Win10XPE - How To Quick Start Guide

Download the XPE Project File and extract the file...

Copy Win10XPE folder to your Data Drive. (I prefer to use my D drive rather then my C Drive as to keep away from OS..
If using Windows 10 as your Host OS - you will need to allow a Windows Defender "Exception" for the Win10XPE folder ( I would suggest the same exception for any A/V software) in order to allow the program exe's to run without being blocked....

Then Mount Your Official Release Windows 10 Setup Media ISO (it is suggested that you copy the contents of the setup media to a folder on your Data Drive and select it as the source) but it is not required..
Note: We do not add support for MS Preview Releases - all projects use Official MS Release Media

When you run the Win10XPE.exe the builder will open (Note: A link to Official Media Download is present on interface)


Hit the gray box and point to the folder location or drive letter of the Setup Media..


After it finds the media that main screen will change now listing the Wim Info


You can use the scroll box to select "Pro" or make any other selection..
Then Hit the Big Blue Play Button....


Sit back, watch and relax as the program runs...
It will download several programs and features (Please allow it to do so) these downloads are designed as First Run only.
XPE will open command prompt to extract files, download and run program commands (Please allow it to do so)

After The Builder Finishes you will get an OK message..
Browse to the folder location of Win10XPE and you will find your Custom ISO...


Now that you have created your FIRST custom PE with the default selections..
You can change those selections by checking or unchecking program checkboxes in the left pane..
if you click the program name in the left pane - the program interface will display in the right pane.
Each program interface has the ability to select shortcuts and may have other options you can choose from...

Suggested Build Core Default Options

You Can Select From Additional Features and Options

 
Note: Some Programs May Require Net Framework (Microsoft .Net) or Additional Networking Files (Network Additions)
Note: Custom jpg Wallpaper Must Be Renamed To > Img0.jpg
Note: Custom mp3 Startup Sound Must be Renamed to > Startup.mp3

Additional Options Interface
Note: Leave "Build Type" Alone
Select Your Options and Return To Main Interface



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Add Custom Drivers

Here is the thing about adding custom "Drivers"
If you can run through windows 10 setup without it asking you for driver files - then most likely you will not need to add them to your XPE...
Some Drivers may require a reboot, it is not possible to install those drivers after PE is loaded, so they must be integrated in your XPE build..
I would suggest Booting XPE to test first, before you commit additional drivers...

But Basically You are going to be Exporting those Driver(s) from your Host PC with DISM


You will then Copy the Driver Folders into the Driver Integration Folder in XPE
Another Hint To Additional Drivers - Copy Your Macrium Reflect "Drivers" Folder.


Be sure to check the "Integrate Custom Drivers" Checkbox
The Drivers are sorted by Arch - and Each Driver Folder is Recursed

Note: You Only Need To Load Required/Special Drivers That Are Not Included In WinPE

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Additional Folders

There is a "Custom Folder" So You Can Include Additional Program Files (For Portable Programs or Custom Files/Folders)
To Process Custom Folder - Check The "Add Your Custom Folder" Checkbox



There Is An "ISO Root Folder" where you can place additional files on the root of drive
These are files that will be Accessible Without Booting into WinPE
To Process The Root Folder - Check The "Include Files In ISO Root" Checkbox

Add Host Boot Menu Option

I will provide a little hint for you so you can Boot directly from the Win10XPE folder...
Thus no need to keep burning/coping ISO files to USB..



Hit the "Create Batch File" button - that will create a batch file to add the Boot Menu option for XPE to boot from the Win10XPE directory

Note: If your selected build is to USB the Y drive is not created (As Y Drive is the Root of the drive)
Selecting the "Run All Programs From Ram" option will work no problem..

To Remove The Host Boot Menu Entry

Open Command Prompt (Admin) or Use "Run" box

Type> msconfig

Select the "Boot" Tab and remove the "XPE Recovery" Option

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Run All Programs From Ram ??

In the "Above Post" screenshots you will see a "Run all programs from ram" checkbox (Just below the HostOS boxes) ...
Selecting it will override the use of the Scrollbox on every program interface - by placing all the programs into Ram..

Leaving the "Run all programs from ram" checkbox - unchecked on Build Core Plugin
Will allow you to select the programs target location via the program interface.. USB or RAM



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Add Additional Plugins or Make Edits To Current Build

There are times when you may want to Add Additional Plugins or Make Edits To Your Current Build
This can be done without the Need To Process the Complete Build Again.
Select The Plugin You Want to Add and Then Hit The Little Green Play Button on Plugin Interface



After The Additional Plugin(s) are Added To The Build
Select The "Create ISO" Plugin from the Left Pane.
On the Interface Hit The "Create Boot.wim and ISO" Button




 

Build Log - Error Messages - Build Stops Abruptly - Programs Not Found In ISO

Sometimes Things Go Wrong and Error Messages Appear - Sometimes Things Go Wrong And No Message Appears..
Instead Of Jumping To Make A Complaint Post In This Forum -  Use The "LOG" Tab and Investigate The Cause First...

The Build Log is My Best Friend When Creating and Testing Plugins..
Select The "Log" Tab after the Plugin Is Processed - Look For Yellow (Warnings) or Red (Errors) Icons In Pane

Everything Looks Good Here:


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Everything Not So Good Here - I See a Yellow Warning Message - Red would be an Error Message


You Can Hover Your Mouse Over The Message to Read it

Ok, Now that you know something went wrong - Single Click The Message To Locate It In The Log
Scroll a little past the Message and You Will See The "Script" That Was Processed...
Now, You Have a General Idea of where To Start Looking and You May Be Able To Fix It...

IF
After All Else Fails and You Just Can't Not Figure Out The Cause
Post a Report with the Error Message and The Plugin That Caused it

Note: You Can Double-Click The Message To Copy It to Clipboard

(Include in your report post)
 
The Project Name - (XPE)
Your Source Arch - (x86 or x64)
The Build Selection - (USB or Ram)
The Source OS - (Win10-1803)

You can also save the complete build log - By Hitting The "Save As Log.Html" Button
Then Compress (7z or Zip) and Attach That log File To the Bottom of Your Report Post

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Program Error Message(s) In WinPE

We Create and Test Plugins With Limited Resources and Do Our Best To Prevent Them..
With That Said, Not Every PC Is The Same and Program Error Messages Do Happen...

Take a Screenshot of The Error Message and Attach it to the Bottom of your report post..

 Reserved - Just In Case I Forget Something 

Update Existing Plugins

Let's take for example the ShowkeyPlus Plugin
We are going to use the "Edit" Button and the "Source" tab and look for the File Container Script


The Plugin Uses a File Container (Most Plugins Do)
Also notice (above highlight) that the > SetupFile=ShowKeyPlus.7z


The File Container is Always Hidden From Builder - So We Must First Unhide It..
Browse to the "\Win10XPE\Projects\MyPlugins\Apps\Security"
Notice that the "Apps" Folder Follows The Left Pane Structure in Builder


Double-Click The ShowKeyPlus File Container Script and Open with Notepad
To UNHIDE The Container File Plugin Edit in Notepad > Level=0 to Level=5 - Save and Exit
To HIDE The Container File Plugin Edit in Notepad > Level=5 to Level=0 - Save and Exit


Go Back Into Builder and Hit "Refresh" Button


Extract Attachment from Plugin

The Container File Is Now Visible
Select "Edit" Button and Select "Attachments" Tab


Right Click The Setup File and Extract To Desktop


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Update/Replace The Program Files Inside the 7z Setup File on your Desktop

You usually only need to update the existing files - because we usually do not include unneeded files

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Encode Attachment To Plugin

Select the Add.. Button
As seen above in the Upper left Corner of Attachment Interface
A "File Encoder" Dialog Box will Open


Select the Add.. Button and Point to the Updated 7z Setup File on your Desktop


Notice that the Setup File .7z is shown in the left pane and Then Click "Start" Button


Exit The Attachment Interface By Clicking The Red X in the Upper Right Corner


You Have Just > Extracted, Updated and Encoded A File...

Create Portable App Packed Plugins

For this Example > Download The Portable Version Of CCleaner-Defraggler

Go Into Your Download Folder - Extract The Defraggler.zip File


Open The Extracted Folder and View The Contents


Ok, What We Have Is A Portable Program with Both x86 and X64 Files (Some Websites Have Separate Downloads For x86 and x64 Programs)
For The Sake Of Argument - We Will Create Two Separate Compressed "Setup Files" One For x86 Program Files
Select The x86 Program Files, Compress With 7zip and Rename The New Compressed 7z File To > Defraggler.7z




Select The x64 Program Files, Compress and Rename Compressed File to > Defraggler64.7z


Open Win10XPE - Expand Utilities - Select XPE Packed Plugin Creator


Hit The "Folder" Icon For 32Bit and Point To The Defraggler.7z File You Just Created


Do The Same Thing For The 64Bit Defraggler64.7z File You Just Created
Type In the Program.exe - In This Case It Is > Defraggler.exe
Type In The Author Name (Usually Your ScreenName)
Hit The "Create New XPE Plugin" Button


You Will Find Your New Plugin For Personal Testing In Left Pane App/XPE Plugin Creator

Hit The "Launch" Button To Open The Program Folder and Test The Program.exe


I Purposely Left Something Very Simple Out....
It Is Your Homework To Figure Out What...
As It Has Already Been Covered In This Quick Start How-To Guide

Add Registry Setting

Option 1) The Easiest Way To Add Registry Settings Is To Cheat

Read other plugins by using the Edit button and Selecting the Source tab....


If you see the registry line(s) you are looking for - Copy them into your Plugin...


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This is where this Game gets Very Tricky and Requires Experience...
And it will require you to do a lot of Testing with your Plugin Settings
On the Plus Side > it is PE and written to rewritable media
If you screw up - Erase, Rebuild and Test Again

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Option 2) Export The Registry Settings

You Can Export the Registry Settings from your Host Registry or PE Registry using RegEdit


Select Create ISO Plugin and on Interface Hit the "Reg Convert PE" Button


Click Folder Icon and Point to the Exported Registry File - ie Test.reg



Select "Gooo Reg File" Button


Click Save and Close the Dialog Box...



The Script File Created is the code for adding the registry setting you exported and are going to use in your Plugin
You will not use that Script File [process] but the code for the settings will be copied under [Add-Registry] in your plugin.....

Be Very CAREFULL and Read the Settings as they are exported from a different Host and many use different Folder locations
YOU will need to change this information and you may not need to add all the registry settings....

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Option 3) Capture The Registry Settings Before and After The Programs Installation Process

Launch or Execute The RegShot2 Program


Hit The "1st Shot" Button and Select "Whole Registry"

Note: I Changed The Default "Folder For Store Report" To > %UserProfile%\Desktop\RegShot

Run the Installer File That You Want To Capture The Registry Changes For

Then Take "2nd Shot - Whole Registry"
The > Report.*.RedoReg.txt < File Contains The Registry Changes Created By The Installer
Save That Text File and Use "Reg Convert PE" Same As Above - But Point To This Txt File

Find Missing or Required Files

I'm no expert, but a post by ChrisR with the tip to sort on CreateFile allowed success on the few that I tried it on.
Here is my process, I hope this helps and others pitch in with more experience than what I have.

-Start Process Monitor (Procmon.exe) then Start The Program.
-Find the Program.exe in the Process Name Column, Right-Click and choose Include "Program.exe".
-Find the word SUCCESS in the Result Column, Right-Click and choose Exclude "SUCCESS".
-Find the word CreateFile in the Operation Column, Right-Click and choose  Include "CreateFile".

You should see the Required or Missing Files listed with "NAME NOT FOUND" and see the Path The Program Searched for them.

Properly Test Your New Plugin
Deselect all other APPs (uncheck Apps Folder)
Deselect all MS Features from Build Core
Select Just your New Plugin
Select Build Core Plugin
Select Create ISO Plugin
Process The New Build
Test Boot Into XPE WinPE

Test if Program Launches and Runs Without Error
Does it have all required files to run without support from other plugins
Does it open the correct file type for the program
Does it scan properly or create required file
Select the "About" - Usually to test Registry Settings
Etc...

Note: Some Non-Portable Programs' Require MS Files, Need a few Registry Entries and Require Driver Files Copied into System32

Test Your Plugin Using Both x86 and x64 Builds



When You Are Satisfied With Your New Plugin - Please Share It For Other Members To Test

All This Takes A lot Of Time, Testing and Learning To Get Things Right..
That Is What Makes This A Hobby For Us...
And A Great Self Taught Experience That Will Last A Lifetime...

From Me and All The Other Members Here At TheOven
Enjoy!!

hi    how do I change the wallpaper?

You Must ReName Your Wallpaper to img0.jpg

thanks   

regarding setting up Win10XPE James says "Then Mount Your Official Release Windows 10 Setup Media ISO." Are we referring to "Win10_1803_English_x64.iso" or an Original install disk"? That would be helpful for me to understand.

Win10_1803_English_x64.iso or any other official ISO

Official Win10_1809Oct_English_x64.iso

Yet it errors out with "This build is prepared for Windows 10 Build 16299 and maybe following. Download and chose a suitable windows 10 source"

Can you look at what you have in \Temp\WimInfo.ini
BUILD key for the selected image should be 17763 (> 16299)

Code: [Select]

[6]
ARCH=9
BUILD=17763
...
EDITIONID=Professional
...
VERSION=10.0.17763.107

Get your source from here and try again: https://tb.rg-adguard.net/public.php

Win10_1809Oct_English_x64.iso is not a known official ISO name

......

Hi,

Is there a way to add windows sounds automatically? Specifically hardware insert and remove?

On Build Core > Enable "Audio" & "System Sound Events"