> -----Original Message-----
> From: Support issues for windows in UK HE & FE [mailto:WINDOWS-
> [log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Skender Osmani
> Sent: Monday, May 14, 2018 5:08 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Switch from Legacy BIOS to UEFI
>
> Just wanted to get a feel as to how many of you have moved from using legacy
> BIOS to UEFI. Currently we are still configuring new PCs to use legacy BIOS
> and are working to get our backend infrastructure ready to support UEFI
> network booting. We have number of dual boot machines (Windows and Linux)
> and use syslinux/pxelinux to provide a boot menu for students to choose
> which OS to boot. Syslinux/pxelinux does not provide full support for UEFI
> network boot and we are looking at iPXE as an alternative to do the above.
To expand on what my colleague Mike said yesterday, we experimented with UEFI about two years ago, got as far as a pilot and then had to roll it back. Our situation is likely different from practically anyone else's, in that we leave PXE enabled on our student walk-up machines forever. We do automatic overnight reimaging once every four weeks to keep the machines clean. We also have made the information widely available about how to start reimaging on a machine, so that students can initiate reimaging and fix software problems even if it's 2:00 AM. This has been very useful. So in our environment, any changeover to UEFI has to be able to handle PXE being left enabled permanently, not just used for initial installation. All our problems stem from this.
Below is an extract from a report I wrote at the time, after we had abandoned it:
o A subtle change in the wording of the PXE-boot invitation on UEFI PXE caused human problems. The legacy wording was "Press F12 for network service boot"; on UEFI this changed to "Press ENTER for network boot service". This wording apparently makes people feel that they must press Enter, or they will not have network. Stations were constantly being reimaged. Many experiments with modifying this wording (which required modifying an executable with a hex editor) and other attempted psychological interventions yielded no improvement.
o It has always been possible to press Escape as soon as the attempt to find a PXE server began. Doing so allowed skipping several seconds of PXE activity, and so was a sensible thing to do when not wishing to reimage a computer. Students have clearly learned this and use it. Unfortunately, if you Escape during the attempt to locate a PXE server in UEFI PXE, Windows 10 comes up with no network and never regains it! This only reinforced the idea that pressing Enter was necessary to get network.
o It has also always been harmless to press Escape from the offered menu of PXE choices, should you decide that you don't want to reimage after all. Doing so just caused the BIOS to move on to the next boot source, i.e. the hard disk, and boot Windows normally. Under UEFI PXE, pressing Escape at this point instead displayed a pointless full-screen cryptic error with a hex number, with instructions to press either Escape a second time (to reboot) or Enter (to continue with the boot order). Even better, on the HP 800 G1, these instructions fall off the bottom of the screen and are not visible.
o The final nail came when we found that the promised near-instant-boot for Windows 10 with UEFI did not materialize. To get this, all legacy support must be disabled, and we have no hardware types -- not even the very latest -- which support this. Additionally, you must disable PXE!
Thanks,
Lisa.
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Lisa Nelson
Computing Services Department
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
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