[wimlib] / doc / imagex-apply.1.in

.TH IMAGEX "1" "January 2013" "imagex (wimlib) wimlib @VERSION@" "User Commands"
.SH NAME
imagex-apply \- Extract one image, or all images, from a WIM archive

.SH SYNOPSIS
\fBimagex apply\fR \fIWIMFILE\fR \fIIMAGE\fR \fITARGET\fR [\fIOPTION\fR]...

.SH DESCRIPTION
.PP

\fBimagex apply\fR extracts an image, or all images, from the Windows Imaging
(WIM) file \fIWIMFILE\fR.

\fIIMAGE\fR specifies the WIM image to extract.  It may be a 1-based index of an
image in the WIM, the name of an image in the WIM, or the keyword "all" to
indicate that all images are to be extracted.  Use the \fBimagex info\fR (1)
command to show what images a WIM file contains.

\fITARGET\fR specifies where to extract the WIM image(s) to.  If \fITARGET\fR
specifies a directory, the WIM image(s) are extracted to that directory.  If
\fITARGET\fR specifies a non-existent file, a directory is created in that
location and the WIM image(s) are extracted to that directory.  If \fITARGET\fR
specifies a regular file or block device, it is interpreted as a NTFS volume to
which the WIM image is to be extracted.

\fBimagex apply\fR supports applying images from stand-alone WIMs as well as
split WIMs.  See \fBSPLIT WIMS\fR.

.SH NORMAL MODE

The normal extraction mode is entered when \fITARGET\fR is a directory or
non-existent file.  If a single WIM image is being extracted, it is extracted
with the root directory of the image corresponding to the directory named by
\fITARGET\fR; or, if the keyword \fBall\fR is given, the images are extracted
into subdirectories of \fITARGET\fR that are be named after the image names,
falling back to the image index for an image with no name.  \fITARGET\fR can
specify a directory on any type of filesystem.

In the normal mode of extraction, the following information is extracted from
the WIM image(s):

.IP \[bu] 4
The default (unnamed) data stream of each file
.IP \[bu]
Hard links
.IP \[bu]
File and directory creation, access, and modification timestamps to the nearest
microsecond, if supported by the underlying filesystem
.IP \[bu]
Symbolic links and junction points, although they will not necessarily point to
the desired location (for example, the target of the link may contain a Windows
drive letter).

.PP
In the normal mode of extraction, the following information will \fInot\fR be
extracted from the WIM image(s):

.IP \[bu] 4
Security descriptors (file permissions)
.IP \[bu]
The alternate (named) data streams for each file
.IP \[bu]
Reparse points other than symbolic links and junction points
.IP \[bu]
Certain file attributes such as compression, encryption, and sparseness.
.IP \[bu]
Short (DOS) names for files

.SH NTFS MODE

A special extraction mode is entered when \fITARGET\fR is a regular file or
block device.  If this is the case, \fITARGET\fR is interpreted as an NTFS
volume and opened using libntfs-3g.  If successful, the WIM image is extracted
to the root of the NTFS volume in a special mode that preserves almost all
information contained in the WIM image.  \fIIMAGE\fR may not be "all" for this
action.

The NTFS volume does not need to be empty, although it's expected that it be
empty for the intended use cases.  A new NTFS filesystem can be created using
the \fBmkntfs\fR (8) command.

The NTFS extraction mode is not available if wimlib was compiled using the
--without-ntfs-3g option.

Please note that the NTFS extraction mode is \fInot\fR entered if \fITARGET\fR
is a directory, even if a NTFS filesystem is mounted on \fITARGET\fR.  You must
specify the NTFS volume itself (and it must be unmounted, and you must have
permission to write to it).

In the NTFS extraction mode, the following information will be extracted from
the WIM image:

.IP \[bu] 4
The data streams of all files, including the un-named data stream as well as all
named data streams.
.IP \[bu]
Reparse points, including symbolic links, junction points, and other reparse
points.
.IP \[bu]
Hard links.
.IP \[bu]
File and directory creation, access, and modification timestamps are set to the
100-nanosecond resolution values specified in the WIM file.
.IP \[bu] 4
The security descriptor for each file is applied if there is one specified in
the WIM.
.IP \[bu]
File attribute flags are applied.
.IP \[bu]
Short (DOS) names for non-hard-linked files are extracted.  The corresponding
long name for each DOS name is made to be a Win32 name.  Files with multiple
hard links are extracted with filenames in the POSIX namespace, and short names
(if any) are ignored.  A singly-linked file with no short name is also extracted
in the POSIX namespace.  Note that this assigning of namespaces may not be
exactly the same as in the original filesystem that was captured, and also this
means that some DOS names may be lost (most likely inconsequentially).

.PP

Since almost all information from the WIM image is restored in the NTFS
extraction mode, it is possible to restore an image of an actual Windows
installation. In the examples at the end of this manual page, there is an
example of applying an image from the "install.wim" file contained in the
installation media for Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8 in the "sources"
directory.

But in order to actually boot Windows from an applied image, you must understand
the boot process of Windows versions Vista and later.  Basically, it is the
following:

.nr step 1 1
.IP \n[step]. 3
The Master Boot Record loads the Volume Boot Record (also called the Boot
Sector) of the active partition, which is on an NTFS filesystem.  This partition
is called the "system partition".
.IP \n+[step].
The "bootmgr" program on the "system partition" is loaded (\\BOOTMGR).
.IP \n+[step].
bootmgr loads the Boot Configuration Data (\\Boot\\BCD) from the "system
partition".
.IP \n+[step].
Based on the information contained in the Boot Configuration Data, a loader for
the Windows kernel is executed from the "Boot" partition, which is where Windows
is installed.

.PP

So let's say you applied an image from an existing "install.wim" as in the
example, or you've applied a custom Windows image that you've created using the
\fBimagex capture\fR (1) command.  You've just applied the "Boot" partition, or
the main Windows partition, but there is no "System" partition yet (i.e.  no
\\BOOTMGR and no \\Boot\\BCD).

A "System" partition can be created created by running the "bcdboot.exe" program
from within Windows or Windows PE.  Alternatively, you can capture a separate
WIM image containing the "System" partition.  Or, the "System" partition may the
same as the "Boot" partition, so the two "partitions" may be combined in one WIM
image.  However, as the \\Boot\\BCD file contains the Windows bootloader
configuration, a WIM containing it can only be used on systems where you are
setting up the same bootloader configuration, including the same partition
layout.

Besides setting up the files on the "System" partition, don't forget to set the
bootable flag on it, and have a master boot record that loads the bootable
partition (Windows' MBR does, and SYSLINUX provides an equivalent MBR).

.SH SPLIT WIMS

You may use \fBimagex apply\fR to apply images from a split WIM.  The
\fIWIMFILE\fR argument is used to specify the first part of the split WIM, and
the \fB--refs\fR="\fIGLOB\fR" option is used to provide a shell-style file glob
that specifies the additional parts of the split WIM.  \fIGLOB\fR is expected to
be a single string on the command line, so \fIGLOB\fR must be quoted so that it
is protected against shell expansion.  \fIGLOB\fR must expand to all parts of
the split WIM, except optionally the first part which may either omitted or
included in the glob (but the first part MUST be specified as \fIWIMFILE\fR as
well).

Here's an example.  The names for the split WIMs usually go something like:
        
.RS
.PP
.nf
mywim.swm
mywim2.swm
mywim3.swm
mywim4.swm
mywim5.swm
.RE

To apply the first image of this split WIM to the directory "dir", run:
.PP
.RS
imagex apply mywim.swm 1 dir --ref="mywim*.swm"
.RE
.PP

.SH OPTIONS
.TP 6
\fB--check\fR
When reading \fIWIMFILE\fR, verify its integrity if the integrity table is
present.
.TP
\fB--hardlink\fR
When extracting a file from the WIM that is identical to a file that has already
extracted, create a hard link rather than creating a separate file.  This option
causes all identical files to be hard-linked, overriding the hard link groups
that are specified in the WIM image(s).  In the case of extracting all images
from the WIM, files may be hard-linked even if they are in different WIM images.
This option is not available in the NTFS extraction mode.
.TP
\fB--symlink\fR
This option is similar to \fB--hardlink\fR, except symbolic links are created
instead.  This option is not available in the NTFS extraction mode.
.TP
\fB--verbose\fR
Print the path to of each file or directory within the WIM image as it is
extracted, and some additional informational messages.
.TP
\fB--ref\fR="\fIGLOB\fR"
File glob of additional split WIM parts that are part of the split WIM being
applied.  See \fBSPLIT_WIMS\fR.

.SH NOTES

\fBimagex apply\fR calculates the SHA1 message digest of every file stream it
extracts and verifies that it is the same as the SHA1 message digest provided in
the WIM file.  It is an error if the message digests don't match.  It's also
considered to be an error if any WIM resources cannot be found in the stream
lookup table.  So you can be fairly certain that the file streams are extracted
correctly, even though \fBimagex apply\fR don't have a \fB/verify\fR option like
Microsoft's version of imagex does.  Please note that this is separate from the
integrity table of the WIM, which provides SHA1 message digests over raw chunks
of the entire WIM file and is checked separately if the \fB--check\fR option is
specified.

You cannot use \fBimagex apply\fR to apply a WIM from a pipe (such as standard
input) because the WIM file format is not designed for this.

.SH EXAMPLES
.SS Normal extraction mode
Extract the first image from the Windows PE image from the Windows Vista/7/8
installation media to the directory "boot":
.RS
.PP
image apply /media/windows/sources/boot.wim 1 boot
.RE
.PP
Extract all images from the Windows PE image from the Windows Vista/7/8
installation media to the directory "boot", and hard link all identical files:
.RS
.PP
image apply /media/windows8/sources/boot.wim all boot --hardlink
.RE
.PP
.SS NTFS extraction mode
Apply a WIM image to a NTFS filesystem image:
.RS
.PP
imagex apply mywim.wim 1 fsimage.ntfs
.RE
.PP
Create a new NTFS filesystem on the partition /dev/sda2 and apply the first
image in the Windows Vista/7/8 installation WIM to it.  (Obviously, only do this
if you want to erase everything on that partition.)
.RS
.PP
mkntfs /dev/sda2 && imagex apply /media/windows/sources/install.wim 1 /dev/sda2
.RE
.PP

.SH SEE ALSO
.BR imagex (1)