How to perform an unattended instalation of XP Pro in a Virtual Machine?

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Hi guys. I'm studying for the MCDST using VPC 2007. Here's what has been bugging me. I've created a new virtual machine and installed XP Pro in it. Then I created an answer file and copyed it to a cd with the correspondant batch file and I386 folder created during the process. Now, I want to try to use this CD in another brand new virtual machine with no OS installed. How can I run the CD if there's no OS installed in the virtual machine?

 

I did that and nothing... My physical drive starts running but nothing happens on the VM. It shows the two screens that I have attached to this post (first it shows nº1 and then after a while nº2). I wonder if it's because the cd doesn't have a boot file of some kind. Also when I created the answer file it was supposed to create an UDB file but it didn't. Well at least it's not visible and i've searched for it in i386 folder. Where is it then?

 

Important update to my previous post:

about the UDB file, it is created only when more than one computer name is entered in the answer file. That's not my case at all. I've only entered just one computer name. Sometimes i get lazy or tired and don't read the instructions properly.

Oh well...But I still don't know what's wrong about my main problem...the cd with unattended installation files does not boot. And went to the VM's BIOS and set the cd-rom drive as the main boot device. A previous post said that I should be doing this. But then it was edited, and now is saying that I shoul look in the VM's settings to run it from the cd-rom drive. I can't find any setting in the VM that enables me to do that. I'm confused...

 

You need to tell the vm to use the physical disc. Then the vm bios to boot from the disc.

 

Ok. I told the VM to use the physical cd-rom drive and the main boot device is the cd-rom as it is properly configured in the BIOS. I'm still getting those two screens i've previously posted...There's another thing: when i try to run the cd from the physical cd-rom drive in the VM where I've successfully installed XP Pro and also where I created the answer file i get this error: "D:\ is not accessible. The disk structure is corrupted and accessible"...(check print screen) I forgot to mention that I've burned the CD with unattended instalation files in my host OS (Vista SP1) because I was getting a similar error when I tried to do it in the VM. Am I missing something here?

 

Yes, absolutly.

 

why dont you make an image (iso) of the disc and mount that to your VM?

 

View device manager in the vm and delete the cd/dvd drive, reboot the vm and try again? Windows will reinstall the drivers for the dvd drive, although it doesnt explain the bios not seeing the drive.

 

OK. I'll report back tomorrow, cause i'm too tired and i wanna watch star treck the movie for the first time in 15 years, hehe. Any clues on why i can't access the physical drive in the VM?

 

You can place the answer file on the install cd, cant remember the correct place, but ive done it before, plus programs like nlite use this process.

Is a strange one tbh.

 

Hey guys. I wanna thank you all for being so helpful. I'm still having some problems. You see, I just wanna be able to perform a simple unattended instalation of XP Pro in a VM. And I'm having so much trouble doing it that IT PISSES ME OFF!!! Besides the fact that I can't access my physical cd-rom drive from any VM, now here's what's bugging me: I've managed to create a bootable unattended instalation disc (using ImgBurn) with the answer file that I've created in a VM with xp pro sp3 on it. Now when I try to boot it, it's asking for (what i think it's) a floopy disk of XP Pro SP3 (wich is the OS i've been trying to instal in a VM since yesterday). Check the image attached to this post. Now wasn't this bootable unattended installation disk supposed to be enough to perform the god damn thing? (sorry for the language...this is really annoying me...)

 

I DID IT!!! Looks like I was doing it all wrong. I simply followed these instructions (except that I used ImgBurn instead of Nero):

http://pcsplace.com/windows-xp/how-to-automate-the-installation-of-windows-xp/

Everything went smoothly from then on. Thanks for all your help guys.

 

Glad to hear you cracked it. hands on is always the way to go, nothing ever works first time and finding out why and eventually solving the problems is how you will really learn the stuff.

 

Little question on the side.

Does the XP evaluation cd or evaluation product key work with unattended installs?

ie standard answer and udf files

 

I'm afraid I don't know mate. I've used my old and dusty XP Pro OEM CD...But my guess is it'll work during the evaluation period. You might get better help from someone else here in this forum.

 

Yeah i have done it a few times for network installation, however, i am sure i had trouble ages ago with the evaluation product key, wondered if anyone else had a issue as the ms press book comes with it.

doesn't really matter.. as i'll never actually use one