Windows Preinstallation Environment (also known as Windows PE and WinPE) is a lightweight version of Windows
used for the deployment of PCs, workstations, and servers, or troubleshooting an operating system while it is offline. It is intended to replace MS-DOS boot disks and can be booted via USB flash drive, PXE, iPXE,[1] CD-ROM, or hard disk. Traditionally used by large corporations and OEMs (to preinstall Windows client operating systems on PCs during manufacturing), it is now widely available free of charge via the Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK).
So I sat out to build a Windows 7 boot disk that would make things better and hopefully load quick and have drives that we need for newer hardware. Also you will need different version based on the source disk that you are using. 2 comments to Build a Window 7 PE Boot disk with WinBuilder. July 2nd, 2012 at 07:58.
Contents
WinPE was originally intended to be used only as a pre-installation
platform for deploying Microsoft Windows operating systems, specifically to replace DOS in this respect. WinPE has the following uses:
Deployment of workstations and servers in large corporations as well as pre-installation by system builders of workstations and servers to be sold to end users.Recovery platform to run 32-bit or 64-bit recovery tools such as Winternals ERD Commander or the Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE).Platform for running third-party 32-bit or 64-bit disk cloning utilities. The package can be used for developer testing or as a recovery CD/DVD for system administrators. Many customized WinPE boot CDs packaged with third-party applications for different uses are now available from volunteers via the Internet.
The package can also be used as the base of a forensics investigation to either capture a disk image or run analysis tools without mounting any available disks and thus changing state.[2]
Version 2.0 introduced a number of improvements[3] and extended the availability of WinPE to all customers, not just corporate enterprise customers by downloading and installing Microsoft's Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK).
It was originally designed and built by a small team of engineers in Microsoft's Windows Deployment team, including Vijay Jayaseelan, Ryan Burkhardt, and Richard Bond.[4]
| Original author(s) | Nuno Brito |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Peter Schlang, Robert Kochem |
| Initial release | 2005[1] |
| Stable release | 082 / August 14, 2011[2] |
| Written in | Borland Delphi v7 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows ReactOS |
| Platform | IA-32 |
| Size | 928 KB |
| Type | Live CD |
| License | Freeware |
| Website | winbuilder.net |
WinBuilder is a free application designed to build and customize boot disks (Live CDs) based on Microsoft Windows (WinPE).
Scripts are the building blocks of Live CD compiled with Winbuilder, and are used to build the core components of the Live CD for adding applications, and for configuration of a specific project. Scripts consist of a human-readable text file with the .script extension, and can contain Winbuilder scripting commands, the scripts graphical user interface, and sometimes encoded applications to be extracted when needed.
A Project is a collection of Winbuilder scripts maintained for building a complete Live CD. Each project contains multiple scripts, each responsible for adding features or applications to the build.
Users may build their own projects from scratch or use one of many projects actively developed by the boot-land community. Projects can be downloaded directly using Winbuilder's built-in download manager and used as-is or further customized to meet the individual's needs.

All of these projects are developed and distributed freely and aim to provide an alternative to other popular Live CD distributions based on Linux such as Knoppix, Slax, Damn Small Linux, which are known for their use in rescue or administrative actions on PCs.
Use of the software to build various customized boot disks has been covered in articles from PC Quest,[3]PC-Welt[4] (the German edition of PC World, which also offers some customized scripts for building disk images including additional utilities, branded as pcwVistaPE[5] and pcwWin7PE[6]), the Russian edition of CHIP,[7] and by TeraByte Unlimited.[8]
CNET editor's review found that 'WinBuilder is one of the most easy-to-use boot disk creation tools in the genre,' and praised it for its 'novice-friendly interface', but at the same time warned that the 'program expects experienced users. For the most part, boot disk applications are for experts only.' The built-in Download Center was remarked because it 'simplifies procuring the boot disk applications.' Other features praised were 'its small size, fair memory overhead, simple instructions, and robust application installation wizards.'[9]
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