Windows Tips & Tricks UPDATE--May 3, 2004

FAQs

Q. Why are some Microsoft Remote Installation Services (RIS) images not displayed on my RIS OS selection menu?

A. When a RIS client computer boots so it can install an OS from the RIS server, the client displays a list of OS images that are applicable to it. A problem occurs when the image's hardware abstraction layer (HAL) differs from the HAL that the local machine should use (e.g., single-processor HAL versus multiprocessor HAL). I experienced this problem recently when I used the Remote Installation Preparation (RIPrep) utility to create an image from a client workstation. When I booted another computer so it could install an OS from the RIS server, the computer didn't display the image. The problem was that the computer I used to create the image had hyperthreading enabled, which means the HAL is a multiprocessor version (although the machine actually has only one CPU), whereas the destination machine didn't have hyperthreading and required a single-CPU HAL. If the HAL is the same on both the imaged and local systems, compare the NTFS permissions on the RIS server's image folder with the permissions on an image that you know works. If the permissions aren't the same, adjust them on the image folder so they match the permissions on the folder of the working image.

Q. How can I add a new adapter to the list of supported Microsoft Remote Installation Services (RIS) adapters?

A. To add a new adapter, perform the following steps on the RIS server:

1. If the driver isn't digitally signed, you must configure the installation to ignore the driver-signing policy. To do so, open the RIS image's .sif file (e.g. Ristndrd.sif) and add the following line to the file's \[Unattended\] section:

   DriverSigningPolicy = Ignore

2. Expand the NIC driver and copy the .inf and .sys files to the RemoteInstall\Setup\language\Images\image\i386 folder.
3. Within the image's \i386 folder, create the folder structure $oem$\$1\Drivers\Nic. For example, create the folder

   RemoteInstall\Setup\language\Images\image\i386\$oem$\$1\Drivers\Nic

4. Copy the .inf and .sys files that you copied earlier to the new folder.
5. Open the .sif file for the RIS image, and add the following lines in the \[Unattended\] section. (If the OemPreinstall line already exists, edit the line to say yes instead of no.)

   OemPreinstall = yes
   OemPnpDriversPath = Drivers\Nic

6. Restart the Boot Information Negotiation Layer (BINL) service by entering

   net stop binlsvc
   net start binlsvc

Q. How can I avoid having to press F12 during a Microsoft Remote Installation Services (RIS) boot?

A. By default, RIS causes the client computer to display a prompt that tells the user to press F12. To prevent RIS from displaying the prompt, navigate to the folder \\RIS_server_name\REMINST\oschooser\i386. Rename Startrom.com to Startrom.old, then rename Startrom.n12 to Startrom.com.

Q. How can I avoid receiving an 0x2015 error when I use Ntdsutil to delete a nonexistent domain?

A. If you have a child domain that no longer exists and has no servers, you can use Ntdsutil's Active Directory (AD) metadata cleanup capability to delete the domain. However, when you use metadata cleanup, you might receive the error "metadata cleanup: remove selected domain DsRemoveDsDomainW error 0x2015 (The directory service can perform the requested operation only on a leaf object.)" The error means that the domain still contains information (usually a domain DNS zone). You can check the domain and resolve the problem as follows:

1. Start Ntdsutil (click Start, Run; enter cmd.exe; then enter ntdsutil.exe).
2. Switch to domain management mode by entering the domain management argument at the ntdsutil prompt:

   ntdsutil: domain management

3. Select the server to use by invoking the Connections submenu, then connect to a domain controller (DC) by entering the connections argument at the domain management prompt:

   domain management: connections

   You'll see the message "Connected to omega using credentials of locally logged on user."
4. Type the following at the server connections prompt:

   server connections: connect to server omega

   The following messages will appear. (The text that's enclosed in quotes represents messages that are displayed after you type the indicated commands.)

   "Disconnecting from omega...
   Binding to omega...
   Connected to omega using credentials of locally logged on user."

5. Exit the server connections area by entering the quit argument at the server connections prompt:

   server connections: quit

6. List the naming contexts (NCs) by entering the list argument at the domain management prompt:

   domain management: list

   (Directory partition names that contain International Unicode characters will display correctly only if the appropriate fonts and language support are loaded.) You'll then see the NCs, as in the following example:

   "Found 7 Naming Context(s)
   0 - CN=Configuration,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   1 - DC=savilltech,DC=com
   2 - CN=Schema,CN=Configuration,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   3 - DC=DomainDnsZones,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   4 - DC=ForestDnsZones,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   5 - DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   6 - DC=DomainDnsZones,DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com"

7. In this example, I'm trying to delete DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com. However, because DC=DomainDnsZones,DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com exists under DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com, I can't delete DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com until I remove DomainDnsZones under child1. To do so, I type the delete argument at the domain management prompt as follows:

   domain management: delete NC DC=DomainDnsZones,DC=child1,DC=savilltech,dc=com

   After removing the DNS NC from the child domain, you'll see the following message:

   "The operation was successful. The partition has been marked for removal from the enterprise. It will be removed over time in the background."

   Don't create another partition with the same name until the servers that hold this partition have had an opportunity to remove it. Removal is complete when knowledge of the deletion of the partition replicates throughout the forest and the servers that hold the partition have removed all objects within it. You can verify that the partition has been completely removed by consulting the Directory event log on each server.
8. End the domain management command by entering the quit argument at the domain management prompt:

   domain management: quit

   You can now use Ntdsutil to remove the domain in the usual way, as in the following example.

    ntdsutil: metadata cleanup
   metadata cleanup: connections
   
   "Connected to omega using credentials of locally logged on user."
   
   server connections: connect to server omega
   
   "Disconnecting from omega...
   Binding to omega ...
   Connected to omega using credentials of locally logged on user."
   
   server connections: quit
   metadata cleanup: select operation target
   select operation target: list domains
   
   "Found 2 domain(s)
   0 - DC=savilltech,DC=com
   1 - DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com"
   
   select operation target: select domain 1
   
   "No current site
   Domain - DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com
   No current server
   No current Naming Context"
   
   select operation target: quit
   metadata cleanup: remove selected domain
   
   "'DC=child1,DC=savilltech,DC=com' removed from server 'omega'"
   
   metadata cleanup: quit
   ntdsutil: quit
   
   "Disconnecting from omega...
   Gone!"

Q. How can I create an Automated Deployment Services (ADS) set?

A. Although you can perform all ADS functions on individual computers, you might want to perform an action on a predefined group--or set--of machines. ADS sets let you create a group of servers (which can include other existing sets, to form a hierarchy), and that group can then be the target of actions or deployments that you want to perform.

To create a set, perform the following steps:

1. Start the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) ADS Management snap-in (click Start, Programs, Microsoft ADS, ADS Management).
2. Select the Sets branch from the window's treeview pane.
3. Right-click Sets and select New Set from the context menu.
4. You'll see the New Set dialog box, which the figure at Figure 1 shows. Enter a name for the new set and, optionally, a description.
5. Select from the list of available devices the devices you want to include in the set, then click Add.
6. Select from the list of available sets the sets you want to include in the new set, then click Add.
When you're finished, click OK.

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