🚀 Windows Deployment Services (WDS) is a Microsoft server technology that enables network-based installation of Windows operating systems—no USB drives or DVDs required.

🧠 What WDS Does

• Deploys Windows OS remotely to bare-metal or existing machines
• Uses PXE booting to start installations over the network
• Stores and manages OS images (like .wim files)
• Automates setup using custom scripts and answer files

It’s like having a digital assembly line for rolling out Windows across multiple devices.

🛠️ How It Works

1. PXE Boot: Client machine boots from network using Preboot Execution Environment
2. Windows PE Loads: A lightweight version of Windows launches
3. Image Selection: User selects which OS image to install
4. Installation Begins: WDS applies the image and completes setup

🏢 Use Cases

⚠️ Deprecation Notice

Microsoft has deprecated parts of WDS in recent Windows Server versions:

• Windows Server 2022 limits support for deploying Windows 11 using standard boot images
• Microsoft recommends transitioning to modern tools like:
  • Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT)
  • System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)
  • Windows Autopilot and Intune for cloud-based deployment