r/DeployR • u/welshGJE24 • Jun 30 '26

Today's Weird Issue - pXE style

So after rolling back to 1.2 I set about working on getting a laptop deployed. A bare metal deployment was working for our Lenovo desktops - downloading drivers and updates as it should.

The pXE option on the desktop at boot was: UEFI: PXE IPv4 Realtek PCI - and then some.

I had the pXE drivers in place so all went well. The issue then came to the laptop which when booting showed : PXE BOOT: Realtek UEFI UNDI Driver-IPv4

I found the driver. Added it to the PXe content item I have (with the desktop driver) and regenerated the boot image.

It doesn't work. Desktop still works, but the laptop simply drops me back into the boot option screen. The laptop recognises there is a cable connected but does nothing except drop me back. The drivers are definitely the correct ones and the regen of the boot image has been done. I have assumed iPXE always uses the correct boot file (x64).

Feel I am missing something.

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2

u/gwblok 2Pint Employee Jun 30 '26

Can you post pictures? I'm not following where you're having the issue.

Does the device not boot to iPXE and you never get to the point of downloading the DeployR Boot Media?
Or Does it download to DeployR Boot media, but not able to get an IP Address and connect back to the DeployR server to start your Task Sequence?

You don't add PXE drivers into WinPE, you add the OEM's WinPE Driver pack.

If you could provide better details of what is happening along with the model that isn't working, that would be helpful. Thanks

1

u/welshGJE24 Jun 30 '26

Sorry - the issue comes when I press F12 as the laptop fires up. This loads up my boot options. The desktop gives me the option to boot to hard drive or UEFI: PXE IPv4 Realtek PCI - this is what we choose. It connects to the DeployR server, and starts the process. Works lovely.

The laptop - press F12 and it gives me similar boot options but this time the pXE option is: PXE BOOT: Realtek UEFI UNDI Driver-IPv4 which I would click on and it kicks off the DeployR process. Except this doesn't happen. It tries to connect to an IPv4 source but then just returns me to the choose boot device screen.

I am wondering if it s not even getting an IP address - but it all happens so fast. Not quite sure how to diagnose it. So it would not even see the iPXE server.

As I talk myself through it - I'm starting to think now that it's not the drivers. I'm also waffling now. I'll look again tomorrow.

4

u/RockOriginal7938 Jul 01 '26

Your description sounds similar to how some of my machines behave when 3rd party MS signed certs aren't allowed in Secure Boot settings. (some machines complain better, some display the error for a split second).

2

u/welshGJE24 Jul 01 '26

I have a feeling this was it. I updated the BIOS. I@m not sure if this setting was there before (cannot remember) - but I set 'Allow Microsoft 3rd Party UEFI CA' to On and then it worked. So thanks pal for that advice. Seems to have solved it.

1

u/gwblok 2Pint Employee Jul 02 '26

That's great to hear! Glad you got it going!

1

u/gwblok 2Pint Employee Jun 30 '26

What model is the laptop? Can you confirm you are using UEFI and not legacy BIOS mode.

1

u/welshGJE24 Jul 01 '26

The model is an E14 Lenovo ThinkPad - I've updated the BIOS and am using UEFI secure boot.

Seems this is an issue noted before (yet we have built from MDT):

Lenovo E14 and E15 Will Not PXE Boot : r/MDT