This article discusses network booting or booting from a local area network (LAN). It defines network booting as booting a computer from a network instead of a local disk. The article describes how network booting works, including using PXE to boot Intel-based PCs from the network. It also provides instructions on enabling network booting in BIOS, and discusses uses such as centralized management and installing operating systems via network boot.

1. Title: What’s Boot from LAN / Network Booting & How to Boot from Network
Keywords: bootfromlan,whatdoesbootfromlanmean, pxe bootto lan, how to bootfrom
network, networkbooting, Netboot, how toinstall osthroughnetworkboot,wake onlanboot
Description: What is PXE boot to LAN? What is network boot in BIOS? What is netboot? How to
boot from LAN/network? How to install Windows from network boot?
URL: https://www.minitool.com/backup-tips/boot-from-lan.html
Summary: This article mainly introduces an unusual way to boot up a computer from LAN/network
or remote computer/server/desktop/PC. It defines what boot from LAN is and how it works. Also, it
uses an example based on MiniTool software. Continue reading for more details!
What Does Boot from LAN Mean?
BootingfromLAN (Local AreaNetwork),alsoknownasbootingfromnetwork,isaprocessthat
enablesacomputerto start upand loadan operatingsystem(OS) orother applicationsdirectlyfrom
the LAN withoutanylocal storage device suchas CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, USB flashdrive,orfloppydisk.
What Is Network Boot?
Networkbooting,shortenedasnetboot, isthe processof bootingupacomputerfroma network
insteadof a local disk.Thisbootingmethodcan be appliedtocentrallymanagedcomputers(thin
clients) likepublicmachinesinInternetcafé orschools, disklessworkstations,aswell asrouters.
Network Booting Use Case
Networkbootcan be usedto centralize the managementof harddrive storage,whichsupporters
claimcan reduce capital and maintenance expenses.Itcanalso be appliedinclustercomputing,in
whichnodesmay not have local drives. Inthe late 1980s and early1990s, networkbooting wasused

2. to save the cost of a hard drive fora decentlysizedharddiskwouldcostthousandsof dollars,which
isalmostthe price of a CPU.
Networkbootingisalsousedforunattendedsysteminstallations.Insucha situation,anetwork-
bootedhelpersystemis usedasaplatformto execute the script-driven,unattendedinstallationof
the intendedOSonthe target computer.the implementationsof thatapplicationforWindowsand
Mac OS X existasWindowsDeploymentService andNetInstallrespectively.
https://www.minitool.com/data-recovery/pxe-e61-media-test-failure.html
Hardware Support of Netboot
Almostall moderndesktopandlaptopcomputersofferanoptiontobootfrom LAN in theirBIOSor
UEFI throughPXE (PrebootExecutionEnvironment). Post-1998PowerPC(G3– G5) Mac systemscan
alsoboot fromtheirNewWorldROMfirmware toa networkdisk viaNetBoot.Asforthe older
personal computersthathave nonetworkbootfirmware,theycanrelyona flashdrive or floppy
disk,whichcontainssoftware,tobootfromnetwork.
Intel PXE Boot to LAN
On Intel architecture computers,networkbootisenabledwiththe PXEstandard. PXEextendsthe
featuresof BIOSso that itcan run the software directlyfromthe LAN.Nowadays, PXEsupportisso
commonthat youcan finditinany modernmachine thatcomeswithan EthernetjackcalledRJ45,
whichmakesitpossible tobootan Intel-basedPCfromthe networkwithouthavingtoburnan
EEPROM (ElectricallyErasable Programmable Read-OnlyMemory) onyournetworkcardlike what
youhad to do inthe past.
How to enable PXEbootforIntel DesktopBoards?OnIntel DesktopBoardsthatsupportthe PXE,
youcan setthe networkas a boot device.Now,let’sseehow tobootfromonboard LAN.
1. Press F2 continuouslywhenyoupowerupyourmachine until itentersitsBIOSSetup.
2. Navigate tothe Boot menu.
3. Enable Boot to Network.
4. Press F10 to save changesandexitthe BIOSsetup.
5. Restartyour computerandpress F12 duringPOST toboot froma remote serverwithinLAN.
Tip: To use the F12 key during POST,the User Access Level in theSecurity menu of the BIOSSetup
mustbe set to Full.
How to Boot from LAN?
The processof networkbootingislike this.The initial software tobe runisloadedfroma serveron
the network.ForIP networks,usually,thisisdone usingthe TFTP(Trivial File TransferProtocol).The
serverfromwhichto loadthe initial software isoften foundbybroadcasting aDHCP (DynamicHost
ConfigurationProtocol) orBootstrapProtocol request.
Usually,thatinitial software isn’tafull image of the OSto be loaded,buta small network boot
managerprogram like PXELINUXthatcan deployaboot optionmenuandthenloadthe full image by
invokingthe correspondingsecond-stagebootloader.
Before IPbecame the primaryLayer3 protocol, IBM’sRIPL (Remote Initial ProgramLoad) and
Novell’sNCP(NetWare Core Protocol) were widelyusedtobootfromInternet.Theirclient
implementationsalsofitintosmallerROMthan PXE. Technically,netbootingcanbe appliedoverany
of resource sharingorfile transferprotocols.Forinstance, NFS(NetworkFile System) ispreferredby
BSD (BerkeleySoftware/StandardDistribution) variants.

3. https://www.minitool.com/backup-tips/pxe-boot.html
Next,let’sexplainthe BIOSbootprocessindetail.
Whenthe computerpowersonand starts running the operatingsystem, itgoesthroughaseriesof
operationsbefore itfinallystartsthe OS.The systemisa sophisticatedbootprogramthattakestotal
control overthe PC. Yet,a bootprogram can alsobe a verysimple appsuchas a memorydiagnostics
tool.
Step 1. Computer Powers on
The machine powersonafteryou pressthe powerbuttononthe host case.
Step 2. Hardware Initialization
Then,the BIOS conductsan inventoryof all the componentsinthe computerlikeCPU,memory,and
hard drives.
Step 3. Self-tests
Next,all the componentsdetectedbyBIOSwill gothroughaself-testprocedure tomake sure they
are workingproperly.If one of the componentsfailsanditisrequiredforbasicoperation,yourPC
will make aseriesof beeps andstopworking.Onlywhenall issueshave beensolved,the BIOSwill
move on to the nextsteptodiscoveradditional optionROMs.
Step 4. Computer Stops
If your PC endsupin that state,itwill eitherhangforeverorturn itself off,whichdependsonhowit
enteredthatstate and howyourBIOS isconfiguredtoreact whenitcomesacross that state.
Step 5. Find Built-in Devices and Option ROMs
Duringthe process,the BIOS will detectall the extensionsavailable,whichare oftenembeddedin
the firmware of the BIOSor burnedintoanEEPROM or flashchipon one of your add-oncards.
Amongthose cards,you can see the prompt on the networkcards allowingyoutodecide which type
of bootprotocol it shouldsupport,PXEor RPL (Remote ProgramLoad).
Usually,optionROMs shoulddonothingfancyat that pointexceptinitialize the hardware,runself-
tests,andset upboot service (BBS) entrypoint. And,youwillbe permittedtoselectwhichboot
service totry firstby pressingahotkeythatvariesfrommanufacturers.F12 isthe most common
one.
Also read: Fixed:StartPXE over IPv4Error on WindowsPC
Step 6. Start the First Boot Service
Now,the applicationindicatedbythe bootservice entrypointisstarted.Atthismoment,control
passesto the bootservice thatstarts itsdiscoveryprocessfora boot program.
Step 7. Boot Service Discovers Boot Program
Differentbootserviceslookforthe boottoolsindifferentways. Asforthe networkcardusingthe
PXE standard,itwill performaDHCP requesttofinditsIPaddressand locationof bootsoftware.If a
locationisadvertised,aTFTPrequestisperformedto fetchthe bootprogram,commonlyreferredto
as a networkbootprogram (NBP).

4. Step 8. Remove First Boot Service or Put It at the Bottom of the Boot List
If the bootservice failstofindavalidbootapp, the bootservice will exit,andcontrol returnsto the
BIOS.The BIOSwill cycle tothe nextbootservice initslist.Whetherthe BIOSwill remove the failed
bootdevice orput it to the endof the listdependsonBIOSvendors.
Step 9. Figure out Additional Available Boot Services
If there are more boot servicesavailable,the nextone inthe bootlistwill be started.If not,the
computerwill stop.
Step 10. Start Boot Program
Now,the bootprogram controlsthe computercompletely.Itwill startdoingwhateverit’ssupposed
to do. Once the bootprogram has done all the tasksit shoulddo,itwill handoverthe control to a
systemkernel.A bootprogramthat conductsthat workis knownasa bootloader.
Then,the OS kernel will performacomplete discoveryof the hardware attachedtothe systemand
start doingwhateveritisdesignedtodo.
Boot from LAN with MiniTool ShadowMaker PXE
MiniTool ShadowMakerisaprofessional andreliablebackupsoftware thatalsoenablesyoutoboot
clientcomputerswithinLAN fromahostPC usingitsPXE feature.Let’ssee how itworks.
SM-Trial
1. Download,install,andlaunchMiniTool ShadowMakeronthe hostmachine.
2. If it asks forpurchase,clickthe KeepTrial optioninthe upperright.
3. Then,itwill enterintoitsmainuserinterface (UI).There,move tothe Toolstab fromthe top
menu.
4. In the Toolstab, select PXE.

5. ALT=selectPXEinMiniTool ShadowMaker
5. In the nextPXEClientwindow,clickthe Start buttonto start the PXE service.

6. Alt=PXEservice isrunning
6. You can use the Settings buttonto specifythe startIPaddressof the clients,how many
clientscanbe startedfromthisbootservice, the routerIP,as well asthe mask.
Alt=PXEbootservice settings
7. Boot the clientcomputerwithinthe same LAN asthe hostmachine into BIOS and change its
firstbootservice to PXE.

7. Alt=change bootoptiontoPXE
8. Rebootthe client anditwill startup from LAN intothe WindowsRecoveryEnvironment
(WinRE) withMiniTool ShadowMakerincluded. And,itwillautomaticallyopenMiniTool
ShadowMakerafterthe timercountsdownfor15 seconds.If youdon’twantto launchthe
program,just click Cancel.

8. Alt=initializingtobootfromPXE
9. Finally,youwill arriveatthe screenof the MiniTool PE Loader.There,youcan launch
MiniTool ShadowMaker,rebootyourPC,turnoff yourPC, loaddrivers,use the command
console,andlaunchMicrosoft iSCSI Initiator.

9. ALT=successfullybootfromMiniTool PXEintoMiniTool PELoader
10. Go to boot upother clientswiththe same instructionstartingfromstep7.
Returnto the host computer,youwill see how manyclientshave beenbootedupfromthisPXE
service andtheirtemporaryIPaddressesandports.

10. Alt=PXEclientscondition
How to Install OS Through Network Boot?
If the clientcomputerisbare mental oritsoriginal systemisdamaged,youcanrelyon network
bootingtoinstall systemsonit.The followingguide applies toWindows7/8/8.1/10/11.
If you have a Windowsinstallationmedia,justconnectittothe target clientcomputer,bootitfrom
LAN,and install the operatingsystemonthe clientwiththe installationmedia.
If you don’thave an installationdisk,youcancreate a systembackup withMiniTool ShadowMaker
on a workingcomputerandsave the backup image intoa portable disk.Then,connectthe portable
diskto the clientandbootup the clientwith the MiniTool ShadowMakerPXEservice followingthe
stepsabove.Finally,onthe destinationclient,restore the systemtoitsharddiskusing the Universal
Restore utilityof MiniTool ShadowMaker.

11. Alt=universalrestore
SM-Trial
Wake on LAN Boot
Wake-on-LAN (WoL) isanEthernetorTokenRingcomputernetworkingstandardthatenablesa
computerto be awakenedorturnedonby a networkmessage.typically,the message issenttothe
target computerbya program executedonadevice connectedtothe same LAN.Itis alsopossible to
initiate the message fromanothernetworkusingsubnet-directedbroadcastsona WoL gateway
service.
Equivalenttermsinclude wake uponLAN,powerupby LAN,poweronby LAN, resume onLAN,
resume byLAN,remote wake-up,andwake on WAN (Wide AreaNetwork).If the PCbeingawakened
iscommunicatingviaWi-Fi,asupplementarystandardcalledWake onWirelessLAN (WoWLAN)
mustbe employed.
Both WoL and WoWLAN standardsare usuallysupplementedbyvendorstoofferprotocol-
transparenton-demandservices suchasthe Apple Bonjourwake-on-demand(SleepProxy)function.
Relatedarticle:HowtoEnable Wake-on-LAN inWindows10?