How much of this can be automated into a custom Win 10 ISO with NTLite? (I am not a programmer)

[grh5t6y]

I wrote a guide to heavily customizing Win 10 LTSC without breaking anything. It's basically a list of stuff to do after installing the OS - installing programs with specific options, then opening settings and changing things. I need to know what parts of this would be possible to automate to see if it's even worth it to buy NT lite and create a custom iso or whatever else. (If some things are not possible to do with NTlite and a custom iso, is there another way to automate it?)

I will be releasing the actual guide after I finish the last two sections: custom iso, windows themes. But here is a list of everything completed in the guide so far that I wish to automate by making a custom Win 10 iso with NTlite:


Run script

Ninite download Latest Versions (Chrome, FF. Malwarebytes, Open Office, Notepad++, VLC, K-lite Codecs, 7zip, Terracopy)

Install older version of Clover from disk

Pause Windows Defender

virus and threat protection > manage settings >

-turn off tamper protection to OFF

-real time protection to OFF

-cloud derived protection to OFF

-auto sample submission to OFF

Open the group policy editor

enable "Turn off Microsoft Defender Antivirus"

disable “Allow antimalware service to remain running always”

restart the PC

Create a restore point

Move Shutup 10 exe to program files/no install directory

Run Shutup 10 exe

Import Shutup 10 settings file

Destroy Windows Spying

Run Destroy Windows Spying exe from disk

-close the update error popup

-Go to the settings tab and check the boxes to apply settings

-Go back to the main tab and click "Destroy Win 10 Spying"

-restart the PC

Windows Privacy Dashboard

Run Windows Privacy Dashboard exe from disk

-go to privacy tab

-expand subsections

-turn off each of the options that need it

-go to blocker tab

-click things

Mod the Host File
Add a list of entries to the host file by copy/paste or whatever

Disable Edge

Open Edge > click the "..." in the upper-right corner > settings > System and Performance

Turn off Startup Boost

Turn off Continue running background extensions and apps when Edge is closed

WinAero

Install WinAero Tweaker from disk

Run WinAero Tweaker

Import Tweaks from file

StartisBack

Install StartisBack from disk

Run StartisBack

Move between tabs

Check all the correct boxes

Windows Updates Minitool

Move Windows Update Minitool exe to program files/no install directory

Run Windows Update Minitool

choose Windows Update from the drop list

click the refresh icon

click install

Prepare to remove account pic from logon screen

Rename some png files in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures

Move png files to C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures

Open the group policy editor

disable "Apply Account Picture to All Users"

close group policy editor

Startup Opitimizations

Open Taskmanager > Startup tab >

-disable everything except Windows Security Notification Icon

Run Msconfig > Hit ENTER > click Services tab > click the top of the Service column to order items alphabetically >

-uncheck all the necessary boxes to disable stuff

click Apply

restart the PC

Prepare Autoruns

Move autoruns folder to program files/no install directory

(I won't try to automate anything within autoruns since it could screw stuff up)

Install DDU from disk

Install NVCleanInstaller from disk

Run NVCleanInstaller

click next

click next

select all the correct things

Click Next

Click Install

The Nvidia installer should pop-up

Agree and Continue

Custom (Advanced)

click next

click next

wait until it finishes

restart the PC

Personalization settings changes

Go to settings > personalization

Click Background tab

Set Background drop menu to slideshow

click browse

click pictues/background folder

click choose folder

click Colors tab

click "choose color" drop menu > click dark

uncheck "automatically pick an accent color from background"

Lockscreen tab

Choose the lockscreen image

click Start tab

click each of the following:

-OFF - Show more tiles OFF

-OFF - Use Start full screen OFF

-ON - Show recently opened items on jumplists in start menu and taskbar

-OFF - Show account related notifications

click taskbar tab

click each of the following:

-ON - Lock the taskbar

-ON OR OFF - Use small taskbar buttons

-ON - Use peek to preview the desktop when you move mouse to bottom right corner of taskbar

-OFF - Show badges on taskbar icons

-click Combine taskbar buttons drop menu > click "Always, hide labels"

-click Select which icons appear on taskbar, turn on the following: network, volume, windows update tasks

-click back arrow

-click Turn System Icons On or Off, then turn on the following: clock, action center

click to close the settings window

Power Settings

Go to Control Panel > System & Security > Power Options

click to select balanced

click Change plan settings

click Turn off the display drop menu, select never

click Put the computer to sleep drop menu, select never

click Change advanced power settings

Performance Settings

Hit Win key > type "performance" > wait for search results will appear > click "adjust the appearance and performance of windows"

(I tried to make a shortcut for this to see the path, but it's some shell address, not sure how I could automate going there.)

Uncheck all the "animate" and "fade" options

Uncheck "slide open combo boxes"

Uncheck show shadows on mouse cursor

Click Apply and close the window

Thank you for reading!

 

[garlin]

Short answer: NTLite can automate Post-Setup tasks by running different commands, scripts and app installers.

Anything that has an unattended mode can be run from Post-Setup (Before logon), and tools that require user input can run from Post-Setup (After logon).

- Fight Club rules: We never discuss KMS scripts or activation methods in NTLite forum. Keep it clean.
- Ninite doesn't allow you to automate installs, unless you're using the paid version. Consider Chocolatey or winget for bulk installs.
- Clover (file browser) has never had a silent install feature.

For the other customizations, some can be configured from NTLite's Settings. Others can automated by finding the proper reg key settings and integrating a reg file (or a set of them) into NTLite. The various reg keys for many settings are readily found using an online search.

Some of the other tasks have been probably already been scripted by someone else. It's a matter of digging them up.

Before you begin, I suggest browsing some of Hellbovine's guides for some background.

Guides

Various user-initiated topics around a specific NTLite preset or a feature

www.ntlite.com

 

[francis11]

If having a working GPO on current install - just copy it to the same folder in the mounted NTL image preparing.
W8 goes to 10, 10 to 11 with minor diffs and all the MS security to Defender.
Hidden folder: C:\Windows\System32\GroupPolicy\

 

[PhsMu]

I don't know how to do all that, but what I know, I'll share:

Move Shutup 10 exe to program files/no install directory

Run Shutup 10 exe

Import Shutup 10 settings file

Take a Test machine and run OOSU10.exe, tweak it as you like it and save a profile.
Add OOSU10.exe and its saved profile to a folder in the $OEM$ Folders, example: ISOPATH\sources\$OEM$\$1\Setup\Privacy\

%SYSTEMDRIVE%\Setup\Privacy\OOSU10.exe "%SYSTEMDRIVE%\Setup\Privacy\Profile.cfg" /quiet

and that is done.

Windows Privacy Dashboard

Run Windows Privacy Dashboard exe from disk

-go to privacy tab

-expand subsections

-turn off each of the options that need it

-go to blocker tab

-click things

Again, in a test machine, run WDP.exe -SaveState, tweak it as you like, save the batch file.
Add WDP.exe and its saved profile to a folder in the $OEM$ Folders, example: ISOPATH\sources\$OEM$\$1\Setup\Privacy\
copy the contents of the batch file to the SetupComplete or whatever batch file you run to automate everything. Its going to be one huge line of code such as:

%SYSTEMDRIVE%\Setup\Privacy\WPD.exe -close -defender "off" -wfp "on" -privacy " CEIPEnable  DisableCustomerImprovementProgram  CEIP  AllowCortana  AllowSearchToUseLocation  WindowsErrorReporting  DisableUAR  DisableInventory  AllowTelemetry  RestrictImplicitCollection  AllowInputPersonalization  AllowLinguisticDataCollection  ScenarioExecutionEnabled  DisableQueryRemoteServer  AdvertisingInfo  DisableContentFileUpdates  DisableWindowsConsumerFeatures  SqmTasks  PublishUserActivities  UploadUserActivities  EnableActivityFeed  AllowClipboardHistory  AllowCrossDeviceClipboard  AllowDeviceNameInTelemetry  DisableSettingSync  DisableFileSyncNGSC  DisableAntiSpyware  EnableSmartScreen  LetAppsAccessAccountInfo  LetAppsAccessCalendar  LetAppsAccessCallHistory  LetAppsAccessContacts  LetAppsAccessEmail  LetAppsAccessGazeInput  LetAppsAccessLocation  LetAppsAccessMessaging  LetAppsAccessNotifications  LetAppsAccessPhone  LetAppsAccessRadios  LetAppsAccessTasks  LetAppsAccessTrustedDevices  LetAppsGetDiagnosticInfo  LetAppsRunInBackground  LetAppsActivateWithVoice  LetAppsActivateWithVoiceAboveLock  LetAppsAccessBackgroundSpatialPerception  CDPUserSvc  ShowSyncProviderNotifications  TailoredExperiencesWithDiagnosticDataEnabled  StartTrackProgs  HttpAcceptLanguageOptOut  WUGP  wuauserv  UsoSvc  bTelemetry bExtra bUpdate" -revert " LetAppsAccessCamera  LetAppsAccessMicrophone  LetAppsAccessMotion  LetAppsSyncWithDevices  WpnUserService "

as an added note I've got best results running WPD BEFORE OOSU10, as OOSU10 handles 'this was already done' errors more gracefully. I also Add Sordum's Windows Update Blocker (WUB) after both, so WPD >> OOSU10 >> WUB

Add a list of entries to the host file by copy/paste or whatever

@Echo "Whatever" > TxtFile.txt usually outputs that text to a file. If you want to add a LOT of entries, you're better off copying and replacing the original file.

Prepare Autoruns

Move autoruns folder to program files/no install directory

I'm unsure if you mean running an app at startup or if there's an app called autoruns, but in case its the former:

Reg.exe add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce" /v "DeleteSetupFolder" /t REG_SZ /d "cmd /c \"RD /S /Q %SYSTEMDRIVE%\Setup"" /f

deletes my 'C:\setup' folder after a restart. you can run anything with RunOnce entries, but if you need to do so in a specific order, its better to run a batch file and call stuff from within, as I never figured out how RunOnce entries are ordered (it seems random to me)

Install NVCleanInstaller from disk

Run NVCleanInstaller

click next

click next

select all the correct things

Click Next

Click Install

The Nvidia installer should pop-up

Agree and Continue

Custom (Advanced)

click next

click next

wait until it finishes

its probably better to use NVSlimmer and make a slim NVidia driver, and then apply the NVCleanstall registry tweaks separately. NVSlimmed drivers can be installed silently with:

%SYSTEMDRIVE%\Setup\Geforce\Setup.exe /clean /noreboot /passive /noeula /nofinish

where %Systemdrive% is wherever your Windows Folder is located.

Personalization settings changes

Go to settings > personalization

Click Background tab

Set Background drop menu to slideshow

click browse

click pictues/background folder

click choose folder

click Colors tab

click "choose color" drop menu > click dark

uncheck "automatically pick an accent color from background"

NTLite already lets you pick a color, its on the bottom part of the Tweaks tab if memory serves.

putting any pic named 'img0' under the '\Sources\$OEM$\$$\Web\Wallpaper\Windows\' path will have replace the default wallpaper if that helps. Trying to assign a wallpaper through a .reg file seems to lock it and disallow the user to change it.

-ON OR OFF - Use small taskbar buttons

-ON - Use peek to preview the desktop when you move mouse to bottom right corner of taskbar

-OFF - Show badges on taskbar icons

-click Combine taskbar buttons drop menu > click "Always, hide labels"

these are also under "tweaks" in NTLite

Power Settings

Go to Control Panel > System & Security > Power Options

click to select balanced

click Change plan settings

click Turn off the display drop menu, select never

click Put the computer to sleep drop menu, select never

click Change advanced power settings

Performance Settings

oh boy, you did just not... OK, powerconfig is a deep, deep rabbit hole thanks to M$ wanting to make it as unreadable to normal users as possible. I'll give you my annotated batch, there should be enough instructions there to make the modifications to fit your needs, but there is a 20 000 character limitation for messages in this forum, so file is attached.


as for Winaero Tweaker, I remember being able to automate some, but not all of its functions using PrIMo - Program Installation Monitor, by making registry snapshots and comparing them to see what changed with each and every tweak, but honestly, that is not that time consuming I feel the need to automate these days, as I tend to only reinstall the PC every 3 months or so. Another Option is AutoIt, it is DESIGNED to automate the clicks of a mouse and the like, so you could theoretically write a scripts to configure a program if you need, its just very, very painful as a proccess, I remember losing an entire afternoon to automate the 'Next > Next > Next > Install > Done' sequence of Autodesk Sketchbook, before I found I could unzip and install two .msi files in sequence and have the same effect.