This is the first preview release of DISMTools 0.6.1, with new features and enhancements:
File hashes
| File | Name | Hash (SHA256) |
|---|---|---|
| Installer | dt_setup.exe | 4F38F5F43A271DDFCB134184DFA748895D8AD19AC385BADC0BAD508EC9F4D3AE |
| Portable | DISMTools.zip | 4AA1D4FC89202F74196F9FB78D915523AA67053A198ED5E29A91F9A351D41E7B |
Important
If you use Windows Defender, it may incorrectly flag this version as malware. SmartScreen may also do this. Don't worry; this is safe to download and use.
This AV solution flags this program because it lacks code-signing certificates, which are quite expensive (as of January 2025, 660 and 864 dollars for 3 years of SV and EV certificates, respectively, from Comodo).
If you use other antivirus solutions, you will not see this problem. Learn more here
Bugfixes
- Fixed an issue where the program would sometimes throw an exception when saving settings (#205, thanks @Dretreyt for spotting)
- Fixed an issue where Windows 8 and 10 detection functions for background processes would sometimes throw exceptions (#206, thanks @arielsil for spotting)
- Fixed an issue where background processes would sometimes not start after mounting a Windows image, causing you to reload the projects (#208, #210, thanks @novice55 for spotting)
- Fixed an issue where the program would throw an exception when creating a new project from within the online and/or offline installation management modes (#209, thanks @webber3242 for spotting)
- Fixed an issue where the program would throw an exception when using keyboard combinations to access items in the recent projects list if there were no items. Now, the following message will appear:
New features
DynaLog
- DynaLog, which was initially introduced in DISMTools 0.6, has been applied to the whole codebase
Note
There are no options to configure the logger yet. Expect these to arrive in later preview releases
Tip
Expand the following section if you want to know how events are logged
Understanding DynaLog event logs:
DynaLog event logs are stored in the file DT_DynaLog.log, in the logs folder. When you open it, you will see events following this structure:
...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] Getting mounted images...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] Clearing lists...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] Initializing API...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] Calling API function to grab mounted images...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] 10 mounted image(s) have been detected on this system. Grabbing information...
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] Image information:
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] - Image file : C:\wims\install_23h2.wim
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] - Image index : 1
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] - Mount directory : C:\dtprojs\Win11-23H2\mount
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] - Mount status : 0 (OK)
[01/03/2025 16:07:48] [DetectMountedImages (MainForm_Load)] - Mount mode : 0 (Write permissions enabled)
...
An event is divided into 3 parts:
- The time at which it happened. This is a UTC timestamp
- The name of the function/method that logged an event and, optionally, the name of its parent
- The message
The logger can be temporarily disabled by the program, but this is only done in situations where logging causes a performance overhead. I want a balance between performance and logging capabilities.
Unattended answer file features
- UnattendGen has been updated to the latest version
- You can now tell the unattended answer file to use a configuration set or distribution share:
- Applying unattended answer files from within DISMTools is faster now
Preinstallation Environment Helper
- The PE Helper now supports initiating OS installations from within full Windows environments, thanks to HotInstall
HotInstall prepares your computer to boot to the Preinstallation Environment, from which you will be able to install Windows. This is done by configuring the BCD (Boot Configuration Data) to add a boot entry to the Windows PE image.
You can start the installation process with HotInstall by either running setup.exe in the disc image or by using AutoRun:
Next, follow these screens:
After your computer has restarted, choose "DISMTools Operating System Installation" in BOOTMGR, or wait for 3 seconds, and continue with OS installation as you would if you booted to the ISO file.
Until you install the operating system with the PE Helper, nothing will happen to your computer and you can still boot to the full Windows environment in case you need to back up files or export its installed drivers to a folder (if needed). You can remove the newly created BCD entry by using bcdedit /delete {<BCD entry GUID>} /f (grab the GUID first by running bcdedit) from an administrative command prompt session.
Note
- Ventoy drives are not supported due to the way they work, such that ISO files are never inserted - only the Ventoy USB
- HotInstall is not included with test projects created by the Test Environment creator
- HotInstall will not upgrade your installation of Windows. It will perform a clean installation
- HotInstall is supported on these platforms, with a requirement for .NET 4.8:
- Client: Windows 8.1 and later, excluding Windows 10 versions 1507 and 1511
- Server: Windows Server 2012 and later, excluding Server Core
- If you run into a problem or want to suggest a new feature for HotInstall, report feedback in its repository, not this one. If you report HotInstall feedback in this repository, it will be transferred to the HotInstall repository
Miscellaneous
- The following components have been updated to their latest versions:
| Component | Version in last release | New version |
|---|---|---|
| Managed DISM API | 3.2.0
| 3.3.0
|
| Markdig | 0.38.0
| 0.40.0
|
| Scintilla.NET | 5.6.4
| 5.6.5
|
- You can now press Alt + U to restart background processes on demand. This is useful if the image was loaded into DISMTools and serviced by an external program. This will update the information grabbed by the program so that you have the latest information to work with
- Operation logs can now be opened with the editor of your choosing if the operations have failed:
Note
Support is experimental and no configurations can be done from the Options window for now - only in the settings files themselves (settings.ini and the registry). Some editors may not be able to open the file if they rely on command-line flags to open files.
These things will be tackled for Preview 2
What's Changed
- DISMTools 0.6.1 Preview 1 by @CodingWonders in #212
Full Changelog: v0.6_stable...v0.6.1_pre_2511