QUES: possible to use one common disk image on T41/2/3p?

[jtreble]

I want to use one common disk image (Acronis/Windows XP SP3) on multiple T41p/T42p/T43p laptops. Is this possible? I do this currently on multiple T41p FRUs without any problems. If anyone has any experience with this, I would like hear from you. TIA.

[Harryc]

Hi John, please add your location to your user profile, it is a forum requirement. I'd say you will have the most luck between T41 and T42 machines. T43's have a different HAL (hardware abstraction layer), and this is troublesome particularly when you start getting into the Intel GPU variants. So T43's are less likely to run on the same image without difficulty.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardware_abstraction_layer

[RealBlackStuff]

The T41/2/p laptops shouldn't have any problems.
For the T43/p models it will not work. Hardware is too different.

[ryan1212]

With sysprep and driver injection, it should be possible. You can find tons of info about this online.

[sktn77a]

The IBM/Lenovo recovery CDs are usually backwards compatible although there are occasional driver glitches between generations (eg the T42 recovery CDs don't have the driver for the IBM a/b/g wireless card of the T41). Periodically, IBM/Lenovo will update something that can cause more issues (eg the switch to the T43 can cause additional problems if you use T43 recovery CDs on a previous generation), as described above.

[Aroc]

Using Sysprep to inject the drivers is trivial once you understand the mechanics of sysprep, where you will need to put the driver files, how to create a sysprep.inf file, etc. That part is easy. The trick with the T43 is that it uses a different HAL and kernel than the previous versions. And swapping HALs -- although possible to do -- isn't supported nor suggested by Microsoft or the OEMs.

T42 -- "Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC," ACPI PIC HAL (Halacpi.dll)
T43 -- "ACPI Uniprocessor PC," ACPI APIC UP HAL (Halaacpi.dll)
T60/1 -- you can use Sysprep to upgrade the Halaacpi.dll to Halmacpi.dll, and this upgrade is supported by Microsoft.

You are far better off creating O/S imaged based and grouped on common HALs
T41/T42 -- one common image (Halacpi.dll)
T43/T60/T61/etc -- one common image (Halaacpi.dll)
You might be able to use the Halaacpi.dll image on your T400/T500/etc machines and use sysprep to upgrade these to Halmacpi.dll. I do with the comparable Dell Latitudes/Dell Precision mobile workstations. (D410/D420/D430/E4200/E4300 all share a common, single sysprep drive image for Windows XP (halaacpi.dll) were I work).

Access %WINDIR%\System32\hal.dll
File Properties --> Version tab --> Other Information --> Internal name

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/309283

[sktn77a]

I Installed Windows Vista Business from the Lenovo recovery CDs from a T61 onto a T41 without any apparent problems - just had to separately install the video driver afterwards. The system appeared to run slowly, though, which I attributed to Vista(?)