How to make a Windows 7 SP1 Convenience Rollup ISO with all updates up to 2016

Alaric said:

Quick question. I have image files I need to turn back in to regular files/folders. ImgBurn apparently won't do it. Will Nero?

Click to expand...

What do you mean by Image files? ISOs? If you're on Windows 7 just download VCD (https://www.redfox.bz/en/virtual-clonedrive.html), mount them, and copy/paste the files to whatever directory you want.

I've purposely not downloaded any winten updates for a few weeks. I did the gpedit.msi to prevent automatically installed updates just by looking at the update page. Well winten is nagging me in an unacceptable way that can't be dismissed like most nags. This one locks up all mouse and most keyboard access to anything other than the pink GUI demanding you to download now. The only exit strategy is to key ctrl+alt+del and log off and then back on again. If you have anything that needs saving, you're sol. Task manager can be launched, but you can't access the controls. THIS WILL CAUSE ME TO REVERT BACK TO WINDOWS 7 if I don't find a blocking method for this MS arm twist.

Audioaficionado said:

I've purposely not downloaded any winten updates for a few weeks. I did the gpedit.msi to prevent automatically installed updates just by looking at the update page. Well winten is nagging me in an unacceptable way that can't be dismissed like most nags. This one locks up all mouse and most keyboard access to anything other than the pink GUI demanding you to download now. The only exit strategy is to key ctrl+alt+del and log off and then back on again. If you have anything that needs saving, you're sol. Task manager can be launched, but you can't access the controls. THIS WILL CAUSE ME TO REVERT BACK TO WINDOWS 7 if I don't find a blocking method for this MS arm twist.

View attachment 183549

Click to expand...

Dude I'm so irate with MS about tactics like these lately I can't even.

Alaric said:

Quick question. I have image files I need to turn back in to regular files/folders. ImgBurn apparently won't do it. Will Nero?

Click to expand...

You need to post the file extension, and we'll help you extract whatever is in it.


Audio, are you sure that's Microsoft and and not a pop-up advertisement to trick you into going to the author's page?

It's pictures, video, documents, Favorites list. Made the copies with ImgBurn from a previous HDD, in case I have to try to reformat my 4 TB HDD.

edit: I did find a fix for my TV tuner card problem, though. I installed the software (WinTV v8) and Media Center works like a charm. Not thrilled with the picture quality of the hardware, but the guide, recording, etc., are fully functional.

What extension is the image file .what?

Nope, it's MS trying to force me to update. What I can do to verify my theory is to update from the update page and see if it goes away until I let updates stack up again.

c627627 said:

What extension is the image file .what?

Click to expand...

.mds

VCD might work for you. I have accidentally mounted .mds files in the past and they have worked just fine. If it is linked to an .mdf file though it won't work. You'll need something like Power ISO for that.

c6, trents... there is a lot more that can actually go into this guide for IT professionals. I get the idea was to create a "Barebones" step, by step process (which I am doing as well)... but I also have found that there is so much more I can write in detail that encompasses that minor part of the entire process. I hope that's ok.

It's really easy to make a separate part II that regular users don't have to read if they don't want to.

Priority would be for an average user with limited computer knowledge to be able to make a working installation DVD/USB for Windows 7, something that is not available from Microsoft at the moment in any shape or form...

Feel free to expand part II with what you think would help someone like you... ☺

c627627 said:

Audio, are you sure that's Microsoft and and not a pop-up advertisement to trick you into going to the author's page?

Click to expand...

Audioaficionado said:

Nope, it's MS trying to force me to update. What I can do to verify my theory is to update from the update page and see if it goes away until I let updates stack up again.

Click to expand...

BTW the pink color of the nag GUI is the exact same color of magenta pink as the windows updating screen. I applied 5 weeks of updates. If I don't see that nag for a few weeks to a month before it starts again, It's confirmed it's an official winten nag GUI.

/off topic:
I'm looking forward to seeing this up to date instruction set for getting the latest version of win7 installed.

I thought my Updater was fixed. Except now it's listing SP 1 as an important update. LOL. It may be left over from WSUS downloading updates. W 7 seems very broken out of the box.

So I used my own instructions to build a custom slipstreamed Win7 Pro ISO from a Windlows 10 host machine. Wanted to do this to make sure there were no mistakes in the instructions that would break the build. Glad I did this because, although there were no booboos of a magnitude that would break the build, I did find several inaccuracies in things I said that needed correcting.

I also found that some of the download links didn't work from Word. Copying and pasting the download links from c6's instructions into Word can produce a different URL than what you expect since it seems to give the URL of the forum post the intended link is embedded in rather than of the page you wish to point to. So you have to go straight to the actual intended web page and directly get the URL from there. Even then, it sometimes gives a strange result. I think confirming those links will need to wait until the final form of the instructions are moved to the forum so we can check how they work when you click on them in a forum post window.

TechWizzard, the build size of my install media is under 3.6GB. In your proofreading revision of my original draft you added the statement that the final ISO build would be approximately 4.6GB. Is that a typo on your part or is that difference due to the fact that you were using Ultimate for the build and I was using Professional?

TW, I also was not sure of there being 500+ updates to Windows 7 released since SP1. I don't seem to turn up that many, even when I take all the optional ones and drivers. Seems to be more like 200 for me when I check for them. But again, some of this difference may be explained by the fact that you are working from Ultimate and me from Professional. Anyway, I reworded that part to say just "hundreds."

I will try to post a new draft with corrections later today.

I also want to check my instructions from a Windows 7 host machine to see if there are any differences in the process from using a Win 10 host besides the one we already caught about mounting ISOs.

trents said:

TechWizzard, the build size of my install media is under 3.6GB. In your proofreading revision of my original draft you added the statement that the final ISO build would be approximately 4.6GB. Is that a typo on your part or is that difference due to the fact that you were using Ultimate for the build and I was using Professional?

Click to expand...

I had additional updates installed at that point for Enterprise. I created a Professional version last night while beginning to write my version of the guide and the installer is 4.05GB. It contains the April Service Stacking Update, SP2/Convenience, May, July, August, and September Roll Ups.

trents said:

TW, I also was not sure of there being 500+ updates to Windows 7 released since SP1. I don't seem to turn up that many, even when I take all the optional ones and drivers. Seems to be more like 200 for me when I check for them. But again, some of this difference may be explained by the fact that you are working from Ultimate and me from Professional. Anyway, I reworded that part to say just "hundreds."

Click to expand...

Since SP1 might be ~300+ Updates. I'd lean more towards 400.

If you don't have SP1 and try to install from scratch (Windows 7 from 2012), you have an additional 150+ updates you need as prerequisites before you install SP1. After you install SP1, if the updater works it'll pull another 120 or so. After that you'll find a large batch of 230+, give or take a few. Then there is about 70 additional updates followed by 2-3 waves of 10-20 updates, finally followed by smaller batches in the single digits.

So to break it down... 150 + SP1 + 120 + 230 + 70 + ~50 + ~20 = ~600+ SO even if I am wildly off on one of those figures in there 500+ isn't unrealistic.

trents said:

I will try to post a new draft with corrections later today.

Click to expand...

I'm working on mine as well. I just need to go through the actual process of executing the commands step by step (the quick part). I've included adding SP1 manually within the instructions that users can skip over if they already have it and I plan on including a section at the end that explains how to integrate USB 3.0 drivers into your boot.wim so you can utilize USB 3.0 for faster installs.

I created an Introduction for those interested in actually learning DISM and to understand the process we have been going over the last few weeks here. Obviously this can be skipped or posted separate from the actual instructions. When I got into "How to do it" I just got straight to the point to avoid having two guides that are too identical. I don't explain how to mount images or ask them to name things specifically - I only offer examples for the sake of assuming people will understand they are creating folders to manipulate files.

Audioaficionado said:

/off topic:
I'm looking forward to seeing this up to date instruction set for getting the latest version of win7 installed.

Click to expand...

Post #1 already contains what we believe are the first real working instructions. At this point we are talking about clarifying them and maybe adding upon them for an article.

But if you wanted to make a drive image of your current OS partition, follow post 1 instructions and create a DVD / USB as instructed, you would be able to confirm if
A. Working installation media can be made relatively quickly.
B. It would fresh install Windows 7 with SP1 and all major updates until now...

You could also post if anything in instructions made you think twice about what it means, the goal was to make it quick and easy to do.

I edited post#1 to include the September 2016 Rollup released a few days ago.
Perfect opportunity for you to test if it wooks, Audio.

If you know how to make an image of your OS partition, you can just go back to Windows 10 after testing this Windows 7 installation DVD/USB.
Maybe make an image of fresh install of Windows 7 on your system to keep for later?

c627627 said:

I edited post#1 to include the September 2016 Rollup released a few days ago.
Perfect opportunity for you to test if it wooks, Audio.

Click to expand...

I should have probably posted earlier that I did this last night and it worked great. I used the install on my Server I'm setting up to run a dedicated ARK server. Was installed and updated in under an hour.

This still needs a lot of work, but this is where I am at on a rough draft of my take on the entire process. My plan to give you guys a more consolidated version of JUST the steps to add packages is to take the central section (TL;DR section) and remove as many details as possible.

Let me know your thoughts. I still want to add a section for adding the USB 3.0 drivers to the boot.wim, getting a package list so you can see what you already have on a .wim, and how to remove packages. My reasoning for doing all of this is because I literally had to read roughly 5 or more articles to learn all of this information. A lot of the instruction was unclear and many things I had to figure out for myself.

Adding the packages and getting a slipstreamed image of Win 7 is one battle on its own, but if you ran into the issues I did then you've got a whole war to wage and I hope this write up will serve those who find themselves in the same position I found myself.

View attachment Slip Streamin V1.zip

--edit--

I need to take a break from this - probably for the remainder of the weekend. I think I've been looking at these commands and the process so much over the last few weeks it is all starting to blend together. @_@

Annnd my girlfriend is getting a little jealous of the computer and I'll be spending time playing with my M.2 on top of it haha.

I think a huge round of applause and thanks are due c627627, trents, and TechWizard for the hours of work they have put in to making Windows 7 a viable option again. Thank you, guys.