MDT deployment failed and Stuck at Command Prompt: Windows installation does not proceed via PXE boot

You may run into the following errors when you boot into MDT over PXE, nothing is being processed and rather, it fails at the command prompt (CMD). You can test this by entering “winpeinit” and if this does not work, then the WinPE has some issue. For more information on the differences between ADK, MDT, Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM), Intune, Autopilot, and WSUS. No bootable media found system halted: Unable to PXE boot WDS to Virtualbox, WDS/DHCP scenarios: How to configure DHCP Server option 60, 66, and 67 for Windows Deployment Services, Uninstall WDS: How to remove Windows Deployment Services role via the GUI and PowerShell.

The Wpeinit.exe file communicates with the DHCP module and loads the resources needed to perform a network connection over TCP/IP. After the files have been processed, the boot process is complete and you can take advantage of the features of Windows PE. It can be used to installs Plug and Play devices, processes Unattend.xml settings, and loads network resources.

The reason for this error was because I replicated a share over the MDT to another. This means, I created a new share and copied the contents over one by one and some of the features were not correctly checked.

Note: In addition, These steps resolved my error and it might not be the same for you as there could be many other reasons for this. Follow the steps below to fix this issue. Right-click on the deployment share, and
– Click on properties

– Select the WinPE Tab
– Select the features Tab
Here you will notice some features arent as shown below

Under the Features, ensure the following are checked otherwise you will be stuck at the Command Prompt

- DISM Cmdlets
- Enhanced Storage
- winpe-fonsupport-winre
- .Net Framework
- Windows PowerShell
- Secure boot Cmdlets
- storage Management Cmdlets
- And finally click on Apply and then on OK.

Optimizing PXE Boot Settings

Also On the General Tab, ensure the "Scratch space size" is set to your desired value".Other areas you should check are as follow to ensure a smooth PXE boot operation.

Furthermore, Ensure you have the right drivers needed for the WinPE to work.
If you use a “Selection Profile” for a specific driver, ensure this is tied to your deployment share.
Ensure you have the right boot Image, “Lite Touch Image” generated and placed in WDS.
Ensure you are using the right ADK version with MDT.
Ensure all needed DeploymentShare rules are in place and the task sequence is modified to reflect your deployment Share (environment) need.

However, Here are some related errors you will come across when modifying Windows Image. How to fix error 0xc1510114: The wim file needs to be remounted, error 0x80070002: When trying to mount an image file, error code 15601: How to resolve DISM unspecified error when removing preinstalled packages, error 0xc1420127: The specified image in the specified wim is already mounted for read and write access, DISM Error 87: The package is unknown and Error 740: Elevated permissions are required to run DISM. What happens when WDS and DNS is installed on the same server: DNS issues with WDS. How to create a capture image on Windows Deployment Services, Windows Deployment Services: WDSUTIL CommandLine Options on Windows Server 2019.

I hope you found this blog post helpful. Moreover, Please let me know in the comment session if you have any questions.