How To Install Windows Xp (Sp3) Via Usb Drive

For a long time, Microsoft didn't sell Windows install media in the class of bootable USB wink drives. Instead, information technology prefered to stick to onetime-school DVD media, despite the fact that many notebooks today are too small-scale to fifty-fifty include an optical drive, and many DIYers are edifice PCs which forego one on purpose.

Still, things have moved on, and for the first time, Microsoft has begun to sell Windows x on pre-configured USB drives. Previous versions of the Os (XP, 7 and 8.1), all require the user to create their ain bootable USB bulldoze.

Creating a bootable Windows USB drive used to be a chore, simply today, one solution can pretty-well suit most people. Yet, there are times when a flash bulldoze has some quirk that prevents it from working with a particular solution, so for that reason, this article takes a look at five different methods.

Guide Index:

• USB Installer Tools & Successes
• Acquiring a Disc Image (ISO)
• Method 1 – Using Rufus
• Method 2 – UNetbootin
• Method three – Using Microsoft diskpart
• Method 4 – Microsoft Windows seven USB/DVD Tool
• Method five – Windows 10 Media Creation Tool
• Windows XP Notes
• Common Bug

Benefits of USB Install Media

Even if the target desktop or notebook has an optical bulldoze, at that place are a couple of reasons to consider beginning creating a USB-based installer. Admittedly, the time and effort of creating the bulldoze might make information technology all-time-suited for system builders, merely for people like united states, who juggle exam machines, USB is a no-brainer.

To start, USB media is more than durable than disc-based media. Discs can be easily scratched, while well-built USB flash drives can generally handle a chip of corruption. Then, there's the convenience. E'er walk around with a disc in your pocket? It looks a scrap odd.

For u.s.a., performance and reliability are the key reasons why nosotros've opted to use USB-based installers in lieu of discs, specially with USB 3.0 being much more than mutual. Even if a DVD has been burned at the highest commercial speeds, it won't be able to compete with flash memory which offers far improved IOPS performance (operations per 2d) – it's the same reason why SSDs are much faster for booting an OS and loading applications than a mechanical difficult bulldoze; the seek times are minuscule in comparing.

While information technology'due south beyond the scope of this article, those who truly want a fast install experience can slipstream USB three.0 support into the install media, which on current chipsets and an SSD target tin can allow you to install Windows in nether four minutes flat.

USB Installer Tools & Successes

Over the class of this article, we're going to be looking at v different solutions that attain the verbal same matter: Creating a USB-based Windows installer; if one doesn't piece of work, the adjacent one should (at least, that's the hope). To give an overview of what to expect from each solution, refer to this success table:

	Windows ten	Windows 8	Windows 7	Windows XP
Rufus	Yes*	Aye	Yes	Yeah
UNetbootin	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
diskpart	Yep	Yes	Yes	No
Microsoft USB Tool	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Media Creation Tool	Yeah	No	No	No
* Requires Rufus 2.1.6 or later.

Given the fact that Windows XP has reached end-of-life status and doesn't officially support installation over USB, nosotros accept to outline a number of problems and atmospheric condition in order to go it working. Windows XP over USB is yet temperamental, and in that location is a good chance that information technology just won't piece of work with your system, so please go along this in mind.

For starters, modern UEFI-equipped machines are non designed to back up such an one-time OS, then chances are that it volition not fifty-fifty install, or even be detected in the start place. If the motherboard in question happens to back up a legacy BIOS mode, and then it might work. Different version of Rufus (explained later) accept better luck with the XP process than others. We strongly suggest you skip to the dedicated part of this article that explains the problems with Windows XP and USB support.

What about Windows Vista? Similar Windows seven, eight, and 10, Vista besides can be installed from USB media with these aforementioned methods, but due to that fact that most have moved on from it in favor of 10, it'southward non a big focus.

We mentioned Rufus above, and that'due south the tool we're going to lead in here with, every bit nosotros consider it to be the simplest to use, and the nigh effective. We discussed the same tool in an article from summertime 2012 called 'Creating a Bootable DOS Flash Drive the Easy Way', as it allows for elementary cosmos of bootable MS-DOS flash drives, as the title suggests.

Subsequently the wait at Rufus, nosotros'll continue on to UNetbootin, Microsoft's diskpart (a tool built into Windows), a quick mention of another official Microsoft tool, but one the visitor no longer promotes for Windows seven and 8, too as the latest method, the Media Creation Tool. Just first…

Acquiring a Disc Image (ISO)

Some solutions listed on this page require a Windows disc image (.iso) to be nowadays. The exception is 'diskpart', as the disc'south files will need to be transferred over manually (information technology doesn't matter if they come from a mounted ISO or a drive in an actual DVD-ROM). ISOs are available from a number of sources, but most people will acquire them afterwards purchasing the OS online through Microsoft, or through some other related Microsoft service. If y'all don't have an ISO, or a disc for that matter, you'll need to acquire 1 from a friend or elsewhere on the web.

If you're just looking to downloadWindows 10 equally an ISO, you simply need to run the tool listed in step #5, and choose to save as ISO rather than to burn the image to a wink drive. Notation that nosotros can't actually provide an MD5 for a Windows 10 ISO, as information technology changes every time it's downloaded through Microsoft'due south tool. Only the ISOs straight supplied by Microsoft would take static hashes.

There are multiple editions of any given Windows version, but we're going to listing the exact ISOs we used along with their MD5 checksums in case they testify useful.

MD5 Checksums

• Windows XP Pro (Service Pack 3): F424A52153E6E5ED4C0D44235CF545D5
• Windows 7 Ultimate (Service Pack i): 56A26636EC667799F5A7F42F142C772D
• Windows 8 Pro: 0E8F2199FAE18FE510C23426E68F675A
• Windows 8.1 (MSDN; multi-version): CDADC5A76634651770A365F457702803

Please be careful where you source your Bone image from, as virtually online sources will be pirated copies and/or bundled with actress (sometimes malicious) software. How the prototype was captured as well volition accept an effect on how the final boot drive turns out, so stick to official sources where possible.

For those who have a Windows setup DVD, a free tool like CDBurnerXP or ImgBurn tin be used to rip it into an .iso file. Other tools exist that accomplish the aforementioned thing, just these are the but ones nosotros can personally recommend. For mounting an ISO image, nosotros'd recommend Virtual CloneDrive, every bit it's free, and not the "costless but a total nag" kind of free.

NOTE: Some anti-virus applications might interfere with the USB creation process due to the autorun properties involved, and so if bug are experienced, nosotros'd recommend temporarily disabling the anti-virus until the process is complete.

Using Rufus

Both Rufus and UNetbootin are simple tools for this chore, and outside of Rufus' Windows XP support, both work just the same. All the same, we adopt Rufus because nosotros detect it loads a lot quicker, and feels a bit faster, too. For a keen many reasons, this is still our preferred method of creating USB boot drives.

With Rufus loaded upwardly, choose the appropriate device that you want to turn into a boot drive, nether the "Device" menu, and make certain that the file organization is NTFS (not FAT32). The other options shouldn't thing too much, although if yous're planning to install Windows 8 as an official EFI OS, you may wish to peruse the options under the "Partition scheme and target arrangement type" menu. For Windows XP, select MBR Partition only.

To load the Windows .iso file, the small CD icon to the right of "Create a bootable disk using:" option can be clicked. Later perusing the file manager for the ISO image and accepting it, the "Start" button can be clicked to have the tool piece of work its magic. NOTE: Every bit the programme will land, doing this will erase all data off of the flash drive – and so backup start.

If you lot have any issues, be certain to check out our Common Problems department below.

Using UNetbootin

UNetbootin is a well-known tool as it'south become a de facto choice for turning a bootable Linux live CD into a bootable Linux live flash bulldoze – for that purpose, it still excels. Little exercise most people realize, it can handle Windows ISOs as well (merely as the table at the top of this page shows, it doesn't support creating a bootable Windows XP drive).

Like with Rufus, the appropriate bulldoze should be selected from the "Drive:" carte at the bottom, then the "…" button to the right of the largest text field can exist clicked to search for and accept the required ISO. At this point, the "OK" can be clicked, and the procedure volition get underway.

Unlike Rufus, UNetbootin doesn't erase the wink drive first, so information remains intact – however, if you're repeatedly writing new ISOs to the drive using the tool, information technology's recommended you format subsequently each one, so equally to not leave unused scrap files around the bulldoze. Notation: We'd all the same recommend bankroll up personal data before writing an ISO to information technology only in instance.

Using Microsoft diskpart

For those who don't have an ISO, but rather a DVD, diskpart is the solution for you. It does require some command-line usage, only every bit you'll encounter, it'southward not as well complicated. Notation: This method will delete the unabridged flash bulldoze, so be sure to back upwardly personal data first.

To make proper utilise of diskpart, you lot'll need to open up a command prompt with administrator rights (head to "Start", type in 'cmd', right-click it, and choose 'Open as Administrator'). Once the prompt is opened, blazon in 'diskpart' to load the tool, and then 'listing disk' to figure out which # relates to your flash drive.

External storage should appear at the end of the listing, and in our case, it did (we're using a 32GB flash bulldoze, which appears hither every bit 29GB). Once the advisable drive is figured-out, it can be chosen using the 'select disk #' control. Once selected, it needs to be wiped clean, have a segmentation created, then be formatted. The entire command procedure is summed-up in this cake:

list deejay – shows avaialble disks, look advisedly for the 1 that looks like your flash drive
select disk # – alter # to the disk (flash drive) you wish to use
clean – removes existing partions
create sectionalization chief
select partition 1
agile
format fs=ntfs quick
assign
go out

For those who might want to see this in action, we provide this screenshot:

Note that "quick" can be removed off of the format control to run a full format, simply that might take minutes to tens of minutes depending on the drive (as it'south more thorough).

At this point, the Windows setup DVD tin can be inserted into the bulldoze, or the ISO mounted, and its files copied over to the root folder of the wink bulldoze. After the procedure is washed, opening up the flash drive in the file director should mirror the contents of the Windows DVD/ISO.

Using Microsoft Windows 7 USB/DVD Tool

Later the Windows 7 launch, Microsoft released its ain USB creator tool that supported its official ISOs. While the company no longer promotes the tool, it supports at least 7 and 8 merely fine, so some might prefer to use it over the other solutions.

Once downloaded and opened, an ISO must be called. After that, the "USB Device" pick needs to be clicked (this same tool tin besides burn down directly to a DVD).

At the final screen, the appropriate flash dive needs to be selected from the menu, and later on hitting "Begin copying", the unabridged process will be complete after just a couple of minutes.

Truthfully, Microsoft'south tool here might be the easiest of them all to use, but because the company isn't promoting it in any way, shape, or form (note that information technology's called the Windows vii USB/DVD tool, and not Windows 7 & viii USB/DVD tool), nosotros feel that it'due south right to quicker recommend the other (frequently updated) solutions showtime.

Using Windows ten Media Creation Tool

If you plan to install Windows x on a new organization, utilise information technology to recover an existing organisation, or upgrade a previous install of Windows 7 or 8, creating a bootable flash drive is the first stride. Windows 10 is the first Microsoft Os that non simply natively supports USB installs, but encourages it and even sells USB drives set-to-get.

The process with Windows 10 is not much unlike from Windows vii and 8/8.one similar higher up, but is made simpler by the fact that you lot don't fifty-fifty need the deejay prototype first, as you can download information technology direct from Microsoft, complete with all the latest service packs already installed.

The whole process for creating a Windows 10 bootable USB drive can exist done by using the Media Cosmos Tool; most systems these days will employ the 64-flake version, so take hold of that.

Once you've downloaded the tool, run it and you'll be presented with the media creation process. The gallery beneath outlines each step of the process for the basic method. There are a few things you might need to bank check first. Depending on where yous plan to install Windows 10, you demand to check which version you require, Home or Pro. NOTE: The contents of the USB wink drive volition be erased, so make sure you back it up starting time.

Select 'Create installation media for some other PC'  to begin the process.

We'll be creating the bootable USB flash bulldoze with the tool, so select the outset option.

Select the version of Windows 10 that you crave, in this instance, we went with Domicile 64-scrap.

Choose the USB bulldoze that yous wish to plough into the bootable media. Only Flash media volition testify on the list. The drive will need at to the lowest degree 4GB of costless space. NOTE: The flash drive volition be formatted, so make backups first.

Wait for the tool to cease downloading. Depending on your Net connectedness, this could be  from a few minutes to a few hours.

Once the Windows 10 image has downloaded, it will automatically begin creating the boot media on the bulldoze you selected. This tin can take a few minutes.

If everything when according to program, the Media Creation Tool will declare success and you are ready to apply your new Windows 10 bootable USB drive.

The version you option hither at the beginning actually doesn't thing, since your license fundamental will determine the version you can use, and the Bone will modify and configure itself based on that cardinal. The N version of each Bone type is for the EU compliant version, merely truth be told, in that location isn't anything different almost it at this time. You lot tin can pick 64-bit as well, or both 32/64-flake if you are unsure or plan on using the bootable wink drive on different systems.

The Media Cosmos Tool tin tin be used to merely download the ISO paradigm of Windows ten, which tin can and then exist used with something like Rufus to create the bootable USB drive. This offers the advantage of being able to keep a backup of the ISO epitome, too every bit create multiple boot drives without having to download the paradigm each time. If you lot run into problems with the Media Creation Tool when information technology comes to creating the bootable flash bulldoze, you can use the following method.

Instead of selecting USB Flash Drive in the Media Cosmos Tool, but select ISO File instead, choose a location to save the file, and after information technology'due south downloaded, follow the steps outlined in the Rufus guide above. In general, we found this method more reliable than using the Media Creation Tool to create the Windows 10 bootable flash drive, and ther are a number of other advantages to using Rufus also.

NOTE: When yous let the Media Creation Tool handle the entire procedure of making the USB kicking drive, in that location is a pocket-size problem when dealing with USB drives larger than 32GB. The tool will merely create a single partition up to 32GB and so completely ignore the rest of the bulldoze, and Windows-based operating systems can merely handle a unmarried partition on USB flash drives. If you create the kicking drive with Rufus, it'll use the unabridged bulldoze, and then 64GB and 128GB flash drives will have the full disk space made available.

Windows XP Notes

If you are attempting to employ Windows XP on a USB bulldoze, in that location are a couple of things to bear in listen. First off, we strongly recommend using Rufus (32-bit version) to setup XP on a USB flash drive over the other methods, as its success charge per unit is much improve. If installing with Rufus doesn't work the beginning time, alter the division fashion to MBR for BIOS only. Making XP boot over USB is a picayune catchy equally well, because information technology's much more sensitive to the historic period of the hardware and the arrangement y'all are using information technology with.

As far equally we know, the 32-bit ISO image of XP is the only compatible version that tin can exist put on a bootable flash bulldoze (success for XP 64-bit was limited). One of the fundamental points though is that yous can't use a USB 3.0 port when installing, even with EHCI style enabled. Nosotros also institute that a lot of modern hardware refuses to notice the drive.

If y'all are using an older organisation, then you lot should have amend luck booting Windows XP from a USB flash bulldoze. Just be certain that your particular motherboard supports booting from USB in the commencement place (it's unremarkably off by default in older organisation). Check the BIOS kick section and see if USB drives are supported.

Unfortunately, the fourth dimension catamenia in which motherboards supported USB booting on older hardware is quite curt, as annihilation before didn't have the option, and anything later on (around the fourth dimension Windows Vista and seven took off), those boards started the transition over to UEFI, which XP does non back up.

A number of systems we take tested this with had very mixed results. Both an older Pentium D organisation with BIOS, and a i7-2600 with UEFI, couldn't boot into XP. The USB media does work on a couple of laptops, but with other systems, it just boots upwardly into a bare screen. If checking your motherboard settings for USB kicking support and fifty-fifty legacy modes practice not work, and so you will have to resort to using a CD/DVD. Yous tin read beneath for some more general advice besides.

Common Problems

No Bootable Device Detected

This tin can exist acquired by a number of things. The most common is that your system is not setup to observe or boot from USB devices. Yous will need to go into your BIOS/EFI and check whether your USB drive is detected at all. If it is, brand sure that it'south available from the boot menu. If it isn't, and then some security choice may be enabled that prevents booting from USB devices.

Equally each BIOS/EFI is different, nosotros can not help with specific options, but cheque various security and boot menus to make sure that USB support is enabled. If everything appears correct, but yet can't exist detected, try enabling USB legacy support, or a different USB port, such as a USB two.0 port instead of USB 3.0.

It's likewise possible that the install media, or ISO image you accept, does not have the boot data available. Endeavor a unlike ISO image if at all possible.

Windows Installer Starts But Tin't Find Install Media

If the installer starts and lets you lot pick installation options, but an mistake occurs that either says it can't detect the DVD or it requests you to insert media with additional drivers, and then yous need to use a USB two.0 port.

Windows XP, Vista and 7, practise not have native support for USB three.0 ports. Attempting to install with your flash drive plugged into a USB three.0 port will result in the to a higher place fault. Unplug your USB Flash Drive and insert it into a USB two.0 port, and then begin the process again. You may still use a USB 3.0 Flash drive, only not plugged into a USB 3.0 port.

If no USB ii.0 ports are available (such every bit with more mod systems), and then you volition either need to go into the BIOS/EFI and enable forced legacy mode or enable EHCI on the USB ports, or you will need to 'slipstream' the USB 3.0 drivers into your Windows Install Image.

Flash Drive Isn't Using All Bachelor Space

This was mentioned previously in the Windows 10 department, but if you are creating a USB boot drive for Windows 10 and your 64GB drive is but showing 32GB available, and so you need to recreate your kick bulldoze with Rufus. The Media Creation Tool (MCT) but supports drives upward to 32GB, and annihilation larger volition have a 2d partitioning made, which Windows can non detect commonly (just is however bachelor if y'all plug it into a Linux machine for case). So download the ISO with MCT, and then flash it with Rufus.

Windows ten 'Something Happened'

Generic and oh-so-helpful error. If you are using the Media Creation Tool to create the bootable USB flash drive, and it's declining on the last step, endeavour the alternative (and recommended) method of using the tool to download the ISO image and and so utilize Rufus to create the kicking media. If the Media Creation Tool is failing to download the ISO, then this is likely a network effect with either your local motorcar or Microsoft's server. Try using a wired/Ethernet connection instead of wireless, or just expect a while and attempt again later on. Failing that, effort to download from a dissimilar machine if possible.

If you lot take any questions about any of the steps, please leave a comment below and we'll help you lot as best nosotros can.

Update: This commodity was updated May 2018 by Jamie Fletcher, to include Windows 10 and additional data regarding XP and USB size bug. Originally published Dec 2013.

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How To Install Windows Xp (Sp3) Via Usb Drive,

Source: https://techgage.com/article/creating-bootable-windows-xp-7-8-flash-drive-installers/

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