Boot images have an option to enable a command shell while running in Windows PE. This is turned off by default for security reasons (since it would allow an end user to open a command shell during the re-imaging process) but can be enabled on the “Windows PE” property page.
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Open the boot image’s properties dialog
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On the Windows PE tab check the “Enable command support (testing only)” option
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Update the boot image on the distribution points
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Rebuild any media that uses the boot image (e.g. capture media, boot media, or stand-alone media)
When a task sequence is running in Windows PE you can open a command shell by pressing F8. As long as the command-shell is open the task sequence will not reboot the machine. This will give you a chance to verify network connectivity, diagnose driver issues, and view/copy the log files (see Client Log Files section below).