Automating AUTOADMINLOGON Locally When Joining a Domain

• Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0

SUMMARY

By default, when automating the installation of Windows NT Server or Workstation 4.0 and the system is joining a domain, the Default Domain Name set in the registry is the domain that owns the machine account.

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT
   \Current Version\Winlogon

   DefaultDomainName: REG_SZ <Domain Name>

MORE INFORMATION

By using Cmdlines.txt and a few other supplied applications with Windows NT 4.0, it is possible to build an Autolog.reg script that can be imported into the registry for Automatic Administrator Logon to the local machine account rather than the domain.

The following required files ship with Windows NT and are part of the normal Windows NT installation:

   Findstr.exe
   Qbasic.exe
   Regedit.exe

How the Process Works

During an unattended or automated installation of Windows NT 4.0, the Unattend.txt answer file will contain the computer name used during the installation. The answer file is parsed at the beginning of setup and additional setup information is appended to a new file and saved as $WinNT$.inf in the %systemroot%\system32 directory.

Through the use of Findstr.exe, the line containing the computer name can be exported to a single line text file. Through the use of a simple Microsoft QuickBasic program, the text file is read and manipulated to get the actual computer name and writes a REGEDIT4 compatible registry file.

After the registry file is written, it can be imported into the Windows NT registry using Regedit.exe.

To take advantage of the local logon option during the Windows NT automated installation process, the following information must be configured.

1. You will need an Unattend.txt file that is configured to install Windows NT 4.0.

2. The option OEMPreInstall = Yes must be added to the [unattended] section in the answer file.

3. Create an I386 directory on a server and copy the files from the I386 directory of the Windows NT 4.0 compact disc to the I386 directory on the server.

4. Under the I386 directory on the server, create a directory called $OEM$.

5. Paste the following lines of code into a text editor and save as Autolog.bas to the $OEM$ directory.

   Note: Some Lines are wrapped for formatting purposes of the article.

         OPEN "AUTOLOG.TXT" FOR INPUT AS #1
         INPUT #1, a$
         b$ = MID$(a$, 17)
         c$ = MID$(b$, 1, (LEN(b$) - 1))
         CLOSE #1
         OPEN "AUTOLOG.REG" FOR OUTPUT AS #1
         PRINT #1, "REGEDIT4"
         PRINT #1, ""
         PRINT #1, "[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
         NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]"
         PRINT #1, CHR$(34) + "DefaultUserName" + CHR$(34) + "=" + CHR$(34) +
         "Administrator" + CHR$(34)
         PRINT #1, CHR$(34) + "AutoAdminLogon" + CHR$(34) + "=" + CHR$(34) +
         "1" + CHR$(34)
         PRINT #1, CHR$(34) + "DefaultPassword" + CHR$(34) + "=" + CHR$(34) +
         CHR$(34)
         PRINT #1, CHR$(34) + "DefaultDomainName" + CHR$(34) + "=" + CHR$(34)
         + c$ + CHR$(34)
         CLOSE #1
         END
   

6. Using a text editor create or modify the Cmdlines.txt file to add: ".\AUTOLOG.CMD" line under [commands] and save it to the $OEM$ directory.

   To save time you can copy the following two lines of information to create the required Cmdlines.txt.

         [commands]
         ".\AUTOLOG.CMD"
   

   If you have an existing Cmdlines.txt do not copy the [Commands] line since an existing Cmdlines.txt file already has this line.

7. A batch job called Autolog.cmd needs to be created and placed in the $OEM$ directory.

   The following commands make up the Autolog.cmd batch job.

         @echo off
         CLS
         findstr.exe /C:ComputerName %systemroot%\system32\$winnt$.inf >
         autolog.txt
         START QBASIC.EXE /RUN .\AUTOLOG.BAS
         :TOP
         IF NOT EXIST AUTOLOG.REG GOTO TOP
         START /WAIT REGEDIT.EXE /S .\AUTOLOG.REG
   

   NOTE: The third and fourth lines in the Autolog.cmd listed above should be entered as one line. They are wrapped here for readability.

   It is important not to modify any of the command lines by adding or deleting the START or START /WAIT options. The sequences used are to ensure events happen in a specific order and time.

   The Findstr.exe command parses out the line ComputerName to a text file into the $OEM$ directory during setup. This is done to keep the Microsoft QuickBasic program as simple as possible.

   The Autolog.bas program opens Autolog.txt and parses out the actual computer name for the computer and writes a registry-compatible script to enable the Automatic Administrator Logon.

   The IF NOT EXIST line basically tests for the Autolog.reg file presence before importing. After the file is written and the Autolog.bas finishes, Regedit.exe will run and import the registry script.

8. During GUI mode setup, an MS-DOS command window will appear that is normally not on the screen during setup. This is by design and will terminate normally at the end of setup.

ADDITIONAL INFORMAITON

The example given is provided as a working example and does not require any additional software outside of the components supplied with Windows NT Workstation 4.0 or Server 4.0. The process could be enhanced through the use of C++ or Visual Basic to build a standalone utility, if desired.

For additional information on the Windows NT 4.0 Power Toys, consult the Microsoft Windows NT Server Resource Kit Version 4.0, Supplement One online documentation.

You can also download the Windows NT 4.0 Deployment Guide from:

   http://www.microsoft.com/ntworkstation.