Windows audit mode is a feature beginning in Windows 7 that allows customization to be applied to windows images
Quoted from Understanding Audit Mode -
In Audit mode, you can:
Bypass Windows Welcome. You can access the desktop as quickly as possible. You do not have to configure default settings such as a user account, location, and time zone.
Install applications, add device drivers, and run scripts. You can connect to a network and access additional installation files and scripts. You can also install additional language packs and device drivers.
Configure Windows. You can make sure that the Windows image that you customize does not have configurations that you will have to remove.
Test the validity of a Windows installation. Before you send the system to end users, you can perform tests on the system without creating a user account. Then you can prepare the system to start in Windows Welcome on the next boot.
Add more customizations to a reference image. This reduces the number of images that you have to manage. For example, you can create a single reference image that contains the basic customizations that you want to apply to all Windows images. You can then boot the reference image to audit mode and make more changes that are specific to the computer. These changes can be customer-requested applications or specific device drivers.
