Choosing Winnt.exe Parameters

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

You can start Setup by using the Winnt.exe command line tool from MS-DOS, Windows for Workgroups, or Windows 3.1. Winnt.exe has the following syntax:

winnt [/s:[sourcepath]] [/t:[tempdrive]] [/u:[answer_file]] [/udf:id [,UDB_file]] [/r:folder] [/rx:folder] [/e:command] [/a]

Use the following parameter descriptions to determine which parameters to use for your unattended installation. For a worksheet to assist you in recording these parameters, see "Unattended Installation Worksheet" (ACIUI_1.doc) on the Windows Server 2003 Deployment Kit companion CD (or see "Unattended Installation Worksheet" on the Web at https://www.microsoft.com/reskit).

/s

Specifies the source location of the Windows operating system files. The location must be a full path of the form drive_letter**:\**path_to_folder or \\server\path_to_shared_folder. The default is the current folder. Use this parameter if you are using a distribution share.

/t

Directs Setup to place temporary files on the specified drive and to install Windows on that drive. If you do not specify a location, Setup attempts to locate a drive for you.

/u

Performs an unattended installation with an answer file. The answer file provides answers to some or all of the prompts that the end user normally responds to during setup. If you use /u, you must also use /s.

/udf

Indicates an identifier (id) that Setup uses to specify how a uniqueness database file (.udf) modifies an answer file (see /u). The .udf file overrides values in the answer file, and the identifier determines which values in the .udf file are used. If no .udf file is specified, Setup prompts the user to insert a disk that contains the .udf file.

/r

Specifies an optional folder to create during setup. For example, you might create a folder named Drivers on the C drive, and then copy device driver files to the folder after the installation completes. The folder remains after Setup finishes.

/rx

Specifies an optional folder to create and to copy the contents of another folder to during setup. The folder is deleted after the Setup program stops running. For example, you might create a folder named Scripts on the C drive, and then copy scripts that you want to run during the installation to that folder. After the installation completes, the scripts and the folder are deleted.

/e

This parameter specifies a command to run after the GUI mode stage of Setup.

/a

This parameter enables accessibility options.

You cannot use Winnt.exe to perform an upgrade. You can perform only clean installations when you use Winnt.exe. In addition, you must use the 8.3 naming convention to name all of the files and folders in your distribution share. To adhere to the 8.3 naming convention, you cannot have more than 8 characters before the decimal point, and you must have a three-character extension after the decimal point. You need to use a $$Rename.txt file to convert 8.3 file names to long file names during setup. For more information about renaming files and folders during setup, see "Designing a Distribution Share" earlier in this chapter.

For more information about Winnt.exe parameters, see "Winnt.exe Command Line Options" in the Microsoft Windows Corporate Deployment Tools User’s Guide (Deploy.chm). Deploy.chm is included in the Deploy.cab file in the Support folder on the Windows Server 2003 operating system CD.