Articles on: ggRock

VII. - 🖼️ Create, Configure, and Test ggRock Images

This guide walks you through setting up your System Image and Games Image in ggRock, and testing that everything works smoothly via PXE boot.



Table of Contents


Instructions


In order to install and set up ggRock we would need to complete following steps:




🖥️ 1. System Image Creation


There are two methods for creating your System Image:


  • ✅ Seamless Boot Process (Recommended)
  • 🧰 Legacy Image Creation Tool


📹 Learn more about each method:


  • Adding a New Machine Type to a ggRock Image using the ggRock Seamless Boot Procedure
  • ggRock Image Creation Tool Manual (Deprecated)



⚡ 2. First-Time PXE Boot


Power on your test machine and PXE boot it. This will automatically trigger the imaging process.


You’ll see the following screens:



Once booted, the machine will appear in ggRock:


🧠 Tip: You only need to PXE boot one machine at this point to start image testing.



🎮 3. Create the Games Image


💾 Estimate Image Size


Before creating your Games Image, consider:


  • 🧠 Writeback cache = 10 GB × number of machines
  • 🔒 Reserve at least 15% of array capacity free


⚠️ Note: You cannot shrink an image after it’s created — you can only grow it. Better to round up!


🧠 Maximum Games Image Size Calculator (New Install)


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🛠️ Create the Image


  1. Navigate to the Images tab
  2. Click Create Image
  3. Set a name and storage size
  4. Click Add




🛑 4. Shut Down the Test Machine


Once the system image and game image have been created:


  • Shut down your test machine normally (Start → Power → Shut Down)



🖱️ 5. Apply the Games Image


  • Back in the ggRock Web UI
  • Click the Settings gear or use the kebab menu to the right under Machines for the machine in question.
  • Apply the Games Image you created



🛠️ 6. Initialize the Games Image


With the Games Image created, follow these steps to initialize and prepare it for use:


a. Assign the Games Image to the Test Machine:


  • In the ggRock Web UI, navigate to the Machines tab.​
  • Locate your test machine, click the overflow menu (three vertical dots), and select Settings.​
  • In the Machine Settings dialog, find the Games dropdown menu.​
  • Select the newly created Games Image from the list.​
  • Click Save to apply the changes.​



b. Boot the Test Machine:


  • Power on the test machine and allow it to PXE boot.​


c. Initialize the Games Drive:


  • Open Disk Management in Windows.​



  • A prompt will appear to initialize the new disk. Choose the appropriate partition style (GPT is recommended for most systems).​



  • Once initialized, right-click on the unallocated space and select New Simple Volume.​



  • Follow the wizard to format the partition, assigning a drive letter (e.g., G:) and using the NTFS file system.​



  • Ensure the Allocation Unit is set to 32K, with no exceptions.


  • Complete the new simple volume wizard by clicking the “Finish” button.



d. Verify the Games Drive:


  • Open File Explorer and confirm that the new drive (e.g., G:) is visible and accessible.​




🔄 7. Apply Writebacks for the First Time


To ensure that changes made during the initialization are saved:


In the ggRock Web UI:


  • Navigate to the Machines tab.​
  • Locate your test machine, click the overflow menu (three vertical dots).​
  • Choose Apply Writebacks to commit the changes to the Games Image.​




Congratulations! 🎉


You've successfully created, configured, and tested your ggRock System and Games Images. Your test machine is now set up for diskless PXE booting with the configured images.​


Next Steps:


  • Repeat the process of BIOS configuration and initial bootup for additional client machines as needed.​
  • Regularly update and maintain your images to ensure optimal performance and security.​


If you have further questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out. Happy gaming! 🎮

Updated on: 24/12/2025

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