Windows 11 23H2 has install.esd but no install.wim file


AltitudeD

Member
Local time
10:37 PM
Posts
19
OS
Windows 11 Pro 24H2
I have purchased a genuine copy of Windows 11 Pro OEM from a retail store and it came with a DVD containing 23H2.
I have created an iso from this DVD using these instructions

Install Microsoft ADK -> Deployment Tools
mkdir C:\temp\dvd_files
Copy-Item -Path F:\* -Destination C:\temp\dvd_files -Recurse
cd 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Deployment Tools\amd64\Oscdimg\'

.\oscdimg.exe -m -u2 -bH:\boot\etfsboot.com C:\temp\dvd_files\ C:\temp\image.iso

Then I followed my usual method to create a bootable USB drive.
The problem is that there is no X:\sources\install.wim (Where X is the USB drive), there are instead two files install.esd and boot.wim
What I want to do is use dism to remove bloatware, for example with a normal ISO downloaded from Microsoft I would do

dism /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:X:\sources\install.wim
dism /Mount-Image /ImageFile:X:\sources\install.wim /Index:6 /MountDir:C:\Mount
dism /Image:C:\Mount /Get-Packages
dism /Image:C:\Mount /Remove-EdgeBrowser
dism /Image:C:\Mount /Add-Driver /Driver:D:\Drivers\ /Recurse
dism /Image:C:\Mount /Get-ProvisionedAppxPackages
dism /Image:C:\Mount /Remove-ProvisionedAppxPackage /PackageName:Clipchamp.Clipchamp_3.0.10220.0_neutral_~_yxz26nhyzhsrt

dism /Image:C:\Mount /Remove-ProvisionedAppxPackage /PackageName:Microsoft.BingNews_4.1.24002.0_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe

Sure, I used the install.esd instead of install.wim but /Get-Packages doesn't reveal any of the usual suspects (Clipchamp, Bing, Xbox, etc)
So, what's happening here? Is the OEM DVD version special? Or do I need to do something else to customize this image?
I want to (re)install the 23H2 as 24H2 caused some issue for me and now I have this DVD with 23H2.

Thanks in advance!
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro 24H2i7-14700F128 GB DDR5 5200Nvidia RTX 4000 ADA
OS
Windows 11 Pro 24H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
CPU
i7-14700F
Motherboard
Asus TUF GAMING B760M-PLUS WIFI II
Memory
128 GB DDR5 5200
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia RTX 4000 ADA
Monitor(s) Displays
Alienware AW3225QF
Screen Resolution
4k
Hard Drives
NVMe 4th gen PCIe
PSU
Seasonic 500W fanless
Case
Streacom BC1 V2
Cooling
EK-Nucleus AIO CR240 Lux
Keyboard
Cherry
Mouse
Alienware
Browser
Chrome
Please disregard! After I wrote this I realized that I used

dism /Image:C:\Mount /Get-Packages

instead of

dism /Image:C:\Mount /Get-ProvisionedAppxPackages

now I can see all the junk
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro 24H2i7-14700F128 GB DDR5 5200Nvidia RTX 4000 ADA
OS
Windows 11 Pro 24H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
CPU
i7-14700F
Motherboard
Asus TUF GAMING B760M-PLUS WIFI II
Memory
128 GB DDR5 5200
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia RTX 4000 ADA
Monitor(s) Displays
Alienware AW3225QF
Screen Resolution
4k
Hard Drives
NVMe 4th gen PCIe
PSU
Seasonic 500W fanless
Case
Streacom BC1 V2
Cooling
EK-Nucleus AIO CR240 Lux
Keyboard
Cherry
Mouse
Alienware
Browser
Chrome
For anyone else, using the Media Creation Tool (aka MCT) to download the Windows 11 ISO, you get the install.esd file. If you scroll down to use the third option, download the ISO directly, you get the install.wim file. One format can be converted to the other with Dism, I don't know the appropriate syntax. When creating a hybrid USB flash drive (such us creating Windows 10 or Windows 11 23H2 USB flash drive and replacing the image.esd or image.wim file from the Windows 11 24H2 ISO), it doesn't matter what format you replace it with. All combinations work, that is replacing install.esd with install.esd or install.esd with install.wim or install.wim with install.esd or install.wim with install.wim, no need to convert to the same format.

 

My Computers My Computers

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 (7582), 25H2 (9457)Mobile DualCore Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, 2000 MHz4GBMobile Intel(R) GMA 4500M (Mobile 4 series)
    OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 (7582), 25H2 (9457)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Extensa 5630EZ
    CPU
    Mobile DualCore Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, 2000 MHz
    Motherboard
    Acer Extensa 5630
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Mobile Intel(R) GMA 4500M (Mobile 4 series)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC268 @ Intel 82801IB ICH9 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    1
    Screen Resolution
    1280x800
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250GB SATA Device (250 GB, SATA-III)
    Internet Speed
    802.11g wireless 54 Mbps
    Browser
    MICROSOFT EDGE
    Antivirus
    WINDOWS DEFENDER
    Other Info
    Legacy MBR installation, no TPM, no Secure Boot, no WDDM 2.0 graphics drivers, no SSE4.2, cannot get more unsupported ;) This is only my test laptop. I had installed Windows 11 here before upgrading my main PC. For my main PC I use everyday see my 2nd system specs.
  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (build 26200.9457)Intel Core-i7 3770 3.40GHz s1155 (3rd generat...2x Kingston Hyper-X Blu 8GB DDR3-1600GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 WINDFORCE OC V2 6GB...
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (build 26200.9457)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built PC
    CPU
    Intel Core-i7 3770 3.40GHz s1155 (3rd generation)
    Motherboard
    Asus P8H61 s1155 ATX
    Memory
    2x Kingston Hyper-X Blu 8GB DDR3-1600
    Graphics card(s)
    GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3050 WINDFORCE OC V2 6GB (GV-N3050WF2OCV2-6GD)
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD audio (ALC887)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony Bravia KDL-19L4000 19" LCD TV via VGA
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900 32-bit 60Hz
    Hard Drives
    WD Blue SA510 2.5 1000GB SSD as system disk, Western Digital Caviar Purple 4TB SATA III (WD40PURZ) as second
    PSU
    Thermaltake Litepower RGB 550W Full Wired
    Case
    SUPERCASE MIDI-TOWER
    Cooling
    Deepcool Gamma Archer CPU cooler, 1x 8cm fan at the back
    Keyboard
    Mitsumi 101-key PS/2
    Mouse
    Microsoft Compact Optical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    802.11ac 5GHz wireless 260Mpbs
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Legacy BIOS (MBR) installation, no TPM, no Secure Boot, WDDM 3.0 graphics drivers, WEI score 7.4
Hi AltitudeD,

To change the .esd file to a .wim file, do the following steps:

Convert Install.ESD file to Install.WIM:
With ISO on external drive
In File Explorer go to <Drive>:\ESD-ISO and copy dir
In Command Prompt as Admin get install info for index number
DISM /Get-WimInfo /WinFile:<d>:\sources\install.esd
In File Explorer go to install.esd file under sources
<d>:\source\install.esd
Create .wim file:
Create folder to save .wim file <C:\Wimfiles>
Convert ESD file to WIM
DISM /Export-Image /SourceImageFile:<directory>:\sources\install.esd /SourceIndex=[index number] /DestinationImageFile:<e>:\WIMFiles\install.wim /Compress:Max /CheckIntegrity

Drive letters in "<>" would to whatever you decide.

Kind regards,

tecknot
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro 25H2 build 26200.9168Intel i7 8750H @ 2.2 GHz16 GB (all Samsung) DDR4-3200 SODIMM (non-ECC...Intel UHD Graphics 630 & NVIDIA Quadro P600
OS
Windows 11 Pro 25H2 build 26200.9168
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
Lenovo ThinkPad Workstation P72
CPU
Intel i7 8750H @ 2.2 GHz
Motherboard
Lenovo 01YU291
Memory
16 GB (all Samsung) DDR4-3200 SODIMM (non-ECC) PCIe 3
Graphics Card(s)
Intel UHD Graphics 630 & NVIDIA Quadro P600
Sound Card
Realtek ALC3286 & Focusrite Saffire 24 Pro DSP
Monitor(s) Displays
17.3"
Screen Resolution
3840x2160
Hard Drives
1TB SSD Samsung 860 EVO SATA 3
1TB SSD Samsung 970 EVO M.2 NVMe PCIe 3 x 4
2TB SSD Samsung 990 PRO M.2 NVMe PCIe 3 x 4
PSU
230W
Cooling
fan
Keyboard
UltraNav
Mouse
Kensington wireless Orbit
Internet Speed
640Mbps
Browser
DuckDuckGo and Firefox
Antivirus
Defender
Other Info
CM246 Chipset
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