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

🖥️ 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)

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⚡ 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.

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🎮 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

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🛑 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)
  

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🖱️ 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.​
  

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🔄 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.​
• Install Chipset, Sound, Video, and any other necessary drivers.
• Install the ggLeap Client
• 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! 🎮