Sysprep image and quick prep

[iforbes]

Hi. I used the Microsoft WAIK to properly copy the Administrator profile to Default user profile (Windows 7). This creates a sysprep image. To make a long story short I used c:\windows\system32\sysprep sysprep /oobe /generalize /unattend:c:\windows\system32\sysprep\unattend.xml to create the image and shutdown the image. Once shutdown I took a snapshot.

The snapshot is what I'm using for my linked clones. The last step in the wizard I select Quick Prep. The pool  creation stops during customization. What happens is that the vm stops customizing after the sysprep customization and never makes it to the Quickprep steps.

My question is, if we use ssyprep to copy a profile to Default user profile (as descibed above) do we have to use sysprep option during the linked clones wizard? It doesn't seem that Quick Prep will work - from an image that will initially go through s sysprep customization process.

[mittim12]

Have you looked over the Windows 7 optimizaiton guide.  It discusses the default profile on page 26.

http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/VMware-View-OptimizationGuideWindows7-EN.pdf

[iforbes]

Yup. I've reviewed that guide. The problem wasn't the steps to creating the default profile. It was the fact that I would run the sysprep, which would shutdown the image. I would then take a snapshot and base my linked clones off that snapshot. So, what would happen would be that during the provisioning/customization stages the sysprep customization would kick-off, and complete - without allowing Quckprep to do anything. So, the desktop wouldn't be added to AD, etc.

What I should have done (and now do) is:

- sysprep the image, shutdown

- power on the image and allow sysprep to run through customization

- shut down the image and snapshot

- use this snapshot as the basis for linked clones

This gets me the correct default profile and the ability to use Quickprep to customize the desktop.