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How Imaging Works

Imaging consists of several parts:

Master Creation
We provide a pre-built and prepared master image, Windows 11 25H2.
To download and create the master, you can run the following command:
import_master.sh

Creating a sysprep
To create a sysprep, go to Medulla and "Sysprep Answer File Manager," then follow the steps to create the sysprep file you want.

Creating a post-install script
The master created in the previous step requires a post-install script.
Post-install scripts enable various actions that accompany the master deployment; by default, we ask you to create a post-install script with the necessary options. Please refer to the documentation to create and fill it out, and to understand the different options.

Profile
Create a new profile, associate it with the previously created post-install script, select 0 in the script field, and click Validate.
Then associate the profile with a master.

Deploying a master
Boot the computer you want to deploy via PXE (it must already be registered), then select the master with its associated profile and let the master deployment proceed.


For each step, you can refer to the relevant sections on the other pages of this documentation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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OPTIONAL
For further information, if you really want to create a highly customized master:
 
Registration
For the machine to be recognized by Medulla, it must be registered.
When booting the machine via PXE on the network, the "register" option appears; you must select it to register the machine.
Here, either the machine is already present in GLPI and the menu displays its name directly, or you can enter the machine’s name during registration.

Image capture
Once the machine is properly registered, you will see the "backup" option in the menu to save the computer's image in order to create a master.
Some prerequisites for capturing an image correctly:
  • First, you must back up a computer running a fresh copy of Windows straight out of the box. Then, when you boot it up, you must skip the OOBE (Out of Box Experience, the questions during Windows installation)
  • Make sure there is no "pending reboot"; here is the command to check for one:
Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\Auto Update\RebootRequired" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

  • You can then perform some basic Windows configurations if needed, such as creating a user account, etc.
  • Run the prepare-master.ps1 script found here:
/var/lib/pulse2/imaging/postinst/winutils/prepare-master.ps1

This script checks for Windows updates, removes non-essential applications, and disables BitLocker if the C: drive is encrypted; it also optimizes the image size by deleting temporary files and cleans up the Windows component store.

  • Reboot the machine.

Creating a master
Once you have captured your image in the previous step, you can find it in the Imaging menu of the machine on which you just performed the capture.
Go to "All GLPI Machines," click the "Imaging Menu" action for the relevant machine, then "Images and Masters," where you will find the captured image.
Click on the captured image to convert it into a master, give it a name (label), then click "Validate and Convert to Master".
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