Use the Apply Operating System task sequence step to install a specified operating system on a target computer. This task sequence action performs a set of steps depending on whether it is using an operating system image or an operating system installation package.

Operating System Image

  1. Deletes all content on the target volume except files under the folder specified by the _SMSTSUserStatePath task sequence variable.

  2. Extracts the contents of the specified .wim file to the specified destination partition.

  3. Prepares the answer file:

    1. Creates a new default Windows Setup answer file (sysprep.inf or unattend.xml) for the operating system that is being applied.

    2. Merges any values from the user-supplied answer file.

  4. Copies Windows boot loaders into the active partition.

  5. Sets up the boot.ini or the Boot Configuration Database (BCD) to reference the newly installed operating system.

Installation Package

  1. Deletes all content on the target volume except files under the folder specified by the _SMSTSUserStatePath task sequence variable.

  2. Prepares the answer file:

    1. Creates a fresh answer file with standard values created by Configuration Manager 2007.

    2. Merges any values from the user-supplied answer file.

Note
Actual installation of Windows is started by the Setup Windows and ConfigMgr task sequence action. After the Apply Operating System task sequence action has run, the OSDTargetSystemDrive task sequence variable is set to the drive letter of the partition containing the operating system files.

The Apply Operating System task sequence step runs only in the Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE) and will not run in a standard operating system. For information about task sequence variables for this task sequence action, see Apply Operating System Task Sequence Action Variables.

This page contains the elements described in the following table.

Name Description

Name

Specifies a short user-defined name that describes the action taken in this step.

Description

Allows you to provide more detailed information about the action taken in this step.

Apply operating system from a captured image

Installs an operating system image that has previously been captured. Click Browse to open the Select a package dialog box, and then select the existing image package you want to install. If multiple images are associated with the specified Image package, use the drop-down list to specify the associated image that will be used for this deployment. You can view basic information about each existing image by clicking on the image.

Apply operating system image from an original installation source

Installs an operating system using an original installation source. Click Browse to open the Select and Operating System Install Package dialog box, and then select the existing operating system installation package you want to use. You can view basic information about each existing image source by clicking on the image source. The associated image source properties are displayed in the results pane at the bottom of the dialog box. If there are multiple editions associated with the specified package, use the drop-down list to specify the associated Edition that should be used.

Use an unattended or sysprep answer file for a custom installation

Use this option to provide a Windows setup answer file (unattend.xml, unattend.txt, or sysprep.inf) depending on the operating system version and installation method. The file you specify can include any of the standard configuration options supported by Windows answer files. For example, you can use it to specify the default Internet Explorer home page. You must specify the package that contains the answer file and the associated path to the file in the package.

Note
The Windows setup answer file that you supply can contain embedded task sequence variables of the form %varname%, where varname is the name of the variable. The %varname% string will be substituted for the actual variable values in the Setup Windows and ConfigMgr task sequence action. Note however, that such embedded task sequence variables cannot be used in numeric-only fields in an unattend.xml answer file.

If you do not supply a Windows setup answer file, this task sequence action will automatically generate an answer file.

Destination

Specifies an existing formatted partition and hard disk, specific logical drive letter, or the name of a task sequence variable that contains the logical drive letter.

  • Next available partition – Use the next sequential partition that has not been previously targeted by an Apply Operating System or Apply Data Image action in this task sequence.

  • Specific disk and partition – Select the Disk number (starting with 0) and the Partition number (starting with 1).

  • Specific logical drive letter – Specify the Drive Letter assigned to the partition by Windows PE. Note that this drive letter can be different from the drive letter that the newly deployed operating system will assign.

  • Logical drive letter stored in a variable – Specify the task sequence variable containing the drive letter assigned to the partition by Windows PE. This variable would typically be set in Advanced section of the Partition Properties dialog box for the Format and Partition Disk task sequence action.

See Also