Has anyone managed to do a Win7 VHD install where the VHD is located on a USB flash drive? I haven't managed to get the install to complete to the 2nd stage using a flash drive. After servicing the devices, W7 starts with updating settings, but then ends with message: Windows could not update the computer's boot configuration. Installation cannot proceed. Once this happens, rebooting doesn't help because you then get another message after W7 starts that Windows encountered an error... blah blah If the VHD is located on a HDD, the install completes fine. This is a normal BIOS (mbr) install and not uefi. Not sure what boot configuration W7 is talking about since the vhd boots okay from the flash.
Install Win7 on VirtualBox EFI or Legacy Update Ventoy on your USB as well as VHDimg too via Ventoy repo for Win7 Copy & Paste Win7 VHD to your USB Boot Via USB . Done.
Don't use a setup to install, deploy it use winntSetup (GUI) or dism /apply (commandline). or imagex (command line) or gimagex (GUI) then use bcdboot to add the installation to the USB bootoader BTW if you have already the VHD working, just copy it to the USB stick add it to the bootloader using bcdboot and enjoy P.S w7 isn't officially supported on booting from USB (unlike w8 and following releases) you may need to use PWBoot.exe to enable the boot from USB (it can patch either the installation image or an installed system) Also be sure to boot from USB2 until you install the USB3 drivers, then you can boot from USB3 as well
Not using setup and deployed via WinNTSetup with usb3 drivers. As I mentioned in my post, booting the system from USB is not the problem. It's the install process that doesn't complete and I'm trying to understand what the install is checking to make it stop. The only differentiating factor that I can see is that the usb flash is seen as removable media. Once you have an installed system, this doesn't matter anymore .
Almost surely that's the problem, thats why I suggested to use PWboot to fix the deployed system BEFORE the first boot In short use winntsetup to deploy W7 then, with the vhd still mounted, launch pwboot and point it to the deployed image, it's matter of a couple of clicks and few seconds. I still suggest to use an USB2 port (if available) on first boot, given is not said that USB3 drivers will fully work on very first boot even if already integrated by winntsetup, maybe a superfluous precaution, but this way you can exclude any possible USB3 problem from the equation
Once Your Problem got solved pl change the title to solved giving credits to the person who helped you in sorting your query. But ofcourse not me as your question was something different. Thanks & Regards
Ahh, okay. This is the 1st time I've heard about pwboot. Does this change something in the VHD to make the install work? Also, do you have a recommended site to download pwboot? Risk assessment on it doesn't look good. Edit: I found a download on the pwboot thread at reboot.pro
I downloaded it years ago and no it's not malware, but as any tool meant to touch system files may be taken as dangerous by some antimalwares. It fix either the install media or an already installed/deployed system
Patching the Deployed image gets rid of the error message, but only lets you manually install. Running an unattended install with SetupComplete.cmd doesn't get executed or is ignored. So pwboot patches a bit too much for my likes.
Try to patch the install media instead, before depoying it I mean. I'm not expert of setupcomplete.cmd so I can't help here Otherwise you can take a look to reboot.pro forum and patch manually (basically few changes to some inf + few registry changes, but the last time i did that manually was like a dozen of years ago so I cant provide step by step instructions. Another way is to deploy on hdd and once you're satisfied of the result run pwoboot, then move the vhd to the usbstick
Well, I finally fixed this problem (work-around) without futzing around with the system or media. I took the flash and inserted it into a powered 7 port USB3 hub and ran the exact same install there. I wasn't expecting it to work, but it did and the installed finished without error. So the differentiating factor is something else and not removable vs. fixed. I really wish I knew what exactly caused windows to stop during stage 1 of the install . I guess I'll never know.
So I was right, USB3 was the problem, You can't be sure on W7 given each vendor has It's own driver, while W8+ has generic ones In your case likely a small incompatibility between the pendrive and your USB drivers, was fixed by the "man in the middle" USB2 would have worked as well
So what you are saying is that the same usb drivers will handle local USB3 ports and external USB3 ports differently using the same flash? What would be the purpose of that? The hub doesn't have its' own drivers as far as I know and uses those from the system..
Sure. Who knows, maybe just a timing problem that the slight delay introduced by the hub mitigated, hard to say What's sure is that the USB port is talking with a different device class. Purpose ? Surely is not doing that on purpose. Just a bug, or at least an unexpected combination of factors. I'm sure that in Intel/NEC/AMD no one tested that scenario. USB3 drivers on W7 are supposed to be added by the final user to a live working system, not to a bootable image. And final users are supposed to install the current system at the moment of the machine is sold w8/w10/whatever in your case