Blue Screen (not Bluescreen) at installation start

[H4NNE5]

Hi there,
I just made a Win10 Pro mod and after booting from USB, and after the black screen with the blue windows logo it changes into a blue screen but then nothing happens and eventually after 1 minute the computer turns off completely

I had another installation before which went through but there I skipped the user setup and ended up with the "Another user" screen and couldn't log in.
For this mod now, I corrected that and also made a few other changes.

Any ideas, which setting/change causes this problem? I attached my preset( I removed my windows key though).
Hopefully you guys can help me out

Cheers!
Hannes

 

[garlin]

Your preset's source is 19045.2604 (Feb 2023). I believe you made removals in another edit, so we need that earlier preset.

 

[H4NNE5]

Hey garlin,
So do I understand correctly, that the preset I uploaded refers to another preset I made?
Because I thought each preset contains all changes. I'm confused now

 

[garlin]

Each preset only contains changes for the session you've saved. It's not cumulative to the image.

If you edited the ISO more than one time, we to see the other presets (or auto-saves). When those files are missing, it's hard to guess what the earlier changes were. To be consistent, always start with a clean ISO and keep track of all your changes by saving to the same preset in one session.

 

[francis11]

And that's why NTL have two options to load a preset with right click:
1) Overwrite means you only load that Preset
2) Append means you can load more than one Preset to fullfill a kind of several Presets with different removals/ testing as Garlin have already pointed out in other posts, that presets are not cumulative. Append option is a kind of way to make you gather different Presets to one.

And when updating and image - always start with a vanilla image and integrate latest updates using the accumulated/ Appended Presets which sooner or later should be a master Preset.

 

[H4NNE5]

And that's why NTL have two options to load a preset with right click:
1) Overwrite means you only load that Preset
2) Append means you can load more than one Preset to fullfill a kind of several Presets with different removals/ testing as Garlin have already pointed out in other posts, that presets are not cumulative. Append option is a kind of way to make you gather different Presets to one.

And when updating and image - always start with a vanilla image and integrate latest updates using the accumulated/ Appended Presets which sooner or later should be a master Preset.

Ok, thank you for pointing that out in details.

So I made an installation with Hellbovine's optimized guide which installed fine in the VMWarePlayer. But then I made more modifications and now the blue screen problem is also present.
See attached preset.

 

[francis11]

I don't do WM - it's for lazy PCs/ Laptops!
But as i see you added more updates after install and run Unattended again on an installed (WM) image and some regs.
Now you've 3 sections to point out your problem.
Find, see and test.

 

[Hellbovine]

But then I made more modifications and now the blue screen problem is also present.

I think the most efficient way to narrow down this problem would be to split it up into 3 images:

1) First, take an unmodified Microsoft ISO then integrate the updates that you want, save the XML as "Image_1" then process it. Install that and see if any issues arise.

2) If the previous step works, load the Image_1 files into NTLite, add all of your component removals and other stuff which is not a part of my guide, save the XML as Image_2, then process it and install that to test.

3) If there's still no problems, load the Image_2 files, add my guide, save the XML as Image_3, process, then install/test.

Be sure to not change any other variables during these steps because those variables could be the problem, such as VM versus real install, internet or no internet, resetting/modifying BIOS settings, etcetera. Also, backup the Image files from each step so that you don't have to start over while testing. For example, in step 2 use a copy of the Image_1 files to modify, without affecting the original image. By time you're done you'll have 4 images in total (the unmodified ISO and 3 modified images).

 

[garlin]

To make this simpler, you don't really need to keep 4 separate images.

Start with a clean ISO, add updates in step 1. Test install. If that passes, make a backup of the finished image.
Run step 2 with the modded image. Test install. If that passes, throw away the backup and make a new backup.
Run step 3 with the modded image. Same process -- just keep a backup of the last image.

The goal is always keep a copy of the previous image, so you can retry the last batch of changes on an image you know worked.

 

[H4NNE5]

Hellbovine
Interestingly generating the image in this order, it now works.
And I just found this line in your guide explanation "This image was purposely constructed in a modular way, meaning you can take bits and pieces from it, or you could take the whole guide and actually layer it on top of other custom NTLite images."
The only thing I was wondering that upon starting the setup, I needed to confirm the language selection and the agreement of the Microsoft terms. Using only your modifications with the unattended settings it just installs straight without any inputs. What could be the reason?

Also could you please kindly tell me the registry commands to turn back on the Defender and the real time protection?

 

[Hellbovine]

Interestingly generating the image in this order, it now works.

Spoiler: click here to reveal text

Check out my Quality Control guide (link) for more tips to avoid similar issues in the future. I just updated the entire thing recently too. There's a section called "Processing Order" in there that discusses this topic further. I had a hunch something like this was at least a part of your issue, which is why I had you remake the image and divide it up with your updates first.

The only thing I was wondering that upon starting the setup, I needed to confirm the language selection and the agreement of the Microsoft terms. Using only your modifications with the unattended settings it just installs straight without any inputs. What could be the reason?

Spoiler: click here to reveal text

I'm not quite sure what the question is, are you asking if my guide changes Windows Setup and that's why some screens are skipped now, or are you asking how come my guide plus only unattended settings in NTLite works properly, whereas unattended stuff stops working when you add tweaks from other sources outside of my guide?

Also could you please kindly tell me the registry commands to turn back on the Defender and the real time protection?

Spoiler: click here to reveal text

This question comes up a lot, so I'll try to update my guide to add information that answers this. In the meantime, it's easy to fix, all we have to do is right-click on the Security .reg file and select "Edit", then do a search for \Policies\ with the backslashes, and you'll find the group policy keys that are responsible for locking down the Defender and Firewall settings. If you notice on the far right they also all say "Disabled" which is the wording I use to signify group policies as well, while other settings say "Off/On" and that's what I use to signify that it's a Windows interface toggle.

The policies are the keys that need to be deleted from the file before making an image, or deleted from your live install of Windows in Regedit, and then it will unlock the settings (no longer greyed out) in the Security Center so you can then freely toggle real-time protection and the firewalls back on through the Windows interface. This same .reg file also has the registry keys that handle those Security Center toggles too, but it's better to toggle it through the interface since the Firewalls also modify various ports.

Each key is commented inside those .reg files to explain what they do, so you can use that info to remove or modify whatever keys you want, before making an image so that it's all more suited for your personal needs.