:: Testing and Burning ::

Creating the ISO

To create our ISO files we will use CDIMAGE. Unfortunately there is no way to add a file to the ISO once it has been created with CDIMAGE. The only thing you can do is create a new ISO each time.

If you don't have CDIMAGE you can get it from the Getting Started section or "Downloads". I prefer to keep CDIMAGE in the same directory as my AIO-DVD folder. Example:

D:\cdimage.exe
D:\AIO-DVD\

Open a command prompt and navigate to the directory you stored CDIMAGE in. Once there use this command. Please note that it is all on one line. It is only shown on two lines here due to the cell width. Note that I stored my DVD on my D:\, yours may be different.

start cdimage.exe -lAIODVD -t08/23/2001,09:00:00 -b\AIO-DVD\BOOT\loader.bin -h -n -o -m \AIO-DVD C:\AIODVD.iso

Parameters Explained

start cdimage.exe
Runs the CDIMAGE program with command line arguments. Notice that no exact file location is specified. As long as cdimage.exe is in the same folder as the batch file, it is not needed.

-lAIODVD
Gives the ISO a label of AIODVD. This can be anything you want. Please note that it is a hyphen then a lowercase L (-l) as in label, not an i or a 1 or anything else.

-t08/23/2001,09:00:00
Sets DVD timestamp. Leave as is.

-b\AIO-DVD\BOOT\loader.bin
Location of our boot sector file, loader.bin. Again, notice no exact folder location is needed as long as our root folder (AIO-DVD) resides in the same location as our batch file.

-h -n -o -m
Special switches. Leave as is.

\AIO-DVD
Location of the folder that acts as the root of our DVD.

C:\AIODVD.iso
Where we want our ISO file stored and what we want to call it. In this case I am calling it customdvd.iso and storing it in my C:\. You MUST have the extension listed. Your target drive where the ISO will be saved must have sufficient space. If not, you will not get an ISO file.

Occasionally CDIMAGE will say something along the lines of:

WARNING: These two files are identical for the first 65536 bytes, but differ at some point beyond that. This could be intentional, but it might indicate that one of these two source files is corrupt:
  D:\AIO-DVD\PRO1\SETUPLDR.BIN
  D:\AIO-DVD\PRO2\SETUPLDR.BIN

This is normal. CDIMAGE thinks that these files are supposed to be identical since their contents are almost the exact same. However, we both know that each one specifies a different boot folder and are supposed to be different. Therefore, you can disregard this message.

Automate the ISO Creation

A good idea is to make a batch file that you can run whenever you want to make the ISO. To create a batch file open Notepad and paste the below code into it. Save the file as whatever you want and then just change the extension to .bat

eg. - D:\makeiso.bat

The following code is only 2 lines in the .bat file. If copied and pasted you shouldn't have a problem. Just modify it to suit your specific needs.

DEL C:\*.ISO
start cdimage.exe -lAIODVD -t08/23/2001,09:00:00 -b\AIO-DVD\BOOT\loader.bin -h -n -o -m \AIO-DVD C:\AIO-DVD.iso

Testing the ISO

VMware 4.0.5 and Virtual PC 2004 are both a great way to test your ISO before burning it, and something that I HIGHLY recommend.

Virtual PC 2004

  1. Create a New PC. Name it whatever you would like.
  2. Choose Guide Me and select Windows XP as the OS.
  3. Adjust the memory allocation if you want to. Just keep it at 128+ if possible.
  4. Create a new hard disk image and name it whatever you want.
  5. Start up the new PC and then choose CD -> Capture Image. Find your ISO file.
  6. Choose PC -> Restart and you should be good to go.

VMware

  1. Create a New Virtual Machine.
  2. Choose "Custom" then choose "Windows XP Professional" as the OS.
  3. Adust the allocated RAM if needed.
  4. Set up your Network Connection. I generally choose "Do not use a network connection" because it screws with my internet.
  5. Choose "Create a new virtual disk" and then edit the size if you need to. The size is the maximum that it CAN become. If you just test and install XP and don't need 4.0GB, it won't use 4.0GB, but it can if you need to. So, if you choose to install XP OEMPreinstall and know you will need 6.0GB total for the install, change it.
  6. Once done, choose "Edit virtual machine settings". Select the CD-ROM drive and then choose "Use ISO Image". Select your ISO file, hit okay, then start up your virtual machine.

Burning the ISO

Basically you just need any burner capable of burning an image file. I use Nero 6.3.0.29. Generally I just right-click my ISO file and choose "Open With..." and find the Nero executable. Nero automatically opens up with the Burn dialog. Click Burn and there you go. That's all there is to it!