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The cause of this issue is that you have installed a Windows 2008 R2 Boot image and set your boot program to Wdsmgfw.efi (hardcoded) as the "Default boot image" in Windows Deployment Services Properties under the boot tab for EFI based PXE clients under the IA64 or x64 architecture field or via command line on the windows deployment server, which is not supported.
IA64 COMMAND LINE EXAMPLE:
"wdsutil /set-device /device:<machine name> /bootprogram:boot\ia64\wdsmgfw.efi"
x64 COMMAND LINE EXAMPLE:
"wdsutil /set-device /device:<machine name> /bootprogram:boot\x64\wdsmgfw.efi"
This is not supported because when you PXE boot an EFI based computer, the Wdsmgfw.efi boot program is automatically downloaded prior to the boot program by bootmgfw.efi after the user presses F12 or equivalent. If you specify Wdsmgfw.efi as your boot program, this will cause the computer to boot in an infinite loop.
Note: For x64 and IA64 EFI based computers, you cannot configure both bootmgfw.efi boot program (hardcoded) and a referral server; However, referral servers are supported when a key press is required (which is the default when no boot program is specified). Bootmgfw.efi provides .n12 like behavior (where the computer does not require a key press) in x64 and IA64 EFI computers.
The following reference chart lists the available NBPs (Network Boot Programs) in Windows Deployment Services:
| NBP | Description | Architecture/BIOS |
|---|---|---|
PXEboot.com | Requires the end-user to press the F12 key for PXE boot to continue. (This is the default NBP.) | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
PXEboot.n12 | Immediately begins PXE boot (does not require pressing F12 on the client). | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
AbortPXE.com | Allows the device to immediately begin booting by using the next boot device specified in the BIOS. This allows for devices that should not be booting by using PXE to immediately begin their secondary boot process without waiting for a timeout. | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
Hdlscom1.com and Hdlscom2.com | Systems that do not support firmware console redirection display the prompt "Press space or F12 for network boot" by using console redirection to serial port 1 or 2. Users can proceed with the boot process by pressing either button, or they can exit the boot process by not pressing either button. | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
Hdlscom1.n12 and Hdlscom2.n12 | Systems that support firmware console redirection do not display the prompt "Press space or F12 for network boot," and they do not wait for user input. | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
Bootmgfw.efi | The EFI version of PXEboot.com or PXEboot.n12 (in EFI, the choice of whether or not to PXE boot is handled within the EFI shell, and not by the NBP). Bootmgfw.efi is equivalent to combining the functionality in PXEboot.com, PXEboot.n12, abortpxe.com, and bootmgr.exe. This currently exists only for Itanium-based architectures. | x64 EFI and IA64 EFI |
wdsnbp.com | A special NBP developed for use by Windows Deployment Services that serves the following general purposes: | x86-based and x64-based BIOS (same file used for both) |
| Wdsmgfw.efi | A special NBP developed for use by Windows Deployment Services that serves the following general purposes: | x64 EFI and IA64 EFI |
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