Solved Debloated Windows 11 Home or Pro Installation

Z E Year 2525 said:

When I get the replacement SSD, I am going to give @dacrone's RUFUS build with xml a try, checking only the box for my own admin user account. Yeah, I could keep the default 'OWNER' dacrone set up and kill it later, but I want to try setting up my own account first.

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if it does fail to create both (which it will... read @garlin post on it. he knows.), you can just edit the xml and change "Owner" to whatever name you want it to create.

@dacrone All I did was ask some questions about your .xml file.

No spam. No sarcasm. I'm seriously considering using it on my next fresh install

cheaterslick said:

@dacrone All I did was ask some questions about your .xml file.

No spam. No sarcasm. I'm seriously considering using it on my next fresh install

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? i didnt say anything to you... was talking to another member.

dacrone said:

? i didnt say anything to you... was talking to another member.

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Yeah I know, but I didn't want you to close the thread down because somebody else is being sarcastic.

cheaterslick said:

Yeah I know, but I didn't want you to close the thread down because somebody else is being sarcastic.

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lol nah. i'm an adult. dont have to worry about that from me.

btw, for those that follow Titus, he can delve deep into debloating windows. 5 min installation by debloating the ISO PRE INSTALLATION. you can make it extremely bare if you want...

.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92SM8Az5QVM

dacrone said:

if it does fail to create both (which it will... read @garlin post on it. he knows.), you can just edit the xml and change "Owner" to whatever name you want it to create.

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@dacrone - Thank you for that! I will try it. I do not know PowerShell worth beans - I am just a copy-and-paste guy for the most part, but I am sure if I search for "Owner" and change the name, I'll be okay if I don't mess with anything else in the script.

I know so little about PowerShell that it took me a few weeks to figure out how to download and install Scoop and yt-dlp from Github that my son told me about. What took me the longest after I successfully installed a working copy was by trial-and-error changing the default %APPDATA% download path to another drive and path of my own choosing. Now I use it a lot to download from YouTube and recreate all the 33 RPMs I lost to May 18, 1980's, Mt. St. Helens eruption that put ash in all the record grooves, clogging them just as effectively as cement. Works really well for videos, too - actually just about anything that YouTube has posted. I documented everything I learned into a text file for my kids to successfully install, too. My youngest son who told me about this had been trying for many, many months without success until I took a crack at it.

I also downloaded the link you provided earlier for the unattended xml file creator. Not sure if it's anything I can use at my level (or lack thereof) of expertise, but it's worth taking a look at. Thank you for that, dacrone.

Z E Year 2525 said:

@dacrone - Thank you for that! I will try it. I do not know PowerShell worth beans - I am just a copy-and-paste guy for the most part, but I am sure if I search for "Owner" and change the name, I'll be okay if I don't mess with anything else in the script.

I know so little about PowerShell that it took me a few weeks to figure out how to download and install Scoop and yt-dlp from Github that my son told me about. What took me the longest after I successfully installed a working copy was by trial-and-error changing the default %APPDATA% download path to another drive and path of my own choosing. Now I use it a lot to download from YouTube and recreate all the 33 RPMs I lost to May 18, 1980's, Mt. St. Helens eruption that put ash in all the record grooves, clogging them just as effectively as cement. Works really well for videos, too - actually just about anything that YouTube has posted. I documented everything I learned into a text file for my kids to successfully install, too. My youngest son who told me about this had been trying for many, many months without success until I took a crack at it.

I also downloaded the link you provided earlier for the unattended xml file creator. Not sure if it's anything I can use at my level (or lack thereof) of expertise, but it's worth taking a look at. Thank you for that, dacrone.

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i went ahead and scanned the xml for you. should only be 3 instances you need to change to change the user account name (i used notepad++ to edit it):

While I find the embedded URL (which allows you to return to his site and re-edit the saved file) a nice touch, after a while – it's burdensome. In an ideal world, it would use an URL link shortener because it can get to a ridiculous length.

After you figure out how the XML is extended by adding the <Extensions> and the one RunSynchronousCommand which extracts all the files from the embedded file extensions, it's easier for a semi-literate programmer to free-style off the existing template.

I've seen someone on GitHub slap the entire Chris Titus winutil script as their file attachment. Wouldn't go that far, but you get the point.

Notepad++ is what I had intended to use when I was ready to tackle dacrone's XML file. Notepad++ is what I use to modify the yt-dlp commands for cut-and-paste into the current PowerShell 7 (x64) for processing. Then, I copy-and-paste a text list of song titles from regular MS Notepad into the yt-dlp command lines.

I'm using the programmer's global preset on Notepad++. I understand it is the better format for programming code, but I wouldn't know. The only programming code I've really monkeyed with was GWBasic from the 80s, a little HTML prior to the introduction of XHTML, an XML version of HTML in the 90s for a company webpage, and more recently MS Visual Basic for an OSHA medical surveillance tracking Access database I created about 18 years ago at my place of employment. I left that job in 2014 for a more advanced position. To my knowledge, they were still using the database when I retired for a second time in 2022.

And garlin is right. That is one heck of a long URL string! If I see something like that in an e-mail I send it right to junk because it could really be malicious unless you know exactly what all that meta coding does - and I do not want to find out!

Thanks for letting me know to look for three instances of "Owner," dacrone. Notepad++ would have found duplicate entries for me, but at least now I know how many instances for sure and not worry about missing one. But of course I would have maintained an original reference copy in the event of total disaster on my part.

Z E Year 2525 said:

Notepad++ is what I had intended to use when I was ready to tackle dacrone's XML file. Notepad++ is what I use to modify the yt-dlp commands for cut-and-paste into the current PowerShell 7 (x64) for processing. Then, I copy-and-paste a text list of song titles from regular MS Notepad into the yt-dlp command lines.

I'm using the programmer's global preset on Notepad++. I understand it is the better format for programming code, but I wouldn't know. The only programming code I've really monkeyed with was GWBasic from the 80s, a little HTML prior to the introduction of XHTML, an XML version of HTML in the 90s for a company webpage, and more recently MS Visual Basic for an OSHA medical surveillance tracking Access database I created about 18 years ago at my place of employment. I left that job in 2014 for a more advanced position. To my knowledge, they were still using the database when I retired for a second time in 2022.

Thanks for letting me know to look for three instances of "Owner," dacrone. Notepad++ would have found duplicate entries for me, but at least now I know how many instances for sure and not worry about missing one. But of course I would have maintained an original reference copy in the event of total disaster on my part.

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figured i'd let you know. there will be tons of "ownership" hits in the results too, so just ignore those and look for those 3

Two things:

1.) I would want it to not have it automatically search for updates after the .iso is installed.

2.) I'd also want it to remain at 23H2 for the time being without going to 24H2. Is that possible? Or is there no 23H2 iso to work from anymore?

cheaterslick said:

Two things:

1.) I would want it to not have it automatically search for updates after the .iso is installed.

2.) I'd also want it to remain at 23H2 for the time being without going to 24H2. Is that possible? Or is there no 23H2 iso to work from anymore?

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just uploaded my 23h2 iso for someone else. links are good for 1 week

Thanks for the ISO!

Eventually I will update to 24H2 but not for now.

cheaterslick said:

1.) I would want it to not have it automatically search for updates after the .iso is installed.

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Is there any way to flag your script so it will (temporarily) block this?

cheaterslick said:

Thanks for the ISO!

Eventually I will update to 24H2 but not for now.



Is there any way to flag your script so it will (temporarily) block this?

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there is but i didnt bake it into the xml. just install with internet disconnected and once in windows use reg or gpo to disable automatic updates, reboot then connect your internet.

dacrone said:

just install with internet disconnected

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Thanks. I'm glad you said that.

dacrone said:

and once in windows use reg or gpo to disable automatic updates, reboot then connect your internet.

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And how to use reg?

How to use the GPO for this?

Thanks!

cheaterslick said:

Thanks. I'm glad you said that.



And how to use reg?

How to use the GPO for this?

Thanks!

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Win+R to Run:
gpedit.msc