Autounattend Formatting Disks and Partitions

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HostMalone

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I am making a universal bootable USB for Win11 Pro to use at my company and I am trying to make my .xml automatically delete/wipe all disks and partitions, then just install to the single disk partition. Here is my current disk configuration in my xml, this isn't working currently as it just brings me to the disk partition part of the install. My goal is to be able to boot from the USB and then not have to touch anything else until it asks me to sign in. Any Ideas on how to fix?

So in summary, I want to boot from usb and not have to touch it again until everything is installed and asks me to sign in, this includes deleting any existing partitions on the disk and wipe the disk and then install to a single partition all on its own without me having to do anything. current config is not working and I can't find anything online to help. Thank you!

View attachment 12168
 
You're missing the line for <WillWipeDisk>true</WillWipeDisk>

When using the Configure disk wizard, Disk template automatically wipes the disk. Individual partition requires you to check the Wipe disk box on the first partition you define.

View attachment 12169

Note: Windows requires at a minimum, EFI & MSR partitions for UEFI systems. Recovery partition is optional and can be omitted.

See attached autounattend.xml as an example.
 

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garlin said:
You're missing the line for <WillWipeDisk>true</WillWipeDisk>

When using the Configure disk wizard, Disk template automatically wipes the disk. Individual partition requires you to check the Wipe disk box on the first partition you define.



Note: Windows requires at a minimum, EFI & MSR partitions for UEFI systems. Recovery partition is optional and can be omitted.

See attached autounattend.xml as an example.
Click to expand...
Okay I will try that out just curious when doing it manually I only need one partition to move past this part I just select that partition to do the install. why does it require 2 EFI & MSR when doing it with autounattend?
 
Unless you're creating a dual-boot setup, EFI & MSR partitions are expected for a bootable UEFI drive. Both partitions are hidden from Setup and Disk Management, since they're reserved for system use.

You're in a production environment, it's best to follow the normal Windows disk layout so other drive tools work as expected.

What you don't want to do is have to reinstall PC's again, because of a non-standard setup. (100 + 60) MB lost to EFI & MSR is nothing for a typical company PC's primary drive. If you've managed to avoid using Recovery in your normal routine, then it can be safely omitted. Recovery can be installed later using diskpart to shrink the volume, and running reagentc.
 
I just purchased NTLite for the same purpose - that of installing a basic standard configuration of Windows across dozens of machines with minimal interaction. After that, each machine would then be customized based on the needs of the user.

I also thought that having the drive wiped and formatted automatically would be the way to go, however, after giving it some thought, I decided to make that part a brief manual interaction.

The reason is easy to explain with an example of what could happen. Assume you've set your BIOS to boot from USB first. You install the flash drive and boot to it, thereby installing Windows. Once installed, you go in, add your user(s), install user specific apps and perform other customizations unique to that user. Someone interrupts you and breaks your concentration. You then reboot the PC - forgetting to stop and reset the BIOS and that the USB flash drive was still plugged in - and poof - all that hard secondary work is gone in an instant as the ISO wipes your drive again and starts over.

Things happen, people get interrupted, and I can see half a day's work go right out the window in an instant.

Please let me know if I'm all wet and my fears are unjustified, but I would feel more comfortable making that brief interaction at the beginning of the install to manually delete the partitions and continue on. At least at that point, if it was a mistake, you could abort with no harm done.

Russ
 
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Just remember, you can automate as much (or as little) of the Unattended setup as you like. Some users have unique cases, and following the default Windows model of wiping the disk, and installing to a pre-determined drive number isn't correct for them.

Other users will have complete confidence in their setup, and know exactly how their Windows image will behave, or are installing on a group of identical PC's.

One advantage of not using a disk layout (least for W10 and earlier) is you don't have to be forced into an UEFI vs MBR fight. That option will be yours to choose when paused at the Setup screen.
 
corporate johnnies and pc shops/repairs/resellers would probably want to automate this but for us home user bods manually doing it means you can choose the layout depending on the scenario. for a home user plus type i say manually is safer.
besides, how long does it take to do it manually anyway???
 
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