Windows Preinstallation Environment: Difference between revisions

Undo revision 319616 by Pivotman319 (talk)
(→‎Gallery: this is a WinRE, not a WinPE)
Tag: 2017 source edit
(Undo revision 319616 by Pivotman319 (talk))
Tag: Undo
Line 8: Line 8:


In Windows XP, the environment is loaded by <code>setupldr.bin</code> in a similar manner to the text mode setup. However, it does not load the operating system into a RAM disk by default and therefore it is required to keep the system disk in the drive, as ejecting it would cause the system to misbehave. In Windows Vista, the system is stored inside a [[W:Windows Imaging Format|WIM file]] called <code>boot.wim</code>, which is loaded by the [[W:Windows NT 6 startup process|boot manager]] into a RAM disk and then executed. Unlike regular versions of Windows, Windows PE uses the <code>/MININT</code> switch to instruct the kernel to load registry hives as volatile to ensure that the operating system does not attempt to save any registry changes to the boot disk.
In Windows XP, the environment is loaded by <code>setupldr.bin</code> in a similar manner to the text mode setup. However, it does not load the operating system into a RAM disk by default and therefore it is required to keep the system disk in the drive, as ejecting it would cause the system to misbehave. In Windows Vista, the system is stored inside a [[W:Windows Imaging Format|WIM file]] called <code>boot.wim</code>, which is loaded by the [[W:Windows NT 6 startup process|boot manager]] into a RAM disk and then executed. Unlike regular versions of Windows, Windows PE uses the <code>/MININT</code> switch to instruct the kernel to load registry hives as volatile to ensure that the operating system does not attempt to save any registry changes to the boot disk.
==Appearance==
The environment used the [[Windows Classic]] theme up to version 3.0 (based on [[Windows 7]]), as it didn't include support for [[visual style]]s, although it did at first include some elements such as the newer Aero cursors. The theme service was introduced in WinPE 4.0 (based on [[Windows 8]]) together with the [[Windows Aero]] theme, although it falls back to [[Windows Basic]] window frames due to [[Desktop Window Manager]] not being included. Parts of the Aero theme resources were since removed from the Preinstallation Environment as of [[Windows 10 (original release)|the original Windows 10 release]], leaving behind a variant where the font falls back to Segoe UI Italic in most visual aspects (except the [[Windows Setup|setup application]], which has its own font file bundled) and the cursor scheme reverted to the original pre-Vista variation.


==List of versions==
==List of versions==
Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.