Applies to

Windows 11 24H2

Windows 11 23H2

Windows 10 22H2



Issue

During ENGL base image preparation Sysprep may fail to run and result in the following error:




There are a variety of reasons for this error:


  1. If the machine has an active network connection, Windows will attempt to update some built-in components such as OneDrive or Cortana.

  2. Windows 11 24H2 automatically attempts to encrypt the hard disk during Windows setup on any capable physical or virtual machine.

  3. The November 2024 version of Windows 10 22H2 has a specific issue with Microsoft CoPilot that prevents sysprep from running successfully.


In order to determine the exact cause of the failure review these logs:

  • %WINDIR%\system32\sysprep\panther\setuperr.log
  • %WINDIR%\System32\sysprep\panther\setupact.log



Solution

  • Use the latest available Windows "updated" media for the OS version you require.
  • When running the Deployment Wizard, do not select Install Windows updates on the Base Image Creation page.
  • Ensure the base image preparation process is run on a machine with no active network connection.
  • Ensure the base image preparation process is run on a machine with SecureBoot and TPM disabled.