Windows 7: WinRE.wim problem. Please help.

In every guide I follow to deploy a Customized Windows 7 Image the way I want to do it, the disk is divided in 3 partitions - system, recovery, and windows. I can follow all the guides to Diskpart my disk and to apply my windows 7 image to my c:\ partition. my problem is that in all the guides, the next step is to copy this windows install.wim to the recovery partition - R:\Recovery\WindowsRE\, along with winre.wim file. My problem that there is no winre.wim file at the location C:\Windows\System32\Recovery\. I turned on system and hidden files but still the file is not there. I did find a winre.wim in a hidden system file at C:\Recovery although using this led to further problems. When i was in winPE and trying to copy over this winre.wim, I had to unhide (-h) and unsystem (-s) this c:\Recovery folder, it's sub-folder and the winre.wim file. I then managed to copy it over successfully to R:\Recovery\WindowsRE\ along with the install.wim. my problem is that when I try to reagentc /setREimage I get error - Operation FailedL b7 'Cannot create a file when that file already exists'. Does anyone know where I'm going wrong?

reagentc.exe /disable

reagentc.exe /setreimage /path R:\recovery\windowsre\ etc.

I forgot to add, after I getting the error at reagentc.exe /setreimage /path R:\recovery\windowsre\ etc. I successfully did the reagentc.exe /setosimage /path R:\recovery\windowsre\ etc. Then after reboot I had no repair option on the advanced startup menu. I went into windows and did a reagentc /enable at an elevated command prompt and after another reboot I had the repair option on the advanced startup menu although if the repair option is selected, nothing happens other than windows starting normally. Any ideas? Or any ideas why I don't have a winre.wim in my C:\Windows\System32\Recovery\ folder? My installation is Windows 7 Ultimate N SP1 Retail.

You will find winre.wim in sys32\recovery on the install dvd.

After 7 is installed it is in c:\recovery\longguidfolder.

Did you assign a scan code like this:

reagentc.exe /disable

reagentc.exe /setreimage /path C:\recovery\windowsre\ /target C:\windows /bootkey 3b00

reagentc.exe /enable

Thanks for the replies.
Just so that we're on the same page...the image that I captured is of my optimised windows installation with applications and updates installed. I want to place this image on a recovery partition and be able to 'reset' the PC to this image at anytime from WinRE.
Do I need to assign a bootkey for this? Can I not access this from the Repair option on the advanced startup menu?

I'm getting very confused about this. On looking at a Microsoft Deployment Labs document, I'm not sure if it's written incorrectly, but it talks about putting the winre.wim on the system partition and not the recovery partition? Although this is for a setup install which is not what I'm doing, although it also says it doesn't really matter where the winre.wim is placed once you configure the path to it.
The guide I had been following instructs that you apply your image to c: and afterwards copy winre.wim from c:Windows\System32\Recovery\ - how is this possible if it's only in this location on the install DVD? Might I be using the wrong guide for my application?

Yes, it is a little confusing.

If you have a normal installation from the dvd using setup.exe - then winre.wim will be in c:\recovery\longnumber.

However, oem installs have been altered and often do not have that - Dell for example leaves winre.wim in system32\recovery.


I wanted the to boot either standard winre using F8 - from c:\recovery\longnumber\

or my own customized winre.

I did that from within windows ( that is why I disabled reagentc first ).

I copied winre.wim and boot.sdi to D:\Recovery\Winre\ and assigned a scan code as per my previous post.

It worked fine - F8 booted the standard winre and F9 booted the customized winre.

Si will this work generally to re-enable Repair My Computer on F8 Advanced Boot Tools menu, for retail installs and from Elevated CMD?

It is for adding another winre.wim on another partition , using another f key.

(It usually fixes F8 as well, if it it isn't working )

See Here

Hold on...you're losing me...lol.
I have a retail DVD that I installed and captured an image off so winre.wim is in C:\Recovery\longstring\. If I move that to my R:\Recovery\WindowsRE folder along with my install.wim, will I be able to apply that image from the repair option on the advanced startup menu, or do I have to add some sort of factory restore application to a customised winre??

I would copy it - instead of moving it.

After booting winre from the R partition , you will need some way to apply the image from install.wim.

Normally that is done by having a copy of imagex in your custom winre.wim

You could pop the files out of this NT6INSTALLERx64.zip into system32 of your winre.wim, the just type NT6INSTALLER at the command prompt.

(32 bit version here NT6INSTALLER.zip ).

You need to mount your winre.wim with dism , copy the files from the zip (not the folder they are in - just copy the files into the mounted system 32 ), then unmount with commit .