Solution toUnattended install issue: Windows cannot read the <ProductKey> setting from the....

This is not a WinReducer issue, but rather seems to be a Windows 8 issue.
If you face this issue, create the PID.txt file as described in this post on wincert. Use your own PID instead of the one on this post.

I also had the product id in the autounattend.xml file, so Im not sure if this works with or without. Too lazy to test to that extent

Hi my friend,

Thnak you for this information and I discover that there are 2 possibiliies for productkey in autounatted.xml for Windows 8: 1 for Setup and 1 for shell-setup. But I don't know if it could resolve this error ...

I'm not sure, but this might only be restricted to VirtualBox also, as that is where I encountered the error. I havent tested this on installing to an actual hard drive to see if it affects hardware installations...

Yes, possible, because I'm using VMware Player 5.0.1 and never encountered this error ...

Did an otherwise simple unattended ISO creation via WinReducer 8 1.01

Original media: Clean ISO of W8Pro x64 OEM Dutch

*No tweaks
*No components reduced

Customization:

*Did change the wallpaper, lockscreen and OEM icon according to the help tips.
*start page ie10: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
*zoom factor: 100%
*Slipstreamed all windows updates except the known bad ones and the ones that give trouble in combo with WinReducer.
*Slipstreamed .Net 3.5 via the original untouched ISO

Unattended:

Boot setup:

*Accept EULA
*Skip Language (dutch - keyboard english (us international))

Windows Setup:

*User Account: "Gebruiker" - No Password - Administrators
*Hide network location: Home
*Hide online account
*Protect your PC: Install all Important and Recommended Updates
*Workgroup: "WORKGROUP"
*Power Scheme: High Perfomance
*Monitor Timeout Delay: 30
*Standby Timeout Delay: 0

Didn't mark the product key option. I do receive the aforementioned error during Windows Setup anyway.

Will try a new run without using the unattended option at all.

Have done another run in which I haven't selected any option in the "unattended" part of WinReducer at all.

Still gives me the same error.

Will try a new run with all the aforemenioned options (including the unattended ones) selected.

I will however select the product key option this time and leave it at "xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx"

If that doesn't work I'll try a bogus key. (open license for example, shouldn't work.)

Selecting one key for all installs doesn't seem to be an option for me; We install a lot of different systems each day so we would like to be able to enter the product key during setup like we are used to using nlite, vlite and rt7 lite.

That doesn't mean I don't like this program though, I am very pleased with this piece of software and want to thank Winterstorm2050 for all the hard work he has done so far.

After creating the new ISO with "xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx" in the product key field I have checked the unattend.xml in the wmi folder containing the temporary ISO.

Contents:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<!--File generated by WinReducer 8 created by Winterstorm2050 from [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
<unattend xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:unattend">
  <settings pass="windowsPE">
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-International-Core-WinPE" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="NonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <SetupUILanguage>
        <UILanguage>nl-NL</UILanguage>
      </SetupUILanguage>
      <UILanguage>nl-NL</UILanguage>
      <UserLocale>nl-NL</UserLocale>
      <SystemLocale>nl-NL</SystemLocale>
      <InputLocale>0409:000000409</InputLocale>
    </component>
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-Setup" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="NonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <UserData>
        <AcceptEula>true</AcceptEula>
        <ProductKey>
          <Key>xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx</Key>
          <WillShowUI>OnError</WillShowUI>
        </ProductKey>
      </UserData>
    </component>
  </settings>
  <settings pass="oobeSystem">
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="NonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <UserAccounts>
        <LocalAccounts>
          <LocalAccount wcm:action="add">
            <Name>Gebruiker</Name>
            <DisplayName>Gebruiker</DisplayName>
            <Group>Administrators</Group>
          </LocalAccount>
        </LocalAccounts>
      </UserAccounts>
      <OOBE>
        <HideEULAPage>true</HideEULAPage>
        <NetworkLocation>Home</NetworkLocation>
        <HideOnlineAccountScreens>true</HideOnlineAccountScreens>
        <ProtectYourPC>1</ProtectYourPC>
      </OOBE>
    </component>
  </settings>
  <settings pass="specialize">
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-UnattendedJoin" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="NonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <Identification>
        <JoinWorkgroup>WORKGROUP</JoinWorkgroup>
      </Identification>
    </component>
    <component name="Microsoft-Windows-Deployment" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="NonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
      <RunSynchronous>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>1</Order>
          <Description>PowerSchemes</Description>
          <Path>CMD /C POWERCFG /SETACTIVE 8c5e7fda-e8bf-4a96-9a85-a6e23a8c635c</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>2</Order>
          <Description>TurnOffDisplay</Description>
          <Path>CMD /C POWERCFG /CHANGE monitor-timeout-ac 30</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>3</Order>
          <Description>TurnOffDisplay</Description>
          <Path>CMD /C POWERCFG /CHANGE monitor-timeout-dc 30</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>4</Order>
          <Description>TurnOffComputerSleep</Description>
          <Path>CMD /C POWERCFG /CHANGE standby-timeout-ac 0</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
        <RunSynchronousCommand wcm:action="add">
          <Order>5</Order>
          <Description>TurnOffComputerSleep</Description>
          <Path>CMD /C POWERCFG /CHANGE standby-timeout-dc 0</Path>
        </RunSynchronousCommand>
      </RunSynchronous>
    </component>
  </settings>
</unattend>

The

"<Key>xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx</Key>
          <WillShowUI>OnError</WillShowUI>"

entry tells me the User Interface should come up encountering any errors with the product key.

I am creating my usb stick as I am typing this and will post back on the results.