Installation Guide

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Third party code may be provided with the Software and/or Service. The license terms for such third- parties are detailed in the license.txt file located in the root installation directory. You can always find the latest up-to-date list of the third party code and the associated license terms used with the Software and/or Service at http://kb.acronis.com/content/7696 Acronis patented technologies Technologies, used in this product, are covered and protected by one or more U.S. Patent Numbers: 7,047,380; 7,275,139; 7,281,104; 7,318,135; 7,353,355; 7,366,859; 7,475,282; 7,603,533; 7,636,824; 7,650,473; 7,721,138; 7,779,221; 7,831,789; 7,886,120; 7,895,403; 7,934,064; 7,937,612; 7,949,635; 7,953,948; 7,979,690; 8,005,797; 8,051,044; 8,069,320; 8,073,815; 8,074,035; 8,145,607; 8,180,984; 8,225,133; 8,261,035; 8,296,264; 8,312,259; 8,347,137; 8,484,427; 8,645,748; 8,732,121 and patent pending applications.

Table of contents

1 Introduction ...... 4 1.1 About Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders ...... 4 2 System Requirements and Supported Systems ...... 5 2.1 System requirements ...... 5 2.2 Supported systems ...... 5 3 Typical Workflow ...... 7 3.1 Running the binary ...... 8 3.2 Default configuration script ...... 8 4 Customized Execution ...... 9 4.1 Command-line switches ...... 9 4.1.1 Switches ...... 9 4.1.2 Examples ...... 10 4.2 Configuration XML script...... 11 4.2.1 Script structure ...... 11 4.2.2 Tags and options ...... 12 4.3 Usage scenarios ...... 23 4.3.1 Creating an upgradeable factory image ...... 23 4.3.2 Backing up multiple drives and partitions ...... 24 4.3.3 Providing a choice between several factory images ...... 25 Appendix A: Product components ...... 29

Appendix B: Microsoft's System Preparation Tool (sysprep.exe) ...... 31

Appendix C: Troubleshooting and technical assistance ...... 34

1 Introduction

1.1 About Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders What is Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders? Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders is a Windows command-line utility for OEMs and system builders. It creates a backup of the original system configuration and equips the end-user computer with the ability to restore to factory settings with a touch of a hot key or by using a recovery DVD or USB flash stick.

Such a backup is referred to as a factory image and includes the pre-installed Windows operating system, drivers and third-party applications.

To ensure the factory image integrity, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders uses Acronis' patented and time-proven disk imaging technology that has been successfully used in many home and enterprise solutions. Where is the factory image kept? The factory image is always saved to Acronis Secure Zone. This is a special secure partition on the disk drive. This partition is used to store Acronis backups and can be accessed only by Acronis products.

Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders creates Acronis Secure Zone along with the factory image creation and automatically adjusts the size of the partition to fit the image. What else is available? In addition to basic factory image creation, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders offers the following features and functionalities: . Environment for smart one-click factory image recovery without loading the operating system. . Automatic installation of Acronis True Image OEM on a computer. . Integration with Microsoft's System Preparation Utility (sysprep.exe) to seal the operating system in the factory image. . Incremental factory image updates in Acronis Secure Zone. . Customizable parameters for creating the factory image. . Ability to copy the factory image to a local folder or a network share. . Silent factory image creation. . Factory bootable media creation. . Deployment of the factory image to multiple computers by using sister products. . Ability to place several factory images in Acronis Secure Zone and provide a choice of multiple factory images on one PC.

2 System Requirements and Supported Systems

2.1 System requirements The hardware requirements of Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders are the same as the minimum requirements of the operating system on the computer used to install and run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders.

In addition, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders requires the following hardware: . CD-RW/DVD-RW drive for the creation of factory bootable media . Mouse or other pointing device (recommended). Factory bootable media has the following hardware requirements: . 1 GB RAM . Processor Pentium 1 GHz or faster

2.2 Supported systems Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders has been designed and tested to support the state-of- the-art Unified Extensible Interface (UEFI) and hard drives with GPT partitioning scheme. It also supports the old BIOS firmware and MBR partitioning scheme. Desktop operating systems: . Windows 7 . Windows 8 . Windows 8.1 . Windows 10 Server operating systems: . Windows Home Server 2011 . Windows Server 2008 R2 Foundation . Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard . Windows Server 2012 Foundation . Windows Server 2012 Essentials . Windows Server 2012 Standard . Windows Server 2012 R2 Foundation . Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials . Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard File systems: . FAT16/FAT32 . NTFS Additionally, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders can back up and recover disks and partitions formatted as Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, ReiserFS and Linux SWAP. However, such disks and partitions

cannot be used to store Acronis backups and associated files like ISO images, logs, reports, and others. Disk partitioning schemes: . MBR . GPT Virtual Hard Disks (VHD) and dynamic disks are not supported.

Firmware interfaces: . BIOS . UEFI

3 Typical Workflow

Basically, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders is a wrapper executable that includes several components; each component is intended for a specific job. File execution parameters are defined via a number of command-line switches while the factory image options are specified in a configuration XML script.

The default configuration XML script is suitable for most situations and is included with the software. When you run Acronis True Image OEM using the default parameters, the original system will be changed as follows: . Acronis True Image OEM is installed. . Windows operating system is sealed with all drivers and third-party applications. . Acronis Secure Zone with a backup of the sealed operating system is present in the system. . Acronis Startup Recovery Manager is activated.

3.1 Running the binary Important! Before you run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders on a computer, make sure that its current hardware configuration is absolutely the same as when it is shipped to the end-user. Disconnect any devices that will not be included in the final delivery, such as internal hard drives, external storages and any USB and FireWire devices. Otherwise, hard drives may be recognized incorrectly upon restoration to factory settings and will cause a failure of the entire operation. To run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with default parameters: 1. Place the binary and the default configuration script (see below) in the same directory. Please make sure the script file has name OEM_install.xml. 2. Start Windows Command Prompt as the administrator. 3. Run the binary atih_installer_sb_s_e.exe. 4. When prompted, start Microsoft's System Preparation Utility (p. 31) to seal the system. No more user interaction is required. Once the operating system has been sealed, the computer will reboot automatically. Then the operation will continue in the stand-alone Linux environment. Finally, the computer will shut down automatically. Now the system is ready to be shipped to an end-user! If you cancel the operation at any stage, the previous steps will not be reversed.

3.2 Default configuration script Below is the default configuration XML script. It lets you quickly run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders and create the factory image with the default parameters.

The script's file name is oem_install.xml. It has been delivered to you together with the software.

Before you run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders, remember to put the script in the same directory where the binary is located.

XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX- XXXXXXXX

Please refer to section "Configuration XML script" (p. 11) for a detailed description of the script’s structure and the available tags and options.

4 Customized Execution

In addition to quick execution with the default parameters, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders enables you to customize the entire process to meet your business-specific requirements. You can use command-line switches to run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with options and also create a custom configuration XML script to customize the factory image creation.

4.1 Command-line switches Use the command-line switches described here to define Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders execution options. These may include skipping Acronis True Image OEM installation, log file location, use of a custom configuration XML script, product uninstallation and others.

4.1.1 Switches The following table lists and describes the available command-line switches to run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with custom options. Switch Description /nofullati Skips the installation of Acronis True Image OEM before creating a factory image. /log: Sets a custom location to save installation logs. By default, logs are saved to the %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Acronis\OEMInstallation directory. See Appendix C: Troubleshooting and technical assistance (p. 34) for more information about Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders logs and reports. /log_username User name to access a network share, if it is used for storing the log files. /log_password Password to access a network share, if it is used for storing the log files. If this parameter is not defined, you will be asked to provide the password in a dialog box during the program execution. /script: Sets the name and location of a custom configuration XML script (p. 11) with the factory image creation options. If this parameter is not defined, the binary will search for the default installation script oem_install.xml located in the same directory. /verbose:{on|off} Turns on or off verbose output to the stdout. The default value is "on". Turning on the verbose output provides you with information on the following: . MSI being installed at the moment. . Script being used. . Whether the installation process succeeded. . Errors in the installation script. . Errors that may have occurred during the installation. /noreboot Disables automatic system reboot upon Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders execution under Windows.

/uninstall Performs the following operations at once: . Uninstalls Acronis True Image OEM. . Uninstalls Acronis Original Configuration. . Removes Acronis Secure Zone and reclaims its disk space (optionally). . Deactivates Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. At a certain stage, you will be asked to choose whether Acronis Secure Zone should be removed or retained. All other operations are performed without user interaction during their progress (unattended mode). /help Displays help for the command-line switches. /? Displays help for the command-line switches.

4.1.2 Examples These are simple examples of running Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with command- line switches: . atih_installer_sb_s_e.exe /log:c:\logs /script:c:\script.xml /noreboot This command will install Acronis True Image OEM and Acronis Original Configuration. It will save log files to the C:\logs directory. Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders will use script.xml located in C:\. The system will not reboot automatically when the installation is complete. . atih_installer_sb_s_e.exe /log:c:\logs /uninstall This command will uninstall AcronisTrue Image OEM and Acronis Original Configuration and provide a choice to remove or retain Acronis Secure Zone. The command will then deactivate Acronis Startup Recovery Manager and save the log files to C:\logs directory.

4.2 Configuration XML script The configuration XML script conveys Acronis Secure Zone and factory image creation parameters. These include the disks and partitions to be backed up, parameters of Acronis Secure Zone, Acronis Startup Recovery Manager and others. You can also use the script to instruct the binary to copy the resulting factory image or create a boot menu with a choice of several images sealed in Acronis Secure Zone.

The default configuration script suits for the most situations. If you need to customize the factory image creation, please create a custom XML file and call it via the /script: command-line switch. When you use a custom configuration script, make sure it has been saved as UTF-8 encoded.

4.2.1 Script structure The following is a sample configuration script. We will use it to describe the basic script structure.

4 XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX

. Line 1 XML declaration. It defines the XML version (1.0) and the encoding used (UTF-8). . Lines 2 Root element (tag ). It is the parent element for all other tags. It must necessarily have the closing tag at the end of the XML script (line 8 in the example). . Lines 3 to 5 Element that conveys the product serial number. . Line 6 The element with the closing tag . It determines parameters for creating Acronis Secure Zone and the factory image. In a custom script, this tag may include a number of child elements to customize the entire operation. . Line 7 The element with the closing tag . It determines parameters for creating a special boot menu with a choice of several factory images sealed in Acronis Secure Zone.

4.2.2 Tags and options This chapter describes variable parameters that can be used in your configuration XML script. These include tags and tag attributes.

Tags are always bracketed (e.g., ). Unlike pure XML, certain tags do not need a closing tag as they do not have any element contents. However, tags like and do require a closing tag as they are supposed to have child elements.

Tag attributes are used to define custom (non-default) options. Attribute values must always be quoted. Make sure to use dumb quotes (" ") only. If a certain tag or tag attribute is not specified in the configuration script, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders will use the default value.

4.2.2.1 is a mandatory tag where you specify a serial number for Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders. This number determines which Acronis True Image OEM edition will be installed.

Make sure that you put the closing tag () after the serial number. Syntax XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX

4.2.2.2 determines the parameters for creating Acronis Secure Zone and the factory image. When this tag is omitted or used without options and child elements, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders creates Acronis Secure Zone and the factory image with the default parameters.

Make sure that you include the closing tag (). Syntax

...

Attributes . disk Ordinal number of the hard drive on which Acronis Secure Zone will be created. For example, . . partition Ordinal number of the partition. It includes the ordinal number of the respective hard drive whose free space will be used to create Acronis Secure Zone, if there is no unallocated space available on this drive. For example, . Note: Using without additional parameters is equal to .

Child elements In a custom script, the tag may include a number of child elements used to customize factory image creation: . - disks and partitions to be included in the factory image. . - parameters for creating the backup archive. . - behavior of Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. . - advanced parameters of factory image creation. . - location where the factory image will bу copied to. . - parameters of an ISO image with the factory image.

Important: This tag cannot be used together with the tag (p. 20).

Use the tag to specify which hard drives and/or partitions will be backed up. If not used in the script, the first hard drive will be backed up by default.

If the specified drives or partitions use an unsupported file system, the software will make a backup in the sector-by-sector mode. Important: When you need to back up several disks and partitions, specify them in a single tag. Having multiple tags in the same configuration script will result in backup failure and thus is strictly illegal.

Syntax Attributes . disk Ordinal number of the hard drive(s) which will be backed up. For example, . . partition Ordinal number of the partition(s), including the index number of the respective hard drive, which will be backed up. For example, .

Use tag to set up parameters for creating the backup archive. Syntax Attributes . compression Compression level that will be used during the backup. The value can be either an integer from 0 to 9 or one of these English words: none, normal, high or maximum. The default value is "normal". The table below shows how numeric values correspond to those expressed in words.

Numeric Alphabetic Equivalent Compression Level Value 0 none no compression 1-2 normal normal compression level 3-5 high high compression level 6-9 maximum maximum compression level . verify Flag to indicate if the backup should be validated after creation. The default value is "false". . backuptype Type of backup that will be created within the operation. backuptype="full" creates a full backup; backuptype="incremental" creates an incremental backup to a full backup and thus updates the full backup. If no full backup has been created before the first incremental backup, a full backup will be created first. For incremental backups, it is recommended that you use the same configuration script as you used to create the full backup. Otherwise, the diverse settings in the new configuration script will overwrite the settings from the previous configuration script.

Use the tag to define the behavior of Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. Syntax Attributes . key This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. Acronis Startup Recovery Manager will be always displayed at computer startup as long as Acronis loader is set up as the first boot entry. Key to invoke Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. The following keys can be used: Enter, Esc, Space, Home, Ins, Del, PageUp, PageDown, F1, F2, F3, F4, F5, F6, F7, F8, F9, F10, F11 or F12. The default value is "F11". Please do not change the default value unless you have a strong reason to do otherwise. . autostart This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. Acronis Startup Recovery Manager will be always displayed at computer startup as long as Acronis loader is set up as the first boot entry. Acronis Startup Recovery Manager display mode at computer startup. autostart="true" always starts Acronis Startup Recovery Manager; autostart="false" (default value) shows the "Press to run Acronis Startup Recovery Manager" message. When setting autostart="false", make sure that loader_display_prompt is set to "true" if you want to display the message at computer startup.

. items

Acronis Startup Recovery Manager contents. items="auto" – the menu will include the item for factory settings recovery; items="manual" – the menu will include the item for Acronis True Image OEM; items="both" – both choices will be included. The default value is "both". . default Default boot scenario. default="start" starts Acronis True Image OEM; default="original" recovers factory settings; default="continue" continues to boot the installed Windows operating system. If this parameter is not specified, there will be no default boot scenario. End-users will be prompted to select it manually. Setting default="start" requires that "items" be set to "manual" or "both" (items="manual|both"); however, setting default="original" requires that "items" be set to "auto" or "both" (items="auto|both").

. timeout Time (in seconds) after which the default boot scenario will apply. The default value is "10". . loader_display_prompt This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. Acronis Startup Recovery Manager will be always displayed at computer startup as long as Acronis loader is set up as the first boot entry. Appearance of the "Press to run Acronis Startup Recovery Manager" message. loader_display_prompt="true" shows message at computer startup; loader_display_prompt="false" hides the message at computer startup, but still makes it possible to invoke Acronis Startup Recovery Manager by pressing the hot key specified. The default value is "true". When setting loader_display_prompt="false", make sure that autostart is set to "false".

. bootmenu_confirmation Appearance of a confirmation message before the factory settings restoration. Such a prompt asks the end-user to disconnect all external devices and confirm the recovery of the factory image. bootmenu_confirmation="true" shows the confirmation; bootmenu_confirmation="false" hides the confirmation. The default value is "true". . bootmenu_image This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. Custom image that will replace the default Acronis logo on Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. This custom image must have the following parameters: format = PNG; height = 400px; width = 300px; depth = 32-bit or less. . image_location_user This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. User name to access a password-protected network share with the image file for the bootmenu_image attribute. . image_location_password This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. Password to access a password-protected network share with the image file for the bootmenu_image attribute.

Use the tag to define advanced parameters of Acronis Secure Zone creation and factory image recovery.

Syntax Attributes . sysprep When this parameter is used, the factory image and Acronis Secure Zone are not created until you have run Microsoft's System Preparation Utility (sysprep.exe) and sealed the operating system. The factory image and Acronis Secure Zone are created after the resealing at the next computer reboot. When this parameter is not used, Acronis Secure Zone and the factory image are created immediately after you run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders and the computer reboots. In Windows XP, this parameter can have values "DEFAULT" (sysprep.exe is used) and "FALSE" (sysprep.exe is not used). In Windows Vista and Windows 7, you can specify four more values for this parameter: "ISGR_TO_OOBE", "ISGR_TO_AUDIT", "ISSR_TO_OOBE", and "ISSR_TO_AUDIT". Please find more information about the usage of sysprep.exe in Appendix B: Using Microsoft's System Preparation tool (p. 31). . freespace Reserves the specified amount of free space on the disk (in megabytes). Then this amount is added to Acronis Secure Zone. The default value is "0". . oemzone_password Sets the password for accessing Acronis Secure Zone and factory bootable media in order to restore the factory image. The password can be any alphanumeric combination, Latin letters are recommended. Also, make sure that you do not use the backslash ("\") in the password as this is a special symbol reserved by the software. . create_complete Defines which action (reboot or shutdown) will be performed on the machine upon the creation of Acronis Secure Zone and the factory image. If no value is defined, an interactive dialog box asking to choose an action will appear after the operation has been completed. . restore_complete Defines which action (reboot or shutdown) will be performed on the machine upon the recovery of the factory image. If no value is defined, an interactive dialog box asking to choose an action will appear after the operation has been completed. . log_file Saves diagnostic .log files that can be later sent to the support team. The value of this attribute should be a full name to a directory. For example, "C:\logs". If you run Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with the /log: switch (p. 9), logs will be saved to the directory specified in the switch. See Appendix C: Troubleshooting and technical assistance (p. 34) for more information about Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders logs and reports.

. log_username Keeps the user name to access a network share, if it is used for storing the log files. . log_password

Keeps the password to access a network share, if it is used for storing the log files. If this parameter is not defined in the script, you will be asked to provide the password in a dialog box during the script execution. . linux_param Specifies the Linux kernel parameters that will be passed to the Linux kernel when creating and recovering the factory image. For example, it is possible to define the video resolution mode. For a list of available parameters, see section Linux kernel parameters (p. 17).

Linux kernel parameters This section lists some common parameters that may be passed to the Linux kernel while creating and recovering the factory image. . acpi=off Disables ACPI and may help with a particular hardware configuration. . noapic Disables APIC (Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller) and may help with a particular hardware configuration. . nousb Disables the loading of USB modules. . nousb2 Disables USB 2.0 support. USB 1.1 devices still work with this option. This option allows using some USB drives in USB 1.1 mode, if they do not work in USB 2.0 mode. . quiet This parameter is enabled by default and the startup messages are not displayed. Deleting it will result in the startup messages being displayed as the Linux kernel is loaded and the command shell being offered prior to running the Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. . nodma Disables DMA for all IDE disk drives. Prevents kernel from freezing on some hardware. . nofw Disables FireWire (IEEE1394) support. . nopcmcia Disables PCMCIA hardware detection. . nomouse Disables mouse support. . [module name]=off Disables the module (e.g. sata_sis=off). . pci=bios Forces the use of PCI BIOS and prevents direct access to the hardware device. For instance, this parameter may be used if the machine has a non-standard PCI host bridge. . pci=nobios Disallows the use of PCI BIOS; only direct hardware access methods are allowed. For instance, this parameter may be used if you experience crashes upon boot-up which are probably caused by the BIOS. . pci=biosirq

Uses PCI BIOS calls to get the interrupt routing table. These calls are known to be buggy on several machines and they hang the machine when used. However, on other computers it is the only way to get the interrupt routing table. Try this option, if the kernel is unable to allocate IRQs or discover secondary PCI buses on your motherboard. . vga=ask Gets the list of the video modes available for your video card and allows selecting a video mode most suitable for the video card and monitor. Try this option, if the automatically selected video mode is unsuitable for your hardware.

When used in the script, instructs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders to copy the backup that has the factory image to a different location determined in the tag's attributes. Syntax Attributes . path Destination. Either a local folder or a network share. . username User name to access the network share. . password Password to access the network share. Important: If the specified location already contains a backup with the factory image, the backup file will be automatically replaced with the new one.

When used in the script, instructs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders to create an ISO image with the following components: . Factory image (backup of the disk and/or partitions). . Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. . Acronis True Image OEM recovery application. Once created, the ISO image will be saved to a local drive or a network share of your choice. Later, you can burn it to optical media (CD/DVD). Such media will serve as a bootable rescue environment that end-users will be able to use to restore the system to factory settings in the event of a hard disk failure. Syntax Attributes . path Name of the .iso file, including the full path to the location where the file will be stored. . username

User name to access a network, if it is used for storing the .iso file(s). . password Password to access a network share, if it is used for storing the .iso file(s). If this parameter is not defined in the script, you will be asked to provide the password in a dialog box during the execution. . split Maximum size of the .iso file(s) in megabytes. The default value is "650". 650 megabytes is the least allowable value. Setting a lesser value will cause an error; this will result in the failure of the entire operation.

. items Factory media boot menu contents. items="auto" – the menu will include the item for factory settings recovery; items="manual" – the menu will include the item for Acronis True Image OEM; items="both" – both choices will be included. The default value is "both". . default Default boot scenario. default="start" starts Acronis True Image OEM; default="original" recovers factory settings; default="continue" continues to boot the installed Windows operating system. If this parameter is not specified, there will be no default boot scenario. End-users will be prompted to select it manually. Setting default="start" requires that "items" be set to "manual" or "both" (items="manual|both") while setting default="original" requires that "items" be set to "auto" or "both" (items="auto|both").

. timeout Time (in seconds) after which the default boot scenario will apply. The default value is "10".

When used in the script, instructs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders to create a bootable media with the following components: . Factory image (backup of the disk and/or partitions). . Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. . Acronis True Image OEM recovery application. Such media will serve as a bootable rescue environment that end-users will be able to use to restore the system to factory settings in the event of a hard disk failure. Warning! The USB drive that you use to create bootable media will be formatted with FAT32. All data stored on the drive will be permanently erased!

Syntax Attributes . path Drive letter of the USB drive that will be used to create bootable media. . items

Factory media boot menu contents. items="auto" – the menu will include the item for factory settings recovery; items="manual" – the menu will include the item for Acronis True Image OEM; items="both" – both choices will be included. The default value is "both". . default Default boot scenario. default="start" starts Acronis True Image OEM; default="original" recovers factory settings; default="continue" continues to boot the installed Windows operating system. If this parameter is not specified, there will be no default boot scenario. End-users will be prompted to select it manually. Setting default="start" requires that "items" be set to "manual" or "both" (items="manual|both") while setting default="original" requires that "items" be set to "auto" or "both" (items="auto|both").

. timeout Time (in seconds) after which the default boot scenario will apply. The default value is "10".

4.2.2.3 Caution: This tag cannot be used together with the tag (p. 13).

The tag instructs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders to create a special boot menu with a choice of several factory images sealed in Acronis Secure Zone. Once a selected image has been restored on an end-user's hard drive, other images will be permanently removed from Acronis Secure Zone. For example, such a menu may be used to allow end-users to select from different localizations of the operating system, or 32/64-bit editions.

It is critical that the drive partitioning scheme of factory images be the same as the disk partitioning scheme of the target drive.

This tag is expected to include multiple child elements that are used to create menu items. Make sure that you put the closing tag () after the child elements. Caution: Sealed images shall be factory images of a disk/partition created by Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders (.tib file). Such an image can be created through the tag (p. 18).

Syntax

<![CDATA[Name of the OS]]>

Child elements . - boot menu item.

The tag is used to define parameters of a menu item.

This tag is expected to include four child elements - , , <archive> and <help>. Make sure that you put the closing tag (</item>) after the child elements. Syntax <item> <icon path="path" username="user" password="password"/> <title> <![CDATA[Name of the OS]]>

Child elements . - icon to represent the boot menu item. . - name of the boot menu item. . <archive> - tib archive with the factory image associated with the boot menu item. . <help> - description of the boot menu item. <icon> This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine. The <icon> tag specifies a path to the icon for a particular menu item. The icon must be a 48x144 pixel (three 48x48 pixel images) .png file showing non-active, active and disabled (grayed out image) modes (see an example below). Important: Make sure that the .png file that you use has been saved in the Portable Network Graphics format. Syntax <icon path="path" username="user" password="password"/> 21 Copyright © Acronis International GmbH, 2002-2016 Attributes . path File name and location. Either a local folder or a network share. . username Username to access the network share. . password Password to access the network share. <title> The <title> tag defines the name of an item as it appears in the boot menu. This tag requires the closing tag . The value between two tags should be a plain text. Syntax <![CDATA[Name of the OS]]>

The tag defines the location of the backup archive associated with the menu item. The archive will be copied to Acronis Secure Zone. Important: The backup archive shall be a factory image of a disk/partition created by Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders (.tib file). Such an image must be created through the tag (p. 18). Regular Acronis archives cannot be used.

Syntax Attributes . path Archive name and location. Either a local folder or a network share. . username Username to access the network share. . password Password to access the network share.

This parameter will be ignored on a UEFI-machine.

The tag includes the item description that is displayed at the bottom of the menu. Syntax Attributes . value Any plain text value.

4.3 Usage scenarios This section contains example scenarios of using Acronis True Image OEM for system builders.

Each scenario implies that you use a custom configuration XML script called through the /script: command-line switch. For example, atih_installer_sb_s_e.exe /script:\\StorageServer\Scripts\factory_image.xml If the script is in the network, make sure the network share is not password-protected.

4.3.1 Creating an upgradeable factory image A system builder has entered into a contract with a local educational institution. Under the terms of the contract, the system builder must prepare and supply 70 computers. All computers must have the same hardware configuration.

Each computer must have a clean Windows 7 Professional installation and a backup of the original configuration for quick disaster recovery.

The system builder is also aware that the institution's IT department will make changes to the original configuration to fine-tune computers and would recognize the ability to recover the modified configurations as well. Preparing the reference computer First the system builder prepares a reference computer: 1. Installs Windows 7 Professional with necessary hardware drivers. 2. Starts Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with the /nofullati option to avoid Acronis True Image OEM installation. The configuration XML script to be used is as follows: XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX Later this script will be delivered to the institution's IT department to create incremental backups with modified configurations.

3. Executes Sysprep to seal the operating system. After the Sysprep execution, the computer automatically reboots to the Acronis standalone environment where the factory image is created. Once the operation is complete, the reference computer is ready.

Deploying the master image When the reference computer is ready, the system builder deploys the image of the reference computer (master image) to the other computers. To facilitate this procedure, the system builder creates a special bootable USB flask key by using another Acronis tool called Mkrescue. This USB stick can do the following: . Create a master image by backing up the entire hard drive and save it to a network share. Master image also includes the Acronis Secure Zone with the factory image. . Recover the master image from the network share to a target computer with the same hardware configuration. For instructions on how to create such media, please refer to the Mkrescue user guide.

The system builder boots the reference computer from this USB flash key and selects to create a master image and saves it to the network share specified in the script.

Once the master image has been created, the system builder successively boots the target computers with the same hardware configuration from the same USB flash key and selects to recover the master image. As a result, each such computer will be the exact duplicate of the reference computer and will have the sealed Windows 7 Professional installation and the Acronis Secure Zone with the factory image. Delivering computers When finished, the system builder packs the computers and delivers them to the educational institution.

In addition, the system builder delivers a CD with Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders and the configuration script that has been used to prepare the reference computer.

To facilitate the deployment of the modified original configuration that the institution's IT department will perform, the system builder also delivers a customized Mkrescue USB stick where commands can be loaded from an external file. The institution's IT department will use this feature to make a master image of a modified original configuration and deploy this system on other computers.

4.3.2 Backing up multiple drives and partitions A system builder supplies a 64-bit UEFI computer with two drives. The hardware is bundled with an installation of Windows 7 Ultimate and pre-installed office and accounting software.

The first drive in the system is a 64 GB solid-state drive (SSD) OCZ Vertex Series SSD. It accommodates the customized Windows installation and all hardware drivers. It also serves as the boot drive to facilitate faster system boot-up. The second drive is a regular 1 TB hard drive disk (HDD) Seagate Barracuda 7200. It has two partitions: one for program files, another - for user files and folders.

The system builder wants to ensure quick and painless disaster recovery of the system. For this purpose, the system builder needs to prepare a factory image that contains the operating system from the first drive and the program files from the second drive. Moreover, the system builder wants to add more value by providing a reliable backup solution for the user files on the HDD.

The system builder prepares the computer and starts Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with the following custom configuration script:

XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX

Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders follows the instructions in the script and installs Acronis True Image OEM. The operation holds up until the system builder runs Sysprep on the computer. Then, the computer boots to the stand-alone Acronis environment. There the software creates Acronis Secure Zone on the HDD's second partition. Acronis Secure Zone is created large enough to fit the factory image plus 200 GB for user backups. Then, the software backs up the entire SSD and the HDD's first partition and saves this factory image to Acronis Secure Zone. The factory image is also copied to a network share as a two-file ISO image. Each file is created no more than 4.7 GB in size to fit into a DVD.

Now the computer is ready for shipping. The system builder burns the ISO image to two DVDs and packs them together with the computer.

4.3.3 Providing a choice between several factory images A system builder supplies BIOS-based laptops with one MBR hard disk drive (HDD). Laptops have Windows 7 Home Premium and are intended for diverse regions. End-users in different regions may need to use different locales: English (US), Spanish (Mexican) or French (Canadian). The system builder wants to enable end-users to choose their preferable locale as first computer startup and also to provide a factory image of the chosen locale.

To prepare such a system, the system builder needs to take the following steps: 1. Allocate a laptop that will be used as the reference computer for deployment on multiple laptops with the same hardware configuration. 2. Use the reference computer to successively create a factory image of each Windows 7 Home Premium locale on it and copy the image to a separate storage like a network share. The copy operation is determined through the tag in the configuration script. 3. Restore the original drive partitioning scheme on the reference computer by uninstalling Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders components. 4. Re-create Acronis Secure Zone on the reference computer, copy the factory images to Acronis Secure Zone and seal the entire system with a special boot menu.

The whole operation is determined through the tag in the configuration script. Creating factory images At this step, it is only necessary that the factory images have been successfully created and copied to the specified network share.

To create factory images, the system builder repeats the following actions on the same reference computer for every Windows 7 Home Premium locale: 1. Installs and configures a clean Windows 7 Home Premium operating system. 2. Runs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with the configuration script below. Each time the {EN|ES|FR} patterns (in bold) are replaced with a locale-dependent value — EN, ES or FR. XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX

Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders follows the instructions in the script and installs Acronis True Image OEM on the reference computer. The operation waits until the system builder runs Sysprep on the computer. 3. Runs Sysprep to seal the operating system. The computer boots to the stand-alone Acronis environment. When there, the software creates Acronis Secure Zone, backs up the entire drive and saves this factory image to Acronis Secure Zone. The factory image is also copied to the specified network share as a TIB archive. Restoring original drive partitioning scheme At this step, it is only necessary that Acronis Secure Zone has been successfully removed from the reference computer.

Once all necessary factory images have been created and copied, the system builder needs to prepare the reference computer for further actions. The system builder starts the Windows 7 Home Premium operating system which is still on the reference computer and runs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders as follows: ATIOEM2012SB_en-US.exe /uninstall /log:\\StorageServer\Images\Log\Uninstall /log_username:user /log_password:123

This command removes all Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders components, including Acronis Secure Zone, from the reference computer. Sealing factory images behind a boot menu At this step, it is necessary that Acronis Secure Zone has been created on the reference computer, that the factory images have been moved to Acronis Secure Zone, and that a special boot menu has been created.

When the original drive partitioning scheme has been restored, the system builder can proceed to sealing all of the factory images in Acronis Secure Zone. The system builder prepares three icons to represent boot menu items and places them in \\StorageServer\Icons. Then, the system builder restarts the Windows 7 Home Premium operating system which is still on the reference computer and runs Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders with the following configuration script:

XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX-XXXXXXXX

Windows 7 Home Premium (English)

Windows 7 Home Premium (espaсol)

Windows 7 Home Premium (franзais)

Once the entire operation is complete, the system is ready for deployment. Deploying the master image When the reference computer is ready, the system builder deploys the image of the reference computer (master image) to the other laptops. To facilitate this procedure, the system builder uses Acronis Snap Deploy 4 for PC (http://www.acronis.com/enterprise/products/snapdeploy/) with per- deployment licensing scheme.

The system builder makes a master image of the reference computer by using the Acronis Snap Deploy master image creator. The master image contains the entire HDD including Acronis Secure Zone with the factory images. Then the system builder sends the master image to Acronis Snap Deploy Server and deploys the master image on the other laptops by using the PXE boot server.

As a result, each such computer is the exact duplicate of the reference computer and has Acronis Secure Zone with three factory images behind a special boot menu. Staring the system for the first time When the end-user initially starts a newly purchased laptop, the user selects the preferred Windows 7 Home Premium installation from the boot menu. The selected image will be recovered on the laptop. When finished, other images are automatically removed from Acronis Secure Zone. The size of Acronis True Image OEM shrinks to fit the only factory image inside it. Free space is automatically reclaimed to the system partition.

Then, the system reboots. After the reboot, the end-user can see the regular Acronis Startup Recovery Manager prompt upon system boot-up. Finally, the computer starts Windows 7 Home Premium with the locale that the user has selected to restore.

Appendix A: Product components Acronis True Image OEM Acronis True Image OEM is a software suit based on Acronis True Image.

Acronis True Image OEM offers end-users powerful backup and recovery capabilities. It will be installed on a computer by default. Acronis Startup Recovery Manager Acronis Startup Recovery Manager lets end-users recover the factory image and start Acronis True Image OEM without loading the operating system. This becomes useful when the operating system fails to boot and there is no rescue CD/DVD or USB flash key available.

In case of a failure, the end-user should power on the computer and press the hot key specified in the configuration script (p. 14) when the "Press to run Acronis Startup Recovery Manager" message appears. This will open a boot menu where the end-user will be able to recover the factory image or run a standalone version of Acronis True Image OEM. Note: Drive letters in Acronis Startup Recovery Manager might sometimes differ from the way Windows identifies drives. For example, the D: drive in Acronis True Image OEM may correspond to the E: drive in Windows.

Acronis Secure Zone Acronis Secure Zone is a special partition for storing Acronis backups, including the factory image created by Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders. Although Acronis Secure Zone is seen under Windows, its contents cannot be accessed and modified by non-Acronis software. Therefore, the backups in Acronis Secure Zone are unlikely to be damaged or deleted. Later on, Acronis Secure Zone can be used and managed by any other Acronis products including Acronis True Image OEM.

Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders creates Acronis Secure Zone when creating the factory image and then automatically adjusts its size to fit the image.

Acronis Secure Zone is always created as the last logical partition on the drive. Free space is taken from unallocated space available on the drive. If there is no unallocated space, space is taken from the free space of the drive specified in the configuration script. If you specified a particular partition, space is allocated from that specific partition. For successful Acronis Secure Zone creation, the amount of free or unallocated space must be no less than 90% of the data being backed up. For disks and partitions specified in the tag, this includes all used space plus the size of partitions with unsupported file systems (is any). In addition, if you use the freespace attribute, this amount must also be also taken into account. For the tag, the amount of free or unallocated space must be 10% more than the total size of all factory that will be placed in Acronis Secure Zone.

Acronis Original Configuration Acronis Original Configuration is the core Acronis True Image OEM component that basically creates the factory image and Acronis Secure Zone. In addition, it activates Acronis Startup Recovery Manager on the computer and provides the factory image recovery mechanism.

Factory bootable media Factory bootable media is a special type of rescue bootable media that includes the factory image. It provides a rescue environment to restore the computer's original configuration and, optionally, run Acronis True Image OEM in the event of system drive failure.

You can prepare such media by using the tag in the configuration XML script. This creates an ISO image that you can burn to optical media (CD/DVD) and ship together with the computer. You can also use the tag. This makes a specified USB drive bootable.

Moreover, end-users can prepare such media themselves by using a dedicated Acronis True Image OEM feature. It supports direct CD\DVD burning and provides the ability to create a bootable USB stick on a FAT formatted USB flash drive. However, such media will not include Acronis True Image OEM.

Appendix B: Microsoft's System Preparation Tool (sysprep.exe)

Microsoft's System Preparation Tool (Sysprep, sysprep.exe) prepares an installation of Windows for imaging, auditing and customer delivery. It removes all system-specific information from an installed Windows operating system, including the computer name and security identifier (SID). Sysprep is also widely used for desktop deployment via disk cloning and disk transfer.

Starting from Windows Vista, Sysprep is already included in every installation and can be found under %systemroot%\System32\sysprep\.

For Windows XP, Sysprep should be downloaded from the Microsoft website (http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=11282) or extracted from the deploy.cab file located on the Windows installation CD.

Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders can keep track of the Sysprep execution state. If specified in the configuration script, software execution will be suspended until the user runs Sysprep of a certain type on the computer. After that, the factory image will be created with the sealed Windows operating system. If you do not seal the Windows installation by using Sysprep, make sure to remove the sysprep attribute from the tag in the configuration XML script.

Running Sysprep on Windows Vista or Windows 7 Before you run Sysprep on a Windows machine: . Postpone resetting the activation clock as recommended by Microsoft. To do so, set the value of SkipRearm in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SoftwareProtectionPlatform to "0". Since the activation clock can be reset only three times, you might run out of activation clock resets if you run Sysprep multiple times on a computer. . Prepare an answer file (XML). This file scripts the answers for a series of graphic user interface dialog boxes. To prepare such a file, use the Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK) available for free download from Microsoft's Download Center (http://www.microsoft.com/download/). Alternatively, use the simple answer file with the following contents: true To run Sysprep: 1. Start the Windows Command Prompt as the administrator.

2. Run sysprep.exe as follows: sysprep.exe /generalize [/oobe | /audit] /quiet /unattend:answerfile /reboot where . /generalize Removes all unique system information from the Windows installation, resets the security ID, clears any system restore points and deletes event logs. . /oobe Restarts the computer into Windows Welcome mode. Windows Welcome enables end users to customize their Windows operating system, create user accounts, name the computer, and other tasks. . /audit Restarts the computer into audit mode. Audit mode enables you to add additional drivers or applications to Windows. You can also test an installation of Windows before it is sent to an end user. . /quiet Runs Sysprep without displaying on-screen confirmation messages. . /unattend:answerfile Applies settings in an answer file to Windows during unattended installation. answerfile specifies the path and file name of the answer file to use. . /reboot Restarts the computer after Sysprep completes. Read a more detailed description of the Sysprep command-line syntax in the Microsoft Tech Net web site at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc721973(v=WS.10).aspx

Running Sysprep on Windows XP To run Sysprep on Windows XP: 1. Start the Windows Command Prompt as the administrator. 2. Run sysprep.exe as follows: sysprep.exe -reseal -reboot where . -reseal Prepares the computer for final delivery and configures the computer so that mini-setup runs the next time the computer is started. . -reboot Forces the computer to restart automatically and then start the mini-setup stage or the factory-mode stage. This is useful when you want to audit the system and verify that the first-run experience operates correctly. Read a more detailed description of the Sysprep command-line syntax in the Microsoft Tech Net web site at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc785213%28WS.10%29.aspx#w2k3tr_sys_tools_arbg

Setting up Sysprep image state in the configuration XML script Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders detects the use of Sysprep on the machine if the sysprep attribute is defined in the tag of the configuration XML script.

The attribute's value can convey one the possible Sysprep image states listed in the table below.

At a certain stage, Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders will halt until the operating system receives this state. Then the software execution continues. Important: If you run Sysprep with a wrong parameter, the factory image will simply not be created. No error messages will be shown to you.

Short Name Full Name Description

ISGR_TO_OOBE IMAGE_STATE_GENERALIZE_RESEAL_TO_OOBE The image has successfully completed the generalize pass and will continue into OOBEsystem when Windows setup is initiated. Does not apply to Windows XP. ISGR_TO_AUDIT IMAGE_STATE_GENERALIZE_RESEAL_TO_AUDIT The image has successfully completed the generalize pass and will continue into audit mode when Windows setup is initiated. Does not apply to Windows XP. ISSR_TO_OOBE IMAGE_STATE_SPECIALIZE_RESEAL_TO_OOBE The image has successfully completed the specialize pass and will continue into OOBEsystem when Windows setup is initiated. Does not apply to Windows XP. ISSR_TO_AUDIT IMAGE_STATE_SPECIALIZE_RESEAL_TO_AUDIT The image has successfully completed the specialize pass and will continue into audit mode when Windows setup is initiated. Does not apply to Windows XP. DEFAULT DEFAULT The image has successfully completed either the generalize or the specialize pass and will continue into OOBEsystem when Windows setup is initiated.

Appendix C: Troubleshooting and technical assistance Program logs and reports In case of any problems with the factory image creation or Acronis True Image OEM installation, please refer to the program log files and reports. They provide all necessary troubleshooting information.

By default, logs and reports are always saved in the original system in the %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Acronis\OEMInstallation directory. However, you can specify a custom location through the /log: switch (p. 9) or the log_file attribute inside the tag (p. 15).

The following table explains what the log files stand for. File Name Description AcronisTrueImageHome_MSI_.log MSI log of the AcronisTrueImage.msi component that installs Acronis True Image OEM. In case of unsuccessful installation, the log file will include a Windows Installer error code. Error codes and messages for Windows Installer are described in http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304888 OriginalConfiguration_MSI_.log MSI log of the SecureZone.msi component that installs Acronis Secure Zone. In case of unsuccessful installation, the log file will include a Windows Installer error code. Error codes and messages for Windows Installer are described in http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304888 report_before_.zip Partition layout configuration before the Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders execution. report_after_.zip Partition layout configuration after the Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders execution. factory_tool_.log Detailed log of factory image creation under Windows. It includes information regarding the feasibility of the entire operation. This is checked before the operation starts to prevent possible failures. create_original_configuration_ Detailed log of factory image creation under the standalone .log Linux-based environment. script_.xml Configuration script that was used for the factory image creation. Contacting Acronis OEM support team If you do not have enough resources to troubleshoot and fix issues by yourself, you are welcome to contact the Acronis OEM support team. Please submit a ticket in Acronis OEM Partner Portal (http://oem.acronis.com/) and describe the issue. Also, attach the logs and reports from the log directory.

Support resources In addition to contacting the dedicated support team, Acronis encourages OEMs to refer to the following support resources: . Acronis OEM Partner Portal (http://oem.acronis.com/) . Acronis Knowledge Base (http://kb.acronis.com/) Known issues The following table lists the known issues concerning Acronis True Image OEM for System Builders and offers a possible solution or a workaround. Issue Solution/Workaround Component installation through msiexec msiexec installation is no longer supported in Acronis True Image fails OEM Acronis Startup Recovery Manager fails to Decompress the bootwiz folder on the system drive. activate