Windows device drivers that have been imported into the driver catalog can be added to one or more boot images. Only mass storage device drivers and network adapter device drivers should be added to boot images because other types of drivers are not needed and will increase the size of the boot image. You should only add valid device drivers that are intended for use with Windows Vista because the version of Windows PE is Windows Vista-based.
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| Adding device drivers to a boot image can increase the memory requirements of the boot image. Only add device drivers to boot images that are absolutely necessary. If the memory requirements of the boot image exceed the memory of the target computer the deployment will fail. |
It is recommended that you only add network and mass storage device drivers to a boot image so that the size of the boot image does not get too large. However, there may be situations where you want to selectively install additional device drivers to a boot image. The Auto Apply Driver task sequence step will scan for device devices present on the computer and install the compatible device drivers. To address devices like multi-function or child devices that do not have a device driver installed yet it may be necessary to add additional device drivers to the boot image so that these devices can be detected.
Use the following procedure to add Windows device drivers to one or more boot images.
To add Windows device drivers to a boot image
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In the Configuration Manager console, navigate to System Center Configuration Manager / Site Database / Computer Management / Operating System Deployment / Drivers.
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To add a driver to a boot image, select the driver you want to add, right-click the selection, and then click Add or Remove Drivers to Boot Images. Alternatively, you can drag the selected driver to the desired boot image or images under the Boot Images node. You can also add drivers on the Windows PE tab on the Boot Image properties dialog box.
NoteTo add multiple drivers to a boot image, select all the drivers you want to add, right-click the selection of drivers, and then select Add or Remove Drivers to Boot Images from the context menu. -
In the Add or Remove Drivers to Boot Images dialog box, specify which boot image or images to add the specified driver or drivers to in the Add or Remove Drivers to Boot Images dialog box. To select all available boot images, click Select All.
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To update distribution points immediately, select Update distribution points when finished. To update distribution points at a later time, right-click the Distribution Point node under the boot image to be updated, and then click Update Distribution Points. Boot images with the added drivers will not be available to computers until they have been updated on distribution points.
NoteTo view existing drivers already associated with a boot image, right-click the boot image, click Properties, and then click the Windows PE tab.