How to Manage Multilingual Installation Sources in Windows 10

Introduction

Managing multiple languages in Windows 10 installations can be challenging, especially with changes introduced in version 1903. This guide is based on the original article add-language-packs-to-windows, with updates to address issues like the Cortana search bar not working.

Creating a Multilingual Installation Source

To create a multilingual installation source, follow these steps:

WinPE Setup

Setting up the Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE) for multilingual support is straightforward and follows the same steps as before.

Install.wim Setup

For the Install.wim file, start with an En-US ISO and then add the required language packs, local experience packs, and optional features.

Adding Language Packs

Mount your Install.wim file and add the language pack using the following command:

Add-WindowsPackage -Path "C:\mount" -ScratchDirectory "C:\Scratch" -PackagePath "PathToLanguagePack.cab"

Adding Local Experience Packs

Local experience packs can be found on the same ISO as the language pack or on a specific ISO. Use the following command to add them:

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Path "C:\mount" -PackagePath "PathToExperiencePack.cab" -LicensePath "PathToExperiencePackLicense.xml"

Adding Optional Features

To add optional features available in the “Optional Features” ISO, use the following script:

$InstallFeature = Get-WindowsCapability -Path "C:\mount" | Where-Object {$_.Name -like "Language.*fr-fr*"}
Foreach ($Install in $InstallFeature) {
    $FullNameFeature = $Install.Name
    Add-WindowsCapability -Path "C:\mount" -Name $FullNameFeature -Source "DriveLetterOfMountedISO"
}

Steps to Execute the Script

1. Mount the Windows 10 ISO and copy the Install.wim file to a working directory.
2. Mount the Install.wim file:

DISM /Mount-Wim /WimFile:C:\Path\To\Install.wim /index:1 /MountDir:C:\mount

1. Add the language pack, local experience pack, and optional features as described above.
2. Unmount and commit the changes:

DISM /Unmount-Wim /MountDir:C:\mount /Commit