: On the target computer, you enter the BIOS/UEFI and set the boot priority to Network Boot or PXE . When the computer starts, it sends out a DHCP request. The server hears this and hands the computer a tiny "boot image" over the wire.
Then serve boot.ipxe :
C:\Serva\TFTPRoot\ ├── Boot\ │ ├── pxeboot.com │ ├── bootmgr.exe │ └── boot.sdi ├── Windows\ (full ISO contents) └── Serva_Asset\ install windows over network
Aside from the cool factor, installing Windows over a network is incredibly useful for:
: You have a device with no optical drive, no working USB ports, or a dead internal drive, and you need to get an OS onto it. : On the target computer, you enter the
Download and run (it’s portable, no installation required).
For simplicity, let's assume you have a folder called Boot containing pxeboot.n12 , bootmgr.exe , and the BCD file. Then serve boot
# dnsmasq.conf addition dhcp-boot=http://192.168.1.10/boot.ipxe
mkdir -p /srv/tftp/pxelinux.cfg cp /usr/lib/syslinux/modules/bios/* /srv/tftp/ cp /usr/lib/SYSLINUX.EFI/efi64/* /srv/tftp/ # for UEFI