Piloting in Windows 7

Windows® Internet Explorer® 9 supports these Windows operating systems:

  • Windows 7 x86

  • Windows 7 x64

  • Windows Server® 2008 R2

  • Windows Vista® x86 with Service Pack 2 (SP2) or higher

  • Windows Vista x64 with SP2 or higher

  • Windows Server 2008 x86 with SP2 or higher

  • Windows Server 2008 x64 with SP2 or higher

The following sections describe three methods for installing Internet Explorer 9 on computers that run Windows 7 during a pilot. You can choose to install the web browser manually on each computer, by running the installer, or you can add Internet Explorer 9 as an update to your Windows 7 images. Additionally, because many IT pros use the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) to deploy Windows 7—even in lab environments or during a pilot—this section also describes how to update an MDT deployment share with Internet Explorer 9 .

One prerequisite update is required to run Internet Explorer 9 on Windows 7. When you run the Internet Explorer 9 installer, it automatically downloads and installs this update. When you update a Windows 7 image or add the Internet Explorer 9 update package to an MDT deployment share, you must add the prerequisite update. Table 1 defines this prerequisite update.

Table 1: Prerequisite Updates for Windows 7

Title

Description

Download links

Update for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB2454826)

This update provides new functionality and performance improvement for the graphics platform. This update provides performance improvements when you print from XPS-based applications to GDI-based print drivers. This update resolves some streaming issues that are related to Media Foundation.

Manual upgrade

Installing Internet Explorer 9 is fast. The installation requires fewer decisions and less overall time than does Internet Explorer 8. Also, the Internet Explorer 9 installer automatically downloads and installs the required updates as part of the process, eliminating the need to install prerequisites in advance.

You can install Internet Explorer 9 from the Internet Explorer homepage. Online installation is the simplest choice for end users, but IT pros will want to download the installer and make it available to pilot users. The Internet Explorer 9 offline installer supports numerous command-line options that can also help you to automate installation on computers that are already running Windows 7. Table 2 describes these command-line options. You can download the offline installer from the Internet Explorer homepage.

Table 2: Command-Line Options for Automated Installer

Command-Line options

Description

Help options

/help

Displays command-line help.

Setup modes

/passive

Runs the installer without any input from the user.

/quiet

Runs the installer without any input from the user, and without showing the user interface.

Setup options

/update-no

Installs Internet Explorer 9 without checking for updates.

/no-default

Installs Internet Explorer 9 without making it the default web browser.

/closeprograms

Closes running programs automatically.

/recommendedsettings-no

Turns off the SmartScreen® Filter and Compatibility View features.

Restart options

/norestart

Installs Internet Explorer 9 without restarting the computer.

/forcerestart

Installs Internet Explorer 9 and always restarts after installation.

Miscellaneous options

/log:folder

Creates a log file in the folder that is specified by Folder.

/x:folder

Extracts the contents of the installer in the folder that is specified by folder; used to extract the update package (MSU file) to add to a Windows 7 image or an MDT deployment share.

Internet Explorer 9 migrates Internet Explorer 7 and Internet Explorer 8 settings after upgrading. Settings that Internet Explorer 9 migrates include:

  • User interface layout

  • Home page and groups

  • Add-ons, accelerators, and search providers

  • Favorites, feeds, and history

  • Status and Command bar settings

  • Internet Options

Offline Servicing

You can add the Internet Explorer 9 update package to Windows 7 images by servicing them offline. This approach integrates Internet Explorer 9 into the images so that you can deploy Windows 7 with the Internet Explorer 9 to pilot computers, without any post-deployment installation. This helps standardize desktop configurations and makes them easier to support.

To update a Windows 7 image with Internet Explorer 9, you must first download the update package (MSU file) for each prerequisite that is listed in Table 1, as well the Internet Explorer 9 update package. Download the correct update for the type of Windows 7 image that you are updating (x86 or x64). Table 1 provides links for each prerequisite update package. To get the Internet Explorer 9 update package, run the offline installer with the /x command-line option to extract its contents.

After downloading the prerequisite update packages and extracting the Internet Explorer 9 update package, update the Windows 7 image by using Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM):

  1. Copy the update packages into one folder, such as C:\Updates. This folder should contain only the update packages that Table 1 lists, as well as the Internet Explorer 9 update package. All of these files have the .msu file extension. Do not copy any CAB files that the installer extracted when you ran it with the /x command-line option.

  2. At an elevated command prompt, type the following command to retrieve the name of the image you want to modify:

    Dism /Get-WIMInfo /WimFile:Path\install.wim

    where Path is the path that contains the Windows 7 image. For example:

    Dism /Get-WIMInfo /WimFile:C:\Image\sources\install.wim

  3. Type the following command to mount the Windows 7 image offline:

    Dism /Mount-WIM /WimFile:Path\install.wim /Name:Name /MountDir:Folder

    where Path is the path that contains the Windows 7 image, Name is the name of the image that you identified in the previous step, and Folder is the folder to which you want to mount the image. For example:

    Dism /Mount-WIM /WimFile:C:\Image\sources\install.wim /Name:"Windows 7 ENTERPRISE" /MountDir:C:\Mount

  4. Type the following command to add the updates to the Windows 7 image (see Figure 5):

    Dism /Image:Folder /Add-Package /PackagePath:Updates

    where Folder is the path to which you mounted the Windows 7 image and Updates is the folder that contains the update packages that you created in step 1. For example:

    Dism /Image:C:\Mount /Add-Package /PackagePath:C:\Updates

    Figure 5: Use DISM to service Windows 7 image offline.

  5. Type the following command to commit the changes and unmount the image:

    Dism /Unmount-WIM /MountDir:Folder /Commit

For more detailed information about servicing a Windows 7 image, see Phase 5: Managing and Servicing Your Windows Image in the Windows Automated Installation Kit. For detailed information about DISM command-line options, see Operating System Package Command-Line Options.

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit

If you use MDT to install Windows 7 in a lab environment or to support your Internet Explorer 9 pilot, you can add the prerequisite update packages and the Internet Explorer 9 update package to your deployment share, as shown in Figure 6. During deployment, MDT will automatically add the updates to the image during installation.

Figure 6. Internet Explorer 9 update packages in an MDT deployment share

To add the updates to a deployment share, you must first download the update package (MSU file) for each prerequisite that is listed in Table 1, as well the Internet Explorer 9 update package. Download the correct update for each type of Windows 7 image that the deployment share supports (x86, x64, or both). Table 1 provides links for each prerequisite update package. To get the Internet Explorer 9 update package, run the offline installer with the /x command-line option to extract its contents. To add the update packages to your MDT deployment share:

  1. Copy the update packages to a single folder, such as C:\Updates. This folder should contain only the update packages that Table 1 lists, as well as the Internet Explorer 9 update package. All of these files have the .msu file extension. Do not copy any CAB files that the installer extracted when you ran it with the /x command-line option.

  2. In MDT, right-click Packages, and click Import OS Packages. Packages is under each deployment share in Deployment Shares.

  3. On the Specify Directory page, type the path and file name of the folder that contains the update packages that you created in step 1, or click Browse to locate the folder. Then, click Next.

  4. On the Summary page, click Next to begin importing the update packages.

  5. Click Finish to close the Import Package Wizard.

See Also

Concepts

Group Policy Settings
Internet Explorer 9 - Overview for IT Professionals