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Live Windows Bootable CDs for Sysadmins

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the Kootwijkerbroek dept.

WhoDaresWins writes "Ever wonder how to make a Knoppix-like live Windows bootable CD (or DVD)? Well its now possible using Bart's Preinstalled Environment (BartPE) bootable live windows CD/DVD. It's basically an expansion of the Microsoft's own Windows PE (Preinstallation Environment) idea which is a minimal Windows (XP/2K3) based bootable live CD with a command prompt and the ability to run some basic Windows GUI. Bart's PE allows anyone to make a bootable CD using their own Windows XP/2K3 media with Bart's PE Builder. What's more many people have contributed quite a few plugins that allow you to use the BartPE discs as quite a nifty system administration tool and with some work an almost usable quick system."

19 of 337 comments (clear)

  1. Why didn't we have this sooner? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Read subject.
    Like, 8 years ago?

    1. Re:Why didn't we have this sooner? by KReilly · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I am not sure I would use this that often. I mean, the great thing about live linux cds is they are packed with utilities that can help with diagnostics. This is just a stripped down version of windows. Can anyone think of alot of uses for this that would beat out knoppix? Cause I can't.

    2. Re:Why didn't we have this sooner? by chengmi · · Score: 4, Insightful

      People tend to go with things that are familiar to them.

      A lot of people are familiar with the Windows GUI, so a Windows live-cd would be popular among this majority of people.

      Personally, I think the live-cd concept is great but impractical. I like the fact that changing an OS is as simple as changing a CD, but the sound of my very loud cd drive spinning all the time is unbearable.

      What really needs to happen is for us to find a way to make an operating system (with a sufficient number of features) fit on a USB drive. Either that or make large USB drives cheaper. =P

    3. Re:Why didn't we have this sooner? by Trejkaz · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You could always use the Captive NTFS driver instead of the one which is risky to use for writing.

      --
      Karma: It's all a bunch of tree-huggin' hippy crap!
    4. Re:Why didn't we have this sooner? by Avihson · · Score: 4, Insightful

      "or else there isn't a licenced copy to put on it."

      So where does the license for the bootable cd come from? Am I going to be busted by the BSA for carrying a rogue copy of windows around and using it on PCs when the original license is running on another?
      In Enterprise size installs this is no problem, but what about the freelance MCSE out there busting his tail working on small/medium lans and stand-alone installs?

      Right now, a friend in that line of work carries copies of all his utilities and worries about uninstalling them after he is done using them. I felt the same way when I used PartitionMagic to configure for dualbooting before I found the latest GParted.

      With a bootable Linux, either Knoppix or ones built on other distributions, there is never a licensing issue. The writing to NTFS is an issue at this moment, but in time that too will be a thing of the past.

  2. Re:Knoppix without the good stuff? by fferreres · · Score: 3, Insightful

    5) It's Windows... is it legal?

    6) It's Windows... does it have a virus that could spread?

    7) It's Windows... so you already have it preinstalled on the network (94% of the times)

    8) It's Windows... does the license allow you to use it on other machines?

    9) It's Windows... can you use share it?

    --
    unfinished: (adj.)
  3. Useful! by johannesg · · Score: 4, Insightful
    With the increasing use of Linux on the desktop, this could be really useful for people who want to double boot into Windows, but do not want the hassle of having to repartition their drives.

    Needless to say, this is good news for Microsoft as it may increase the acceptance of Windows as an alternative to Linux on the desktop ;-)

    1. Re:Useful! by swillden · · Score: 2, Insightful

      With the increasing use of Linux on the desktop, this could be really useful for people who want to double boot into Windows, but do not want the hassle of having to repartition their drives.

      I find it very interesting that this post was marked "Funny", rather than "Insightful". Personally, I'm interested in looking into it for precisely this reason. I would love to be able to configure a bootable CD with the Windows tools I occasionally need and carry it around rather than wasting HDD space on a Windows install.

      One obvious problem, though... there's no way a CD would be big enough. Can this be used to build bootable DVDs?

      --
      Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
  4. hi, this is bill gates by b17bmbr · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "i think if you read the eula, you can use my software on only one comptuer at a time. you can not install it on one computer and boot it into memory on another. i would like to introduce you to our team of lawyers. don't let their horns or fangs fool you. they are really nice. (ha ha ha ha). i might also remind you that there are specific ways in which you may use my software, all of which you agreed before you even opened the CD (thinks to himself: damn, i'm clever). if it isn't specified, and you don't have a license to do this, then you may not."

    and this is another reason i use linux.

    --
    My problem? I was perfectly gruntled, until some numbnuts came by and dissed me.
  5. Re:It's a neat idea, by lvdrproject · · Score: 3, Insightful
    ... Heh. That's a new slant on that subject. Never heard that before. 'One thing Linux is better at than Windows is drivers.'

    News to me indeed. :/

  6. We had this sooner by frovingslosh · · Score: 3, Insightful
    Why didn't we have this sooner?

    First of all, lets understand you're talking about Windows in general and not WinXP eight years ago. Well, the answer is you could. I saw a number of write-ups on how to make a CD that would win Win95 right from the CD. Let me add that, because of the driver issues and such you did have to build it for the system you were configuring for (at least if you wanted to use anything other than the minimal VGA drivers) and you might have to ignore a few error message that it spit out while it booted, but it could be done. You wouldn't be able to make a CD you could carry anywhere, but some people were making CD"s that could boot like Knoppix for a classroom environment (without the obvious "cheat" of just installing from CD to hard drive and then running from hard drive). Finding the information is proving a bit tricky, but I should have it somewhere. When and if I find it, if someone doesn't beat me to it, I'll post what I have or a link to same.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
  7. Re:Cannot be used for general purpose like knoppix by bheer · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Way to go MS - stifle creativity, advancement, technology.

    I'm choosing to reply instead of moderate, because this is a *huge* pet peeve of mine. I've always thought NT-the-kernel was pretty elegant (especially compared to some *cough* Unix clones).

    Actually, the actual Nt_ interfaces *are* documented, but (afaik) incompletely, and without source it's really of very limited utility.

    In their quest for One True API (Win32 and now WinFX) they do seem to have killed off all innovation on top of one of their most technically impressive assets.

    I had hoped the MSDN academic alliance and shared source licensing would encourage some work, but as long as MS adopts a more liberal download-from-website model for source licenses, innovation on top of the NT kernel is likely to remain a pipe-dream. (When the competition (Linux) is available nicely cross-referenced, you'd have to be crazy to fill out the paperwork for an NT source license.)

    --
    Go somewhere random
  8. There's a matter of $$$. by Futurepower(R) · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Not everyone wants to give Winternals $300. Especially since the capability should be supplied with Windows XP, without having to pay more.

    1. Re:There's a matter of $$$. by new500 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Not everyone wants to give Winternals $300. Especially since the capability should be supplied with Windows XP, without having to pay more.

      That may be so, but equally it's interesting that MSFT has not absorbed such fuctionality, and has not killed off the market for what is an excellent 3rd party app with a half assed bundled replacement.

      If you really need ERD, you can feel pretty good about paying them their license dollars (which IIRC are a fair bit more than $300).

      These are non-trivial tools, and payback for a client is awesome, considering the popular culture of Crash > Format > Reinstall that is ingrained in everyone who ever talked to "support" about a crashing Windows system. (My personal advice is usually to get better hardware with better tested drivers, but that's a long term help, not a quick fix)

      Now, if *everyone* who licensed Windows needed the functionality of ERD, this might be different. Embrace, "extend" away . .

      Meanwhile, at a pinch, as just posted on /. there's a workable alternative to toting far lighter wallets. Incidentally the Winternals guys were on the 'phone to me at an unholy hour of the night to help me when I was unfamiliar with their tools. YMMV.

      I only agree with you - partly - in that If I license 2003 Enterprise for all the totemic expense that is, I ought to get something like this. But not for a desktop. Rightly (or even aprocrafully) (sp?) it is better to just make the system more stable overall.

      Just idle randoom thoughts. Usual disclaimers apply.

  9. Re:Knoppix without the good stuff? by boaworm · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Re 1:Who gives a fuck [about openness]

    I could have agreed with you if we were talking different versions of "free" beer/libre. When using a closed product like MS Windows, you dont know from one day to another if the whole licensing process will change, whether they will extend support or just quit an entire product line etc. If they do quit, there is no way you can continue to patch your systems.

    Re 3:drivers come on CDs these days

    The grandparent poster did not say anything about floppys, and I totally agree with him. I have two PC systems, on with an Asus A7V and one with an ABit KT7 mainboard. NEITHER are usable without the latest versions of VIA 4in1-drivers. The built-in drivers that ships with Windows are old and outdated already at the time of shipment.

    I wouldnt score your trolling much higher than grand-parent.

    --
    Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
    Aristotele
  10. Re:Knoppix without the good stuff? by I+confirm+I'm+not+a · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Lessee...

    1. It's Windows. Forget "open".
      Only programmers care about that shit, and at least 99% of computer users are not programmers.
      I've had managers who wouldn't touch closed-source apps because they didn't trust them and/or couldn't extend them. I've had non-developer colleagues who wouldn't touch closed-source apps because they cost money whilst open-source was a free-download away (and "why pay for something you'll only use once?", and "if it's closed source will people develop plug-ins for it?")
    2. It's Windows. Forget "stable".
      Ah, the joys of being able to choose your own hardward. I told my boss I wanted a beowulf-cluster of SPARC-stations. She laughed at me. Seriously, back in the real-world, some of us don't get any choice about the hardware we use. Seriosuly, back in the real-world most of us don't get any choice about the hardware we use. If open-source software can be stable on the same hardware as a closed-source BSOD-generator, which should I choose?
    3. It's Windows. Forget "drivers" without a dozen driver install disks...
      I run XP at home on the GF's laptop. I've got numerous driver install CDs. Strangely, I never received the one magic CD you hint at, the one with all the drivers for the hardware I've not bought yet. OK, XP comes with a lot of generic drivers, but every new piece of hardware I buy comes with a driver CD for Windows. Strangely, Linux typically "just works".
    4. It's Windows. Forget "Source code".
      A. I assume you're joking. Firstly, MS didn't license (eg. with the GPL) their leaked source code, so no one legit will touch it lest they "contaminate" themselves or open themselves up to prosecution. Secondly, it's only a fraction of the complete source.
      B.See statements regarding #1.
    5. It's Windows... most apps won't run without registry editing and all kinds of other crap.
      I've installed very few apps on XP that didn't edit the registry. Sure, I didn't do it by hand - the installer did it, and I pray that the uninstaller will also do it (I live in hope...) Fixinf Registry foul-ups after botched uninstallers run amok terrifies me because like many Windows users I don't feel comfortable editting the Registry. Firing up vim (or Emacs, I suppose... ;) and hacking a config file, however...different story. Easy to backup, easy to restore, easy to understand, etc.

    Yup, a pretty weak troll attempt. Try harder.

    --
    This is where the serious fun begins.
  11. Re:Knoppix without the good stuff? by Schreckgestalt · · Score: 2, Insightful
    3) It's Windows. Forget "drivers" without a dozen driver install disks...

    Think about that for just a moment. If you compare the Knoppix variant that came out when Windows XP came out, were there drivers for todays hardware in it? I guess not. Knoppix is very well maintained version of Linux, where the maintainer takes time to integrate as many drivers as there are.

    If you have the time, you can build your own Windows CD with all of todays drivers already built-in (to do this, search for Sysprep and PNPDriversPath or smth like that) and you won't ever have to insert a disk or download a driver from the net.

    5) It's Windows... most apps won't run without registry editing and all kinds of other crap.

    Huh? What are you talking about? I have set up my new box 2 months ago, and until now, have managed quite well without ever doing any manual registry tweaks. By the way: The only reason I use Windows and not Linux as my primary OS is Cubase SX, which does not run on Linux.

  12. Get a CLUE! It's solutions not technology! by jarich · · Score: 2, Insightful
    You might care about the great religion of open source and free software, but the world does NOT.



    They care if they can edit the word processor docs. They care if they can use their spreadsheets and read their email. They want to browse web. Office secretaries don't want to change the world. They want to get their job done.



    Open Source is a Good Thing but end users care about SOLUTIONS not TECHNOLOGY. Change your tactics.



    Don't tell your friend that this is better cuz it's 'open'. Tell them it's better cuz it's free, it's portable and it's faster on the same hardware.

    --
    Agile Artisans
  13. only a basic GUI? by oglueck · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Well... Knoppix runs a full-blown Linux with a full-blown desktop. Windows just can't compete... *lol*