Create a custom GUI for Windows PE

In this column I will demonstrate how to create a GUI front end for Windows Preinstallation Environment (PE), a...

tool that allows you create custom Windows PE images.

You will need two things: Windows PE (preferably 1.6, which is what I have been developing with) and an OS source. You are better off using a Windows 2003 Server source, integrated with Service Pack 1. That way you can create a custom version of Windows PE that runs in RAM.

The GUI front-end version that I am posting is by no means complete, but it is fully working. I intend to improve upon this product as time goes by, so please drop me an e-mail if you want to contribute some ideas.

At the moment, this version's code is a bit messy, and I would rather people didn't try to adapt the code right now. What I want to do is get it to a stage where all the current bugs (and we know there are going to be some) have been ironed out. Then I will fully document the code and create a general framework for you all to use. I created the program as an HTML application (HTA) with VBSCRIPT as the code language, so it should be easily adaptable in the long run.

Instructions:
Download File: 10740cpe.zip (http://myitforum.techtarget.com/inc/arts/10740cpe.zip)

1. Create a folder called C:\windowsPE
2. Create a subfolder
3. C:\windowspe\winpe
4. Copy the windows pe source files into the c:\windowspe\winpe folder
5. Download the attached zip file and uncompress the files into the C:\windowspe\winpe folder.
6. Run the current.hta program