Q. Can I Sysprep a Windows Server 2008 R2 box that has the Hyper-V role enabled?

John Savill

April 17, 2010

1 Min Read
ITPro Today logo in a gray background | ITPro Today

A. I needed to create a Server 2008 R2 virtual hard disk (VHD) with Hyper-V enabled so that people at an event could copy the VHD to their desktops, run some commands to update the Boot Configuration Database, and then boot into Server 2008 R2 from the VHD. This meant Sysprep-ing the Server 2008 R2 installation. I was curious about what happens to 2008 R2 when you Sysprep if you have Hyper-V.

Basically, it works just fine. There are a few minor items to consider:

  • Because of the generalization of hardware that accompanies Sysprep, any external virtual networks will be converted to internal virtual networks.

  • If pass through disks were used, they'll need to be set up again, because the hardware IDs of the disks will change and not be found.

  • The hypervisor won't load automatically. You need to make a change using Bcdedit with the command

 

bcdedit /set \{current\} hypervisorlaunchtype
 
auto

About the Author

Sign up for the ITPro Today newsletter
Stay on top of the IT universe with commentary, news analysis, how-to's, and tips delivered to your inbox daily.

You May Also Like