Troubleshooting

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If something is not right, ensure that the settings in 2PXE are set correctly. For each integration type the 2Pint.2PXE.Service.exe.config file values should be checked as follows

For Configuration Manager integration:

1. Stop the 2PXE Service if it is started

   1. Enable Configuration Manager Extension by setting EnableSCCMExtension to “1”

   2. Disable the PowerShell Extension by setting EnablePowerShellExtension to “0”

   3. Disable the referral only mode by setting iPXEWSOnly to “1"

   4. Set EnableSCCMSQLConnection to “1”

   5. Set ConfigMgrSQLConnectionString to the right one, basically you need the Server FQDN and the Configuration Manager DB name in there.

2. Enable iPXE Boot loaders by setting EnableiPXEBootLoaders to “1”.

3. Enable 2PXE HTTP server by setting RunHttpServer to “1”.

4. Optional: Enable Unknown Machines support by setting EnableSCCMUnknownMachinesSupport to “1”

5. Run the service in interactive mode as per below.

For PowerShell integration:

1. Stop the 2PXE Service if it is started

   1. Enable the PowerShell Extension by setting EnablePowerShellExtension to “1”

   2. Disable the Configuration Manager Extension by setting EnableSCCMExtension to “0”

   3. Disable the referral only mode by setting iPXEWSOnly to “1"

   4. Enable iPXE Boot loaders by setting EnableiPXEBootLoaders to “1”.

   5. Disable the 2PXE HTTP server by setting RunHttpServer to “0”.

   6. Check the UseEmbeddedBootSDI and set it to “0” if you don’t have the boot.sdi integrated in the image as described earlier in this document.

2. Ensure you have an IIS Virtual Directory for the wimboot.bin file, boot.sdi, and boot images (C:\ProgramData\2Pint Software\2PXE\RemoteInstall) and copy your boot images to the \Sources sub-folder. Also make sure that you have the correct MIME types setup. See the 2PXE Server PowerShell Mode Guide for these settings.

3. Edit the 2PXE PowerShell files and make sure it returns a proper URL to the files above.

4. Create a Windows Firewall rule to allow incoming TCP traffic to the 2PXE Web service on port 8050

5. Bounce the service and check for errors

Running the service interactively

Ensure that the service is stopped before doing this.

You can run the service directly from either a console or by double clicking the executable from within Windows Explorer. This starts the service in a command prompt window, allowing for simple troubleshooting as you can observe directly while the boot request rolls through the console window.

When running in interactive mode all debug logging will be pushed to the console window. This will greatly help when you run into issues or want to showcase the technology. Please note that the console runs under the user executing it and not the service account (SYSTEM by default) which can lead to access violations.

Note that boot speed can also be greatly reduced as the printing to console will take longer than the actual actions. We recommend that this mode is only used for testing or troubleshooting and is best utilized while booting only a single system.

As an example, the following screen shows the executable being run in interactive mode, failing to bind to HTTP.SYS as the port is being used by another process.

Figure 9 shows the 2PXE service running interactively, failing to bind to the HTTP port (due to the service already running).

Errors & Issues

There are many things that can go wrong in 2PXE. If the machine is not booting it’s likely that you have set a configuration that is invalid. Check the valid configuration options and if you can’t find the issue enable debug logging and send us the log after trying to boot an image. Please include any PowerShell scripts as well as the .config file in the email. Email the files to [e-mail] or use our online forums.

Note: Don’t forget to add all the files to a .zip folder otherwise the email might get caught in a spam or antivirus filter.

Getting to an iPXE console session

When things fail early in the process you can get to a console and try to troubleshoot. Before the initial 2Pint Software splash screen appear you can press the ‘c’ key on your keyboard. You have only have a small window of time to press it so bang that thang until the console appears. You are to press the 'C' key when the following is visible or about to appear:

You can press 'C' multiple times, so keep pressing it until the screen below is shown.

Once at the console type ’help’ to get a list of commands available for custom troubleshooting. Otherwise, the machine is now in debug mode and by typing 'exit' the regular process will continue, step by step, stopping at each command.

An iPXE boot stopped at the troubleshooting part.

Support staff at 2Pint Software might instruct you to specific sequences of commands to run, otherwise, if you are just doing an initial test, type 'exit' and press enter as per below:

The next command/sequence is shown on screen and the value, in this case the screen will be cleared.

By continuing to type 'exit' and pressing enter you will move further and further in the process. Below shows what it looks after a few 'exit' has been typed in:

After a while, the screen turns to the custom boot images:

You can also review all available built in console variables by running help, or using the ’config’ command to get a graphical view of all values. The help output shows available commands:

You can then dig around, view variables and troubleshoot to your hearts content. Typically, you will have been directed here by 2Pint Software support staff.