reasons for Windows PE boot disk.
There are way more uses for WinPE/WinRE Win10XPE has an App for resetting, changing passwords or unlocking Windows accounts Spoiler Personally I stopped using System Restore a long time ago because every time I restored my System it just wasn't as stable anymore. So if I decide I want to create a backup of my System a more stable option is an Imaging Software such as Macrium Reflect (which is also included in Win10XPE) Win10XPE has a lot of Apps you can Add/Remove from your WinPE Image Spoiler The beauty of building your own WinPE is you can customize it -- Just install the Apps that you need. Unlike the pre-built WinPEs which you cannot customize On top of the Apps that are included in Win10XPE there is Mega Optional Application Download Spoiler
It's true that with the excellent Win10XPE you can easily do customizations, but with a little effort you can perform modifications on ready made PE's too. It's just a matter of some cmd scripts, registry keys and dependencies injection. That's how the PE builders works anyway (with a graphical user interface). Everyting is done with scripts which extract/inject resources (reg keys/files...) into boot.wim. Spoiler: Offline and Online Methods: OFFLINE Method: - Mount the boot.wim - Load the offline registry hives (if necessary) - Do your modifications by removing/injecting files and registry keys into the mounted boot image - Unmount everything (To stay in the "user friendly" context, GimageX is easy to use.) ONLINE Method: - Boot to your prefered PE - Remove/add/modify what you want. - Apply reg tweaks or remove keys if necessary - Capture to new boot.wim with wimlib, GimageX, or any similar tool you like. This is the easyest method. Customizations are done just like on the live OS. Your modifications needs just to be saved, hence the capture process.
True you can somewhat customize pre-built WinPEs if you're in the know-how -- for more advanced users. Manually mounting a wim, loading registry hives to modify the Registry, Adding-removing Apps not very many can do.
Same here. I used to create Images of my System using Macrium Reflect in the past but presently I don't feel the need I dual boot so as to have a backup OS just in case Also I always have an external harddrive to backup all my data (for privacy too rather than the Cloud) And I prefer to do a clean install too when my OS gets buggy. I can have a clean installed and fully setup OS in less than 30 minutes
Sure! If you provide necessary dependencies, includindg libraries, registry entries, and other requirements, it will work smoothly. Hundreds files should be added to different folders (same files versions preferably for a better subsystem support and avoid potential conflicts), and registry entries should be integrated accordingly. Also, if Visual C++ Runtimes (x64) is installed in your WinPE, (x86) should be added too. For a decent 32 bit subsystem, expect about 40 Mb (compressed) will be added to the boot image. This will vary according to your WinPE capabilities and features. For example: if your WinPE doesn't have network support, it's not necessary to add 32 bit network support files. 40 Mb here is estimated for a given WinPE with multiple features.
I downloaded the package from GitHub, extracted 5 files, including Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.001, Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.002, & Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.003. 7Zip extracted Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.001 but for the other two it throws up this error: Code: Cannot open file 'H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.003' as archive What am I missing?
I tried a fresh download just now. Are you sure you have the three parts (001 002 003) in the same folder? In that case, you should be able to open part one in 7Zip, then just extract the files, 7Zip will recognize the other parts automatically. For Win10XPE, make sure to use supported W10 isos! If things don't work out, you might try one of the other (still supported) PE builders, LiveSystemPro is actually my current favorite...
Thanks for replying. The downloaded zip extracts to: H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.001 H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.002 H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\Win10XPE_2023-08-23.7z.003 H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\README.md H:\Install\Rescue\Win10_PEX\New_version\Win10XPE\Win10XPE - How To Quick Start Guide.pdf I discovered, by accident, that 7Z will extract Win10PEX.exe from 001 with a few files & sub-folders. But attempting to extract 002 & 003 throws up the error I posted above. Well as you can see that wasn't my experience. What baffles me more than not being able to do anything with the 002 & 003 files is that this thread is 5 yrs old and no one has ever mentioned this issue before and there's nothing in the W10_PEX user manual about this.
Just misunderstanding on your part. These aren't three standalone archives, it's just one 7z archive that spans multiple parts. As long as you have all three parts in the same directory and unpack 001 (which includes the magic number and archive header), it will extract 303MB of data from all three parts (they are linked like a chain). Part 002 and part 003 cannot be extracted on their own.
Well, maybe! (here it would be off topic anyway) About builders: Since the "death" of Win10PESE, i was playing with different PE builders, including its excellent sucessor Win10XPE! Quite some time ago, i started to use pure command-line and scripts only, which provides total control over the whole PE creation process. Not so "user-friendly" as stated in the title, but it's accurate and concise as never before! Builders with a gui mentioned in this thread are all relying on the same thing, more or less.
Wouldn't be nice if win10xpe concept could be ported over to work with standard windows 10 and 11 iso's for custom windows creations. A "Windows Builder" fork that combine all the custom iso tools for making windows the way you want it. @SunLion