Datasheet
10
ChAPTeR 1 Windows Server 2008 R2 Deployment Secrets
Installing to VHD
Usually, when you install an operating system, the installation routine writes a
collection of les and folders across volumes on the hard-disk drive. If you booted
the server up with Windows Preinstallation Environment (PE) and looked at the
hard-disk drive, you’d see a collection of les and folders. Unlike previous versions
of Windows Server, Windows Server 2008 R2 gives you the option of performing an
installation to VHD le. The VHD le is a container that appears to the computer as a
separate volume. When you have congured it correctly, you can format the VHD le,
write les to it, and treat it exactly as any other volume on the hard disk. Because
you can store multiple VHD les on a disk, you can congure Windows Server 2008
R2 to boot into different versions without having to repartition an existing hard-
disk drive. If you install to VHD, boot up from Windows PE, and look at the hard disk,
you’ll see the VHD le and pretty much nothing else.
Installing to VHD makes your deployment of Windows Server 2008 R2 more por-
table. You are able to move the VHD le to another computer or even congure the
VHD le as a differential disk, so that you can roll back any changes that occur if they
cause a problem.
CrOssrEf You learn more about differential disks in Chapter 14, “Conguring
Hyper-V Virtual Machines.”
To prepare Windows Server 2008 R2 for an installation to VHD on a computer with
an unformatted disk, perform the following steps:
1. Start the Windows Server 2008 R2 installation routine either by booting from
DVD, USB, or PXE.
2. Select your language and click Next. Instead of selecting Install Now, click
Repair Your Computer.
3. On the System Recovery Options dialog, click Next (you won’t have any sys-
tem to recover). When Windows fails to nd a system to recover, click Cancel.
Click Cancel again until you can see the System Recovery Options dialog,
shown in Figure 1-1. Then click Command Prompt.
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