Exploring Windows PE

Windows PE, which is supplied with Windows 7 and in the Windows AIK, is the installation engine for Windows 7. It is directly bootable from CD, DVD, and universal serial bus (USB) flash drives (UFDs). You can also start Windows PE by using Windows Deployment Services and the Pre-Boot Execution Environment (PXE) extensions to Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) (if supported by the network adapters of your computers).

Windows PE is a minimal Windows operating system that provides limited services based on the Windows 7 kernel. It also provides the minimal set of features required to run Windows 7 Setup, install Windows 7 from networks, script basic repetitive tasks, and validate hardware. For example, with Windows PE, ...

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