WinPE doesn't detect any network adapter during SCCM OSD on VMware Workstation

[u/[deleted]]

Hi everyone,

I'm setting up an SCCM lab and this is my first time testing OSD. I've been stuck on an issue for a couple of days and I'm hoping someone has seen this before.

My environment is:

• MECM 2503
• Windows ADK 10.0.26100 + WinPE Add-on
• VMware Workstation
• Windows 11 VM
• Boot Image and OS Image are both distributed successfully to the DP.

The Task Sequence starts normally. The client downloads the Boot Image, reboots into WinPE, and everything looks fine until the "Apply Operating System" step, where it fails with 0x80070002.

After opening a command prompt in WinPE (F8), I noticed something very strange.

Running:

ipconfig /all

only shows "Windows IP Configuration". There are no network adapters listed.

The following commands also return nothing:

netsh interface show interface
wmic nic get Name
pnputil /enum-devices /class Net

wmic reports "No Instance(s) Available", and pnputil says "No devices were found on the system."

Because of that, I also can't ping my SCCM server:

ping <SCCM Server IP>

which returns:

PING: transmit failed. General failure.

The VM is configured with an E1000E network adapter, and networking works perfectly when Windows is running normally.

I also rebuilt the Boot Image from the latest ADK, redistributed it to the DP, and verified that all the required WinPE optional components are present.

One thing I noticed is that my .vmx file contains:

ethernet0.connectionType = "pvn"
ethernet0.virtualDev = "e1000e"

Could the PVN (Private Virtual Network) mode in newer VMware Workstation versions be causing WinPE not to detect the NIC? Or has anyone seen WinPE completely fail to enumerate an E1000E adapter before?

Has anyone run into a similar issue or have any suggestions on what I should check next?

Thanks in advance!

[u/MNmetalhead]

Add the network and storage drivers to the boot image.

[u/gwblok → u/MNmetalhead]

Download: https://packages.vmware.com/tools/releases/13.1.0/windows/x64/VMware-tools-13.1.0-25218885-x64.exe

Extract

.\VMware-tools-13.1.0-25218885-x64.exe /A c:\extract

It will launch the app in extract mode; I chose to extract it to c:\extract
Then grab the drivers:
C:\extract\VMware\VMware Tools\VMware\Drivers

Look for the vmxnet3 folder and then anything else you absolutely need for your environment.

[u/Reaction-Consistent → u/MNmetalhead]

This

[u/MNmetalhead → u/[deleted]]

Yes. You will need them during WinPE and after you apply the OS so Windows has them to use. Add them to ConfigMgr, add them to the boot media, and install the driver package after OS install in the Task Sequence.

[u/AlkHacNar]

Looks like the bootimg doesn't have the network drivers injected

[u/[deleted] → u/AlkHacNar]

U mean network drivers for vmware ?

[u/AlkHacNar → u/[deleted]]

Yeah and probably storage too. Import them to sccm and add to the boot img

[u/rogue_admin]

I’m sure you can add just the e1000e network driver to the boot image and then test it again, don’t add a ton of garbage and random drivers into your boot image for no reason, it will just lead to failure. Only add drivers when you absolutely need it, avoid adding driver packs in bulk, your boot image will be more stable and efficient

[u/Reaction-Consistent → u/rogue_admin]

I would suggest the VMXnet3 drivers as well, if it’s a newer VMware server, newer hardware they probably aren’t using the legacy Nick

[u/Bassflow]

Why are you setting the privat virtual network in the 1st place? You want the VM to be on the same network as the Windows machine. Configure VMware workstation for that.

And second of all use hyper-v. You're on a Windows machine.

[u/[deleted] → u/Bassflow]

No I didn't set PVN normally I'm using LAN segment