The older
System Cloning Tool originated with Windows XP Embedded, and was designed to let developers create master OS images that may optionally be customized after cloning. Windows Embedded Standard (WES), which succeeds Windows XP Embedded, retains this tool, but also includes a new tool, called Sysprep.
According to Allen's whitepaper,
Sysprep is a general-purpose tool that originally targeted desktop Windows systems. Compared to the System Cloning Tool, Sysprep does not allow pre-configuring as many OS settings. However, it does allow embedded OS images to be deployed to target devices via Microsoft's
System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) Operating System Deployment (OSD) functionality.
Windows Embedded Standard 2009, which has now been
released to product manufacturers and is also available in a
downloadable evaluation version, is still based on the Windows XP codebase. However, it has been substantially revamped to provide a mix of old and new features, as Allen explains. Comparing and contrasting Sysprep and the System Cloning Tool, Allen's whitepaper aims to help developers choose between the two. Click below to read the full paper.
Using Sysprep in Windows Embedded Standard 2009
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