05-18-2024, 07:51 AM
Additional utilities are not inside the .wim file that is loaded as the WinPE OS.
Instead, after WinPE boots, the ISO file is mounted as drive Y: virtual DVD and the utilities in drive Y: are then added into the Start Menu, etc. by HBCD startup scripts.
Obviously, when using PXE, the ISO file is not accessible on any local storage and so these additional programs cannot be loaded because the ISO cannot be mounted as a drive.
Many WinPE ISOs use this approach because a WinPE OS is in RAM and if all applications and utilities were inside the wim file it would mean a very large WIM file would need to be loaded into RAM (slow and the RAM would need to be 8GB).
So, this issue is expected when using PXE.
Instead, after WinPE boots, the ISO file is mounted as drive Y: virtual DVD and the utilities in drive Y: are then added into the Start Menu, etc. by HBCD startup scripts.
Obviously, when using PXE, the ISO file is not accessible on any local storage and so these additional programs cannot be loaded because the ISO cannot be mounted as a drive.
Many WinPE ISOs use this approach because a WinPE OS is in RAM and if all applications and utilities were inside the wim file it would mean a very large WIM file would need to be loaded into RAM (slow and the RAM would need to be 8GB).
So, this issue is expected when using PXE.