+++ /dev/null
-
- INTRODUCTION
-
-wimlib is free and open source software that is available on both UNIX-like
-systems and Windows. This file provides additional information specifically
-about the Windows version of wimlib and the command line tool "wimlib-imagex"
-that is distributed with it. It does not obsolete the generic README.txt, which
-you should read too.
-
- WINDOWS DISTRIBUTION
-
-The Windows distribution of wimlib is a ZIP file containing the following items:
-
- * wimlib-imagex.exe, a command-line tool to deal with WIM (.wim), split WIM
- (.swm), and ESD (.esd) files that is inspired by Microsoft's ImageX and
- DISM. This is a ready-to-run executable and not an installer.
-
- * Very short batch scripts (e.g. wimapply.cmd) which are shortcuts to the
- corresponding wimlib-imagex commands (e.g. `wimlib-imagex apply').
-
- * The documentation, including this file, the generic README.txt, and
- PDF documentation for wimlib-imagex in the 'doc' directory.
-
- * The library itself (libwim-15.dll). The C header wimlib.h is not
- included; download the source if you want it.
-
- * License files for all software included. These are all free software
- licenses.
-
-Note that there are separate ZIP files for 32-bit (i686) and 64-bit (x86_64)
-binaries. They are both fully supported, but you should prefer the 64-bit
-binaries when possible as they can be noticeably faster.
-
- WIMLIB-IMAGEX
-
-wimlib-imagex supports most features of Microsoft's ImageX as well as some
-features that are supported by DISM but not by ImageX. wimlib-imagex also
-supports some features that neither ImageX nor DISM support. Some of the
-advantages of wimlib-imagex compared to ImageX and DISM are:
-
- * wimlib-imagex provides "extract" and "update" commands which allow
- you to quickly work with WIM images without mounting them.
-
- * wimlib-imagex provides an easy-to-use "optimize" command which removes
- wasted space from a WIM file and optionally recompresses it with stronger
- compression.
-
- * wimlib includes advanced implementations of all compression algorithms used
- in WIM files. They usually outperform and outcompress their Microsoft
- equivalents.
-
- * wimlib-imagex supports solid WIM files and LZMS compression, for example as
- used in ESD (.esd) files. (These are partially supported by recent DISM
- versions but not by ImageX.)
-
- * In many cases, wimlib-imagex has simpler command-line syntax than either
- ImageX or DISM.
-
- * Whenever possible, wimlib-imagex includes improved documentation and
- informational output compared to Microsoft's software.
-
- * wimlib and wimlib-imagex are free software, so you can modify and/or audit
- the source code.
-
-However, some limitations of wimlib-imagex compared to ImageX and DISM are:
-
- * On Windows, wimlib-imagex does not support mounting WIM images.
-
- * wimlib-imagex has no awareness of Windows "packages".
-
- ADDITIONAL NOTES
-
-It's recommended to use wimlib-imagex in scripts to avoid having to
-interactively enter commands. However, note that wimlib-imagex is largely just
-a command-line front-end for wimlib, and it's possible to use wimlib's API in
-other front-ends or applications. Currently there is no official graphical user
-interface available for wimlib or wimlib-imagex. However, an unofficial, beta,
-Windows-only graphical user interface that provides a thin wrapper around
-wimlib-imagex can be downloaded at
-http://reboot.pro/files/file/485-wimlib-imagex-command-line-compiler/.
-
-If you want to build your own Windows binaries from source, MinGW-w64 is
-required. Configure with --host=i686-w64-mingw32 or --host=x86_64-w64-mingw32.
-You will need to satisfy the third-party dependencies (libxml2, winpthreads, and
-win-iconv), which in the official releases are statically linked into the DLL.