Capture Windows Image using Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT)

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Windows image capture task primarily used in the scenarios of deploying operating systems to multiple computers on a network. This requires preparing a reference Windows computer, installing apps, customizing settings and the user environment.

Overview of Windows Image Capture with MDT

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) can be used to capture an installed Windows image from a reference computer into a WIM file. Then you can deploy such a master (golden) Windows image to other computers over network using any deployment tool such as WDS, MDT, SCCM, etc. This guide explains how to prepare and capture a Windows 11 reference image using MDT.

Preparing a Windows Reference Computer

The first step is to prepare a typical Windows computer with all the settings you need (install the operating system security updates, drivers, apps, copy configuration files and configure a user environment). In the next steps we will capture this reference computer image with all apps and settings using MDT.

Basic Windows 10/11 reference computer configuration steps

1. Install the latest available Windows build on a reference computer (Windows 11 23H2 Pro in this example);
2. Install the device drivers;
3. Install the latest cumulative security patches through Windows Update;
4. Configure system Windows settings (time zone, languages, printers, install optional features, etc.);
5. Remove unused built-in Microsoft Store apps (see the SysPrep guide for more information about removing built-in Microsoft Store apps)
6. Install Visual C++ Redist, MS Office apps, and other apps and tools that your users use;
7. Customize Windows Start Menu and Taskbar pinned apps. Then copy these settings to new user profiles using PowerShell script:

   $Path = "C:\PS\StartLayout.xml"
   
   Export-StartLayout -path $Path
   
   Copy-Item $Path -Destination “C:\Users\Default\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Shell”

8. Disable the MSFT Consumer Experience and the First Logon Animation:

   # Disable the Microsoft Consumer Experience
   
   New-Item -Path HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\ -Name CloudContent
   
   New-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CloudContent' -name 'DisableWindowsConsumerFeatures' -PropertyType DWORD -Value '1'
   
   # Disable First logon Animation
   
   New-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System' -name 'EnableFirstLogonAnimation' -PropertyType DWORD -Value '0'

9. Clean up and optimize your Windows image using DISM:

   Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase

10. Use the Disk Cleanup tool (cleanmgr.exe) to free up disk space by removing unnecessary and temporary files.

The end result should be a standardized Windows computer that is ready for use in your company.

Note. Do not join the reference computer to an AD domain!

Configuring Microsoft Deployment Toolkit for Windows Image Capture

The next step is to install the MDT with all of its prerequisites on the Windows Server host that you will be using for image capture and deployment.

Download and Install Prerequisites (MDT, ADK, WinPE)

Download and install the following tools:

• Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=54259);
• The latest version of the Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK) with Windows 11 version 24H2 support (https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/get-started/adk-install);
• WinPE Addon for Windows ADK for Windows 11 (contains the Windows Preinstallation Environment, Windows PE);
• Download the Media Creation Tool and create an ISO file with the latest Windows 11 installation image.

Install Required ADK Components

Install only the following ADK features:

• Deployment Tools
• Imaging and Configuration Designer (ICD)
• Configuration Designer
• User State Migration Tool (USMT)

Apply the MDT KB4564442 Update

Download an important update for the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT_KB4564442). Then extract the files from MDT_KB4564442 and copy them (replacing existing files) to %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Deployment Toolkit\Templates\Distribution\Tools.

Create MDT Deployment Share

Now prepare MDT for image capture. This includes:

1. Create an MDT deployment share
2. Import operating system WIM image from ISO
3. Create a task sequence for image capture

Let’s take a closer look at each step:

1. Open the Deployment Workbench console and expand the Deployment Shares > MDT Deployment Share;
2. Mount the Windows 11 ISO file that you have downloaded. Navigate to MDT Deployment Share > Operation Systems > Import Operating system.
   
3. Select Custom image file > and import the install.wim file from the /source/ folder of the Windows 11 installation image.
   
4. Right click on Task Sequence and select New Task Sequence from the menu;
   
5. Enter Task Sequence ID (Win11Capture) and Task Sequence Name (Capture Windows 11 Image);
   
6. Select Sysprep and Capture from predefined task sequence templates and click Next;
   
7. Select an operating system that matches the version of the OS installed on a reference computer.
   
8. Skip a step with a product key (Don’t specify a product key at this time);
   
9. Fill the fields Full Name and Organization;
   
10. Select Don’t specify an Administrator password at this time;
    
11. On Summary page click Next > Next > Finish.

Configure Rules and Windows PE Options

Open the MDT Deployment Share properties and go to the Rules tab. Make sure it includes the following options (add if missing):

SkipCature=NO

OSCapture=YES

Set the x64 platform by default in the Windows PE tab:

Update MDT Deployment Share

Right-click the MDT share and select Update Deployment Share.

In my case I got the error:

=== Making sure the deployment share has the latest x86 tools ===

=== Processing LiteTouchPE (x86) boot image ===

The problem is that the installed version of the ADK doesn’t include an x86 WinPE image. The workaround is to copy amd64 folder (C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Windows Preinstallation Environment) and then rename it to x86.

How to Capture Windows Reference Image with MDT

Now we are ready to capture Windows 11 image with all the apps and settings from the reference computer.

Connect Reference Computer to MDT Deployment Share

Logon locally to a reference Windows computer (it should be connected to the network with the MDT server).

Open File Explorer and specify the network path to the DeploymentShare on MDT server. In our case, the path looks like this: \\192.168.13.22\deploymentshare (enter domain user credentials to access the shared folder on the MDT server).

Run LiteTouch.vbs Script

Navigate to the Script folder, and run the script file LiteTouch.vbs.

Enter the domain user credentials to access the shared folder on the MDT server.

Launch Capture Task Sequence

In the Windows Deployment Wizard, select the Capture Windows 11 Image task sequence.

Select Capture an image of this reference computer and verify the UNC path to the folder on MDT server, which will be used to save Windows WIM image file . You should have NTFS read/write permissions to this folder. Specify the new .WIM file name.

Wait for some time to start Task Sequence.

Monitor Sysprep and WinPE Process

When the preparations are complete, the Sysprep task will start. Then the computer will reboot into the WinPE environment and begin capturing the system image. During the image creation process, the Windows will switch to the OOBE (Out-Of-Box Experience) sysprep mode, and the Windows image will be captured using the DISM tool)

Verify Captured WIM File in Captures Folder

The process of capturing the Windows image takes quite a long time. Once the capture is complete, a WIM file containing the Windows 11 image will appear in the Captures folder on the DeploymentShare.

After you complete these steps, you should have a custom Windows image file (.WIM file). Later, you can import this WIM file directly into SCCM, WDS, or MDT and use it to deploy a reference Windows image to the workstations.

Tip. To copy changes from the local administrator’s profile to the default user profile, use the CopyProfile=TRUE deployment option.

Troubleshooting MDT Image Capture Errors

In my case, an error occurs during Windows image capture:

FAILURE (6192): ERRO – sysprep did not complete successfully.

Open the C:\ Windows\System32\Sysprep\Panther\ setupact.log file on a reference machine. It contains errors like this:

Error SYSPRP Package NotepadPlusPlus_ 1.0.0.0_neutral__ 7njy0v32s6xk6 was installed for a user, but not provisioned for all users. This package will not function properly in the sysprep image.

Error SYSPRP Failed to remove apps for the current user: 0x80073cf2.

This means that a sysprep failed with the error Sysprep was unable to validate your Windows installation because some Microsoft Store apps are not provisioned for all users.

This can be fixed by provisioning these APPX IDs to the image or by removing it this app from any user profiles that have it installed:

Get-AppxPackage 'your_APPX_ID' -AllUsers| Remove-AppPackage –AllUsers  -verbose

Get-AppxProvisionedPackage -online | where-object {$_.PackageName -like 'your_APPX_ID' }| Remove-AppxProvisionedPackage -online –Verbose