Bootable CD Utilities by reanimatolog - F.A.Q. - How do I combine different distributions of Microsoft Windows XP/2000/NT on a Bootable CD?

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F.A.Q. - How do I combine different distributions of Microsoft Windows XP/2000/NT on a Bootable CD?

This is what you need:

\i386 folders from the original Microsoft Windows XP/2000/NT CDs.
Setup files (from each Windows version):
It is possible to get the files from the distribution,
but the easiest way is to copy them from the bootdisks of Microsoft Windows XP/2000/NT (all files of the bootdisks are required setup files).
Attention: Each distribution has it's own set of bootdisks according to the integrated updates, i.e. if your distribution is WinXP SP1 you'll also need the WinXP SP1 bootdisks (not the ones of WinXP).
Where to get the disks:
- Bootdisks for Microsoft Windows XP are available on the Microsoft site
- Bootdisks for Microsoft Windows 2000 can be found on the original Windows 2000 CD-ROM in the subfolder \BOOTDISK
- Bootdisks for Microsoft Windows NT can be created by executing the command \I386\WINNT.EXE /OX from the NT CD-ROM.

Additionally needed setup identificaton files (for each seperate distribution):

Windows version	Necessary files
2003 Enterprise	WIN51 and WIN51IA
2003 Standard	WIN51 and WIN51IS
2003 Web	WIN51 and WIN51IB
XP Home	WIN51 and WIN51IC
XP Professional	WIN51 and WIN51IP
2000 Professional	CDROM_NT.5 and CDROM_IP.5
2000 Server	CDROM_NT.5 and CDROM_IS.5
2000 Advanced Server	CDROM_NT.5 and CDROM_IA.5
2000 Datacenter Server	CDROM_NT.5 and CDROM_ID.5
NT Workstation	CDROM_W.40
NT Server	CDROM_S.40
NT Terminal Server	CDROM_TS.40

If your distribution already contains ServicePacks, or you are using slipstreamed CDs with Service Packs, you'll also need the following setup indentification files (according to the respective ServicePack):

Service Pack	Necessary files
XP Home Service Pack 1	WIN51IC.SP1
XP Professional Service Pack 1	WIN51IP.SP1
2000 Service Pack 1	CDROM_SP.TST
2000 Service Pack 2	CDROMSP2.TST
2000 Service Pack 3	CDROMSP3.TST
2000 Service Pack 4	CDROMSP4.TST

The BootManager Bootable CD Wizard

How to create the CD?
1. Create a folder which will contain all the files for your Bootable CD, e.g.:
  
  C:\MyBootCD
2. In this folder, create subfolders for each distribution (e.g. NT_1, NT_2, NT_3) you plan to integrate, e.g.:
  
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_1
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_2
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_3
  etc.
3. Copy the \i386 folders of your distributions the the corresponding folders created above. Attention: Copy the folders, not only their contents. Your folder on should now look similar to this:
  
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_1\I386
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_2\I386
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_3\I386
  etc.
4. Copy the necessary setup files (see above) to the corresponding folders, i.e. the folders also containing \i386:
  
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_1
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_2
  C:\MyBootCD\NT_3
  etc.
  
  Attention: If you are using WinImage to extract the setup files from disk images, make sure you use the option "Extract with pathname", as there is at least one subfolder on the bootdisks (system32).
5. In the folders NT_?, use a HexEditor (e.g., WinHex) to edit the files SETUPLDR.BIN Replace all occurrences of
  
  'I386' ...
  
  ...with 'NT_1' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_1\SETUPLDR.BIN
  ...with 'NT_2' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_2\SETUPLDR.BIN
  ...with 'NT_3' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_3\SETUPLDR.BIN
  etc.
6. In the folders NT_?, use a text editor (e.g., Windows Notepad) to edit the files TXTSETUP.SIF. Replace:
  
  SetupSourcePath = "\" ...
  
  ...with SetupSourcePath = "\NT_1\" in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_1\TXTSETUP.SIF
  ...with SetupSourcePath = "\NT_2\" in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_2\TXTSETUP.SIF
  ...with SetupSourcePath = "\NT_3\" in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_3\TXTSETUP.SIF
  etc.
  
  Attention: On the WinXP bootdisk, the file TXTSETUP.SIF is packed. You will have to delete TXTSETUP.SI_ (imperial) and copy the TEXTSETUP.SIF from your \i386 folder.
7. In case you have a file BOOTFONT.BIN in the NT_? folders, rename it to FNT.BIN. Use a HexEditor (e.g., WinHex) to edit the files SETUPLDR.BIN. Replace:
  
  'BOOTFONT.BIN' ...
  
  ...with 'NT_1\FNT.BIN' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_1\SETUPLDR.BIN
  ...with 'NT_2\FNT.BIN' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_2\SETUPLDR.BIN
  ...with 'NT_3\FNT.BIN' in the file C:\MyBootCD\NT_3\SETUPLDR.BIN
  etc.
8. Now add the complete set of setup identification files (see above)to C:\MyBootCD and to the corresponding NT_? folders.
  
  Attention: The setup identification files must be in both folders, C:\MyBootCD (which will be root of the bootable CD) and the NT_? folders (set of setup identification files corresponding to the distribution).
9. Unpack the archive Bootable CD Wizard to C:\MyBootCD
10. Edit the file C:\MyBootCD\BootCat.Ini (configuration file of Bootable CD Wizard) and add the locations and descriptions of your distributions:
  
  \NT_1\SETUPLDR.BIN ; Install Microsoft Windows #1
  \NT_2\SETUPLDR.BIN ; Install Microsoft Windows #2
  \NT_3\SETUPLDR.BIN ; Install Microsoft Windows #3
  etc.
11. In your CD writing program, open a new bootable CD project with the following settings:
  Boot image: C:\MyBootCD\bcdwboot.bin
  BootMode: No emulation (without emulation)
  Boot segment (adress): 07c0
  Number of sectors to load: 4
  (detailed howtos: Nero, CDRWin, Easy CD Creator, Instant CD+DVD, WinOnCD, CDImage and mkisofs)
12. Add the contents of C:\MyBootCD\ to the project
13. Add your files
14. Burn the disk.
Directory listing of a CD with BootableCDWizard containing russian versions of Microsoft Windows NT Workstation and Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP1: