From the Ground Up

Often you want to reinstall your OS, but are then stuck with the headache of having to hunt down a driver for each piece of hardware. To top it off, you then need to install every driver, which often results in a restart each time. There’s a simple solution – nLite for Windows XP or vLite for Windows Vista. nLite/vLite allow you to “slipstream” your install disc. Slipstreaming is when you add additional software into the install disc. In the end, it will act like the original, but it will provide much more functionality for your system. And not just with hardware drivers – you can slipstream Service Packs, Updates, Options and Tweaks.

How-To:
NOTE: For this tutorial, I will be using nLite. vLite users should be able to follow this guide will little to no change in the options selected. I will be creating a disc with Service Pack 3, SATA drivers, and all the necessary drivers for my Hackintosh PC (parts list here).

1. Download nLite here if you are creating a slipstreamed Windows XP install, or vLite here if you are creating a Windows Vista install. Once the download is complete, install the program.
2. Run nLite. You should see the following screen. Select “Next”.

3. nLite will ask you to select the location of you original Windows XP install. If you are going to use a disc, you can select that directly. If you are using an .iso image, you will need to extract the image into a folder, using an extraction tool such as 7zip. Use the browse button to select the correct location. Select “Next” when its done.

4. Skip over the “Presets” screen – select “Next”. This is where you can add files into the install disc. I am going to add the SP3 Update (first option), a SATA driver, and the driver for my graphics card (third option). (You can download the SP3 Update here, and the SATA driver here. For each hardware component, you will need to check the vendors website for the driver.) Also, make sure you select “Bootable ISO”, otherwise the disc will not be able to be used for an installation. Select the tasks you wish to perform, and then hit “Next”.

5. The “Service Pack Integration” screen will show up next. Providing you have already downloaded the update, hit “Select” and browse for it on your computer. nLite will begin slipstreaming the Service Pack into the disc. Select “Next” when it is finished.

6. Next up is the “Drivers” Screen. First we’ll select the SATA driver – select insert > single driver. Browse to the SATA Driver folder, and select one of the .inf files (I selected the first one). Once it is loaded, select all (ctrl-a) of the driver options available. Next up is the graphics card – again select insert > single driver. Navigate to the folder where the driver has been extracted and select it. Click “Next” when done.

7. nLite will be ready to start the slipstreaming process. Select “Yes” to start.

8. Next nLite will make the .iso bootable – click “Make ISO” to start the process. You will be asked where to save the image; leave it on your desktop to make finding it easier later.

9. Burn the .iso image with any burning program, and use it to install your customized copy of Windows.

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