Sometimes there is a need to update or reinstall your operating system. And there are several ways: you can turn to specialists and, having paid the money, get a new OS, or you can do it at home. However, not everything is as simple as it seems at first glance.
Preparing to reinstall Windows
Before you install "Windu" from a flash drive, you should perform a number of preparatory measures:
- Search the Internet and download a suitable OS image;
- computer cleaning and saving the necessary files;
- recording the finished image to a bootable flash card;
- setting the settings in the BIOS.
Each of the above items is important and should be implemented in exactly the same sequence as indicated.
Finding the Right Operating System
You can find absolutely any Windows image on the Internet, regardless of bit depth and visual design. But here there are several important nuances that you need to learn before installing "Windu" from a USB flash drive to a computer.
Firstly, build quality. It is preferable to use official assemblies, without unnecessary mods, utilities and programs. The cleaner the version, the greater the likelihood that it will install without problems and subsequent crashes.
Secondly, the visual design of Windows is no less important. You need to choose an image on those resources where the characteristics of the OS are described in detail and at least a few screenshots are attached.
Thirdly, depending on the technical characteristics of the computer, you need to select the bit depth and level of Windows. For example, how to install a new “Windu” from a USB flash drive if the RAM on the PC is only 2 GB? You should definitely choose either the Home version or Professional, and even then with a stretch. In addition, many early applications are not supported by x64 bits, so it is best to turn to x32 help.
Well, if we talk about choosing the operating system itself - from XP to Win 10, then here is at the discretion of the user. Each OS has its advantages and disadvantages:
- Win XP The good old "pig" is optimal for working PCs. It supports most of the special programs, not demanding on the characteristics of the hardware. Minus - not supported by the developer and conflicts with new models of PCs and laptops.
- Win 7 (Win 8). The undisputed leader in the Windows family. Convenient, visually attractive and supports absolutely all applications. Suitable for both home use and corporate networks. Minus - will soon be officially discontinued by the developer. As for Windows 8, this is a modified "seven", with a simplified interface. Minus - has a lot of bugs and worse visualization.
- Win 10. The latest OS, which combines the best from previous assemblies. Compact, with nice features and looks. Minus - conflicts with the performance of many applications, utilities and drivers, plus - increased license verification.
The choice is personalized, but you need to understand that Win 7 will not install on a device with 1GB of RAM. More precisely, it will be installed, but it will be impossible to work on a PC due to the constant processor overload and lack of physical memory.
On the other hand, the latest laptops will not be able to accept Windows XP, due to the lack of suitable device drivers and a health conflict.
Preparing a PC to reinstall Windows
So, the desired image has been downloaded and is waiting for its turn to install. However, remember that installing Windows from a USB flash drive will simply delete all data on the system drive. Therefore, you should worry about the safety of the files that the user will need in the future.
To do this, you can choose several solutions:
- transferring data to another logical drive, if any;
- saving the necessary files to removable media (DVD and CD-ROM drives, flash drives, external hard drives);
- copying files to cloud storage (Yandex, Mile, etc.).
Important! There are situations when a computer or laptop is just bought, and there is only one system disk on it. For the normal functioning of the PC, it is necessary to split it into several sections.
Yes, this is a very important point when there is only one working section on technology. But it is highly discouraged to leave it in this state, since unexpected problems in the form of viruses or a technical failure will lead to a complete data loss. Therefore, it is very important to know how to install "Windu" from a USB flash drive to a laptop with one working partition.
Partitioning a hard disk
Most assemblies contain special programs (for example, Acronis or Paragon) that make it possible to split a hard disk into several partitions.
In the best case scenario, you need to make a system disk with a volume of 100 GB or more (if, of course, the hard drive has a large amount), and then divide the remaining disk space as you wish (there may be several logical drives). For full functionality, 20-30 GB is enough, but it is better to take with a margin.
Finding out how to install Windows from a USB flash drive, or rather how to set up hard disk partitions, is not a problem now, fortunately, there are a lot of detailed instructions on the Internet.
We should also consider SSDs. It is better to leave them in their original form, since in this way they will be able to ensure maximum performance and speed of data exchange.
Preparing a bootable flash drive
The next important step is to create a bootable flash drive, with which the OS will be installed. This will require the following components:
- utility for recording;
- finished image;
- flash drive with a minimum capacity of 8 GB.
The recognized leaders among programs that can easily cope with the task of how to install Windu from a bootable USB flash drive are, of course, Ultra ISO and Rufus.
The principle of their work is similar:
- media is selected (flash drive must be inserted);
- the image to be recorded is selected;
- done.
The flash drive is formatted and the recording process begins.
For information! It is not possible to simply copy the Windows image to the drive, since there will be no sectors responsible for the automatic boot that works as a licensed disk.
However, when choosing a program for recording, there is a certain imbalance. If a problem arises, how to install Windows 10 from a flash drive, it is better to use Ultra ISO or Astroburn, and in cases with Win 7 or Win 8, you can use Rufus.
A brief overview of the best programs to create a bootable flash drive
The Ultra ISO program opens the rating.
Perhaps the most common and easy-to-use program that solves the problem of how to install Windows from a USB flash drive to a laptop or PC.
At the first stage, select the menu “File” - “Open”, after which the path to the already downloaded distribution kit is set.
Next, go to the "Startup" menu - "Burn hard disk image" item.
At the third stage, the medium on which the recording will be performed is selected (the flash drive must be inserted). It should be noted that all data on the medium will be formatted, so if it contains the necessary files, they should be copied to another location.
And the last - the “Burn” button is clicked, after which the application will begin installing the bootable flash drive. Everything, you can start installing Windows.
The next leader is the Rufus program.
Its undoubted advantage in resolving the issue of how to install Windows from a USB flash drive is the lack of need for its installation on a PC. It works from a shortcut and takes up very little hard disk space.
By analogy with Ultra ISO, you first need to select the device to be recorded. Then the desired OS image is selected. That's all, you can press the "Start" button. Oh yes, another important nuance - in the settings should be checked “Create boot disk”.
Closes the TOP-3 WinSetupFromUSB programs.
This is a rather interesting program, working on the same principle as the two previous ones. First, the place where the system image will be recorded is selected, then the option that determines what type of OS will be recorded is marked with a flag. And finally, the image itself is selected.
Write bootable flash drive without using third-party programs
There is another way, although not as popular as the ones described above, that will tell you how to install "Windu" from a flash drive. It's about using the command line.
First, the command line is launched, using a combination of Win + R. The line contains the word cmd.
So, the line is started, you can get to work. Although it should immediately be noted that if there is any doubt as to whether it is possible to install Windu from a USB flash drive in this way, it is better not to use it, but to turn to special programs.
- Select a disc to record. To do this, enter the diskpart command, after which the partition for working with all kinds of disks is activated. By entering the list disk command, you can see all active disks and their size. To use the desired partition for operation, the select disk * command is entered (where * is the number of the selected partition).
- Disk Cleanup for burning. To do this, use the Clean command. It is important to make sure that the drive on which the OS image will be written is selected. Otherwise, the integrity of the system may be damaged.
- Create boot sectors and disk labels. The create partition primary command creates the main partition on a flash drive (by default it takes up all the free space of the media). And with assign letter = * (* - the letter of the Latin alphabet, for the volume label).
- Section activation. The following procedures are aimed at how to install "Windu" from a flash drive through a BIOS, i.e. so that in the initial settings the flash drive is displayed correctly. To do this, enter the select partition command with the number of the selected disk, and also active - to activate it.
- Formatting It remains to take the last step - format the flash drive. You need to register format fs = ntfs quick. Everything, the flash drive is ready for recording.
Now you need to exit the command line - enter exit. At the last stage, you need to find the source image and unzip it using any archiver to the desired flash drive.
BIOS setup
You need to go into BIOS only to enable primary boot from a flash drive.
Questions, how to install "Windu" from a flash drive through the BIOS, should not arise from the user. Almost all PCs and laptops have a function to call the startup menu, which is called up by a button from F1 to F12 (depending on the model of the device). If this option cannot be called, then you need to go into the BIOS at the very beginning of the Windows boot (the same variable keys are F2, F12, Del, Esc), go to the Boot menu, and then set USB as the primary way to boot: CD- ROM
Then you need to press F10 and Enter. After the computer restarts, data loading from the flash drive will begin.
By the way, on different models of firmware BIOS firmware have different menus. And most importantly - you need to remember that the shell is very fragile and the slightest incorrect change can lead to a complete malfunction of the PC.
The nuances of installing Windows 7 and Windows 8
The most popular operating system now - Windows 7, is installed quite easily. But if you are unsure how to install Windows from a USB flash drive to a computer, you should follow these steps.
When the OS installation menu appears, you need to select the partition in which it will be installed, and format it. After which the installation will be performed in automatic mode, only occasionally requiring user participation (for example, entering a PC name or time zone).
Similarly, Win 8. This system installs even easier, it is important to clean the system disk first, as several OS (new and existing) can create a conflict both at the driver level and internal applications, so you may need to reinstall Windows from a USB flash drive.
It is important to note that when starting the PC, the message Press any key to boot from CD or DVD should be displayed. If it is not, then the BIOS settings are incorrect, and you will have to go back to check.
Installing Windows from a USB flash drive does not last long - from 20 to 40 minutes. Depending on the assembly and the availability of additional components (main programs and drivers), this time can vary both up and down. But if Windows installs for more than an hour and a half, then it is better to roll back the installation and start again, having previously formatted the system disk and checking it for errors.
Actually, installing Windows 7 from a flash drive at home will save not only time, but also money. After all, technical failures occur for most users quite often? Basically, due to poor builds and improper use of PC functionality.
Install Windows 10
But with the latest version of the popular operating system, things are not going so smoothly. And the reason lies in three Latin letters - GPT. New PCs and laptops are already available with such a technological interface of the hard drive. When creating a bootable drive, pay close attention to the "Choice" item - high-quality programs provide a choice between MBR and GPT.
By the way, Windows 10 has a special utility called Media Creation. She herself offers the ability to record a bootable image on removable media, so figuring out how to install Windows 10 from a USB flash drive is easy.
Of course, before installing Win 10, it is worth thinking about its shortcomings. For example, it can cause serious crashes and glitches in the work of some applications. Especially those that she herself considers unlicensed.
Well, if you still need the installation of "Windows" from a USB flash drive, the instruction advises:
- The optimal utility for Win 10 is Astroburn. It records the image in a few clicks, automatically checking the integrity of the sectors. In the absence of this utility, you can use Ultra ISO;
- if there is no license key, then you need to select the appropriate item during system installation;
- if the computer’s hard drive is in the SSD format, it is not necessary to split it into several partitions - all at the user's discretion;
- if the hard drive is larger than 2 TB, you should definitely use the GPT markup. Only in this case the system will use the entire volume.
Otherwise, the installation process is virtually no different from other systems.