diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..19c12f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+# Windows Automation Environment Configuration
+# Copy this file to .env and fill in your values
+
+# Proxmox Configuration
+export PROXMOX_URL="https://la-vmh-07:8006/api2/json"
+export PROXMOX_USERNAME="root@pam"
+export PROXMOX_PASSWORD="your-proxmox-root-password"
+export PROXMOX_NODE="la-vmh-07"
+
+# Windows Configuration
+export WINRM_PASSWORD="PackerPassword123!"
+
+# Proxmox API Token (alternative to password)
+export PM_API_TOKEN_ID="root@pam!forgejo-automation"
+export PM_API_TOKEN_SECRET="your-api-token-secret"
+
+# Terraform Variables
+export TF_VAR_build_id="001"
+export TF_VAR_template_vm_id="9000"
diff --git a/build-template.sh b/build-template.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..7157cc8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/build-template.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,199 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Windows Packer Build Script
+# This script builds the Windows 11 LTSC template on Proxmox
+
+set -e
+
+# Colors
+RED='\033[0;31m'
+GREEN='\033[0;32m'
+YELLOW='\033[1;33m'
+BLUE='\033[0;34m'
+NC='\033[0m'
+
+echo -e "${BLUE}╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗${NC}"
+echo -e "${BLUE}║${NC}  ${GREEN}Windows 11 LTSC Packer Build${NC}                          ${BLUE}║${NC}"
+echo -e "${BLUE}║${NC}  ${GREEN}Proxmox Virtual Environment${NC}                          ${BLUE}║${NC}"
+echo -e "${BLUE}╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝${NC}"
+echo ""
+
+# Default values
+PROXMOX_NODE="la-vmh-07"
+PROXMOX_URL="https://${PROXMOX_NODE}:8006/api2/json"
+PROXMOX_USERNAME="root@pam"
+
+# Check for .env file
+if [ -f ".env" ]; then
+    echo -e "${GREEN}Loading configuration from .env file...${NC}"
+    source .env
+fi
+
+# Parse command line arguments
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+    case $1 in
+        --node)
+            PROXMOX_NODE="$2"
+            PROXMOX_URL="https://${PROXMOX_NODE}:8006/api2/json"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        --url)
+            PROXMOX_URL="$2"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        --user)
+            PROXMOX_USERNAME="$2"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        --password)
+            export PKR_VAR_proxmox_password="$2"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        --check)
+            echo "Running validation only..."
+            CHECK_MODE=true
+            shift
+            ;;
+        --help|-h)
+            echo "Usage: $0 [OPTIONS]"
+            echo ""
+            echo "Options:"
+            echo "  --node HOSTNAME    Proxmox node name (default: la-vmh-07)"
+            echo "  --url URL           Proxmox API URL"
+            echo "  --user USERNAME     Proxmox username (default: root@pam)"
+            echo "  --password PASS     Proxmox password"
+            echo "  --check             Validate only, don't build"
+            echo ""
+            echo "Environment variables:"
+            echo "  PKR_VAR_proxmox_password  Proxmox password"
+            echo "  PKR_VAR_proxmox_url       Proxmox API URL"
+            echo "  PKR_VAR_proxmox_node      Proxmox node name"
+            exit 0
+            ;;
+        *)
+            echo -e "${RED}Unknown option: $1${NC}"
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+    esac
+done
+
+# Determine script directory
+SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
+cd "$SCRIPT_DIR"
+
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Configuration:${NC}"
+echo "  Proxmox URL:    $PROXMOX_URL"
+echo "  Proxmox User:   $PROXMOX_USERNAME"
+echo "  Proxmox Node:   $PROXMOX_NODE"
+echo ""
+
+# Check if running on Proxmox host
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Checking environment...${NC}"
+if hostname | grep -q "pve\|proxmox"; then
+    echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Running on Proxmox host${NC}"
+    ON_PROXMOX=true
+else
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}⚠ Running on remote host${NC}"
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}  Make sure Proxmox API is accessible from this machine${NC}"
+    ON_PROXMOX=false
+fi
+
+# Check for Packer
+echo ""
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Checking for Packer...${NC}"
+if ! command -v packer &> /dev/null; then
+    echo -e "${RED}Packer not found!${NC}"
+    echo ""
+    echo "To install Packer:"
+    echo ""
+    if [ "$ON_PROXMOX" = true ]; then
+        echo "  # On Proxmox:"
+        echo "  wget https://apt.releases.hashicorp.com/pool/main/h/hashicorp_*_amd64.deb"
+        echo "  apt install -y ./hashicorp_*.deb"
+        echo "  rm hashicorp_*.deb"
+    else
+        echo "  # Download from:"
+        echo "  https://www.packer.io/downloads"
+        echo ""
+        echo "  # Or via Homebrew (macOS):"
+        echo "  brew install packer"
+        echo ""
+        echo "  # Or via Chocolatey (Windows):"
+        echo "  choco install packer"
+    fi
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Packer version: $(packer --version)${NC}"
+
+# Initialize Packer
+echo ""
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Initializing Packer plugins...${NC}"
+packer init packer/
+
+# Validate configuration
+echo ""
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Validating Packer configuration...${NC}"
+export PKR_VAR_proxmox_url="$PROXMOX_URL"
+export PKR_VAR_proxmox_node="$PROXMOX_NODE"
+export PKR_VAR_proxmox_username="$PROXMOX_USERNAME"
+
+if ! packer validate packer/windows.pkr.hcl; then
+    echo -e "${RED}❌ Packer validation failed!${NC}"
+    exit 1
+fi
+echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Configuration validated${NC}"
+
+# Check mode - just validate and exit
+if [ "$CHECK_MODE" = true ]; then
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${GREEN}Validation complete. No build performed.${NC}"
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+# Build the template
+echo ""
+echo -e "${BLUE}╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗${NC}"
+echo -e "${BLUE}║${NC}  ${GREEN}Starting Build${NC}                                        ${BLUE}║${NC}"
+echo -e "${BLUE}╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝${NC}"
+echo ""
+echo -e "${YELLOW}⏱  Estimated time: 15-25 minutes${NC}"
+echo -e "${YELLOW}📝 Build logs will be shown in real-time${NC}"
+echo ""
+
+# Set environment variables
+export PKR_VAR_proxmox_url="$PROXMOX_URL"
+export PKR_VAR_proxmox_node="$PROXMOX_NODE"
+
+# Run Packer build
+if packer build -timestamp-ui packer/windows.pkr.hcl; then
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${GREEN}╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗${NC}"
+    echo -e "${GREEN}║${NC}  ${GREEN}✅ BUILD SUCCESSFUL!${NC}                                   ${GREEN}║${NC}"
+    echo -e "${GREEN}╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝${NC}"
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${GREEN}Template created successfully!${NC}"
+    echo ""
+    echo "Next steps:"
+    echo "  1. Verify in Proxmox: ${YELLOW}qm list | grep win11-ltsc${NC}"
+    echo "  2. Note the VM ID (e.g., 9000)"
+    echo "  3. Update terraform/variables.tf with the VM ID"
+    echo "  4. Test provisioning: ${YELLOW}cd terraform && tofu init && tofu apply${NC}"
+    echo ""
+else
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${RED}╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗${NC}"
+    echo -e "${RED}║${NC}  ${RED}❌ BUILD FAILED${NC}                                        ${RED}║${NC}"
+    echo -e "${RED}╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝${NC}"
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}Troubleshooting steps:${NC}"
+    echo "  1. Verify Proxmox is running and accessible"
+    echo "  2. Check ISO files exist in /mnt/pve-07-iso-nvme/template/iso/"
+    echo "  3. Verify credentials are correct"
+    echo "  4. Check network connectivity"
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}Common issues:${NC}"
+    echo "  - ISO not found: Verify path in variables.pkr.hcl"
+    echo "  - WinRM timeout: Check Autounattend.xml configuration"
+    echo "  - Permission denied: Verify Proxmox user permissions"
+    exit 1
+fi
diff --git a/packer/variables.pkr.hcl b/packer/variables.pkr.hcl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fcdff1d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packer/variables.pkr.hcl
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+variable "proxmox_url" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "https://la-vmh-07:8006/api2/json"
+  description = "Proxmox API URL"
+}
+
+variable "proxmox_username" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "root@pam"
+  description = "Proxmox authentication user"
+}
+
+variable "proxmox_password" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = ""
+  description = "Proxmox password (set via PKR_VAR_proxmox_password env var)"
+  sensitive   = true
+}
+
+variable "proxmox_node" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "la-vmh-07"
+  description = "Proxmox node name"
+}
+
+variable "vm_name" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "win11-ltsc-template"
+  description = "Name of the template VM"
+}
+
+variable "vm_memory" {
+  type        = number
+  default     = 8192
+  description = "VM memory in MB"
+}
+
+variable "vm_cores" {
+  type        = number
+  default     = 4
+  description = "Number of CPU cores"
+}
+
+variable "vm_disk_size" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "60G"
+  description = "Disk size"
+}
+
+variable "iso_storage" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "local"
+  description = "Proxmox storage for ISOs"
+}
+
+variable "windows_iso" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "CLIENT_LTSC_EVAL_x64FRE_en-us.iso"
+  description = "Windows ISO filename"
+}
+
+variable "disk_storage" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "local-lvm"
+  description = "Proxmox storage for disks"
+}
+
+variable "virtio_iso" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "local:iso/virtio-win.iso"
+  description = "Path to VirtIO ISO"
+}
+
+variable "winrm_password" {
+  type        = string
+  default     = "PackerPassword123!"
+  description = "Windows Administrator password for WinRM"
+  sensitive   = true
+}
diff --git a/packer/windows.pkr.hcl b/packer/windows.pkr.hcl
index a8a1d87..093d3a7 100644
--- a/packer/windows.pkr.hcl
+++ b/packer/windows.pkr.hcl
@@ -8,51 +8,52 @@ packer {
 }
 
 source "proxmox-iso" "windows-11" {
-  proxmox_url = "https://proxmox-host:8006/api2/json"
-  username    = "root@pam"
-  password    = "secret"
-  node        = "la-vmh-07"
+  proxmox_url = "${var.proxmox_url}"
+  username    = "${var.proxmox_username}"
+  password    = "${var.proxmox_password}"
+  node        = "${var.proxmox_node}"
 
-  vm_name      = "win11-ltsc-template"
+  vm_name      = "${var.vm_name}"
   template_description = "Built with Packer on ${timestamp()}"
-  iso_file     = "local:iso/CLIENT_LTSC_EVAL_x64FRE_en-us.iso"
+  iso_file     = "${var.iso_storage}:iso/${var.windows_iso}"
 
   qemu_agent   = true
-  cores        = 4
-  memory       = 8192
+  cores        = "${var.vm_cores}"
+  memory       = "${var.vm_memory}"
   machine      = "q35"
   bios         = "ovmf"
   efi_config {
-    efi_storage_pool = "local-lvm"
+    efi_storage_pool = "${var.disk_storage}"
     pre_enrolled_keys = true
   }
   tpm_config {
     version = "2.0"
-    tpm_storage_pool = "local-lvm"
+    tpm_storage_pool = "${var.disk_storage}"
   }
 
   scsi_controller = "virtio-scsi-pci"
   disks {
-    disk_size    = "60G"
-    storage_pool = "local-lvm"
+    disk_size    = "${var.vm_disk_size}"
+    storage_pool = "${var.disk_storage}"
     type         = "virtio"
     format       = "raw"
     cache_mode   = "writeback"
   }
+
   additional_iso_files {
-    device       = "sata1"
-    iso_file     = "local:iso/virtio-win.iso"
+    device   = "sata1"
+    iso_file = "${var.virtio_iso}"
   }
 
   communicator = "winrm"
   winrm_username = "Administrator"
-  winrm_password = "PackerPassword123!"
+  winrm_password = "${var.winrm_password}"
   winrm_insecure = true
   winrm_use_ssl  = true
 
   boot_command = [
-    "<wait><wait><wait>","<enter><wait>","<enter><wait>",
-    "<enter><wait>","<enter>"
+    "<wait><wait><wait>", "<enter><wait>", "<enter><wait>",
+    "<enter><wait>", "<enter>"
   ]
   boot_wait    = "10s"
 }