-wimlib 1.3.0 has added experimental support for Windows builds. These builds
-include both the "wimlib" library (built as a DLL) and the "imagex" executable.
-The Windows builds use native Win32 calls when appropriate to handle alternate
-data streams, security descriptors, and reparse points.
+ INTRODUCTION
-Windows support currently has the following limitations:
+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.
-- It relies on the Cygwin UNIX-compatibility layer. You do not, however, need
- to have the Cygwin distribution installed to run it, as I have posted a ZIP
- file on SourceForge that contains the build of wimlib and "imagex" along with
- the DLLs needed for it to run. Please note that these DLLs are free and open
- source software; see http://www.cygwin.com/ for more details.
+ WINDOWS DISTRIBUTION
-- Mounting WIM files is not supported.
+For the convenience of Windows users, the Windows distribution of wimlib is a
+ZIP file containing the following items:
-- wimlib's API is not compatible with Microsoft's WIMGAPI, although they offer
- some of the same functionality.
+ * wimlib-imagex.exe, a command-line tool to deal with WIM (.wim) and split WIM
+ (.swm) files that is similar to Microsoft's ImageX. This is a ready-to-run
+ executable and not an installer.
-So, in terms of the "imagex" program:
+ * Very short batch scripts (e.g. wimapply.cmd) which are shortcuts to the
+ corresponding wimlib-imagex commands (e.g. `wimlib-imagex apply').
-"imagex capture", "imagex append", and "imagex apply" will work on Windows and
-have the added advantage of saving and restoring alternate data streams,
-security descriptors, and reparse points.
+ * The documentation, including this file, the generic README.txt, and
+ PDF documentation for wimlib-imagex in the 'doc' directory.
-"imagex delete", "imagex dir", "imagex export", "imagex info", "imagex join",
-"imagex optimize", and "imagex split" are all portable and should work the same
-way on Windows as on UNIX.
+ * Various DLL (.dll) files, including the wimlib library itself
+ (libwim-9.dll). The C header wimlib.h is not included; download the source
+ if you want it.
-"imagex mount", "imagex mountrw", and "imagex unmount" will NOT work on Windows.
+ * License files for all software included. These are all free software
+ licenses.
-So on Windows, why would you want to use wimlib's ImageX instead of Microsoft's?
-Well, here are a few reasons:
+ WIMLIB-IMAGEX
-- wimlib can be freely distributed; there is no need to download a 1.8 gigabyte
- "Windows Automated Installation Kit".
-- wimlib offers fast multithreaded compression, so making WIM images can be much
- faster.
-- wimlib is free software, so you can modify and/or audit the source code.
+wimlib-imagex provides most features of Microsoft's ImageX, plus additional
+features. First, the main limitations of wimlib-imagex compared to Microsoft's
+ImageX are the following:
+
+ * Mounting images from a WIM file is not supported on Windows.
+
+ * The LZX ("maximum") compression ratio is several percent worse than
+ Microsoft's implementation.
+
+However, wimlib-imagex provides a number of advantages compared to Microsoft's
+ImageX, including but not limited to the following:
+
+ * wimlib-imagex provides "extract" and "update" commands that can be used to
+ work around the lack of mount support. These commands are very fast
+ compared to mounting and unmounting images with Microsoft's ImageX, so you
+ may prefer them anyway.
+
+ * wimlib-imagex offers fast multithreaded compression, so making WIM images
+ can be much faster.
+
+ * wimlib-imagex provides a better XPRESS ("fast") compression ratio than
+ Microsoft's ImageX.
+
+ * wimlib-imagex provides an easy-to-use "optimize" command to remove wasted
+ space from WIM files.
+
+ * In some cases, wimlib-imagex uses simpler command-line syntax. For
+ example, `wimlib-imagex capture' (or simply `wimcapture') defaults to
+ maximum compression by default, integrity tables are treated as persistent,
+ and in some cases image names need not be explicitly specified.
+
+ * Whenever possible, wimlib-imagex includes improved documentation and
+ informational output compared to Microsoft's software.
+
+ * On Windows, wimlib-imagex can correctly save and restore some combinations
+ of data that Microsoft's ImageX runs into bugs on --- for example,
+ uncompressed files in compressed directories, or files with alternate data
+ streams and multiple hard links.
+
+ * wimlib and wimlib-imagex are free software, so you can modify and/or audit
+ the source code.
+
+ ADDITIONAL NOTES
+
+Currently there is no graphical user interface available for wimlib or
+wimlib-imagex. 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.
git://wimlib.net / wimlib / blobdiff