How to turn an installation flash drive into a regular one. How to make a regular one from a bootable flash drive: the simplest methods. Using WinSetupFromUSB

To create a bootable flash drive we will use programs from both a third-party manufacturer and a built-in interpreter Windows commands. Each method is different and has its own specifics, but I think that a simple end user will be able to cope with creating a bootable flash drive using any of the proposed methods:

• how to do bootable USB flash drive by using command line
• how to make a bootable USB flash drive using UltraISO programs
• how to make a bootable USB flash drive using Windows7 USB/DVD Download Tool

If you are interested in information about creating a bootable USB flash drive for a family of operating systems Linux systems, then you can read the information at this link “bootable USB flash drive for Linux”.

So, I propose to start creating a bootable flash drive in order, as defined in the above list, accordingly we proceed to the first method.

BOOT FLASH DRIVE using the command line (method I)

Next, we will use only those commands that we need when creating a bootable flash drive. Therefore, the figure below shows the sequential entry of commands to create a bootable USB flash drive. And please pay attention to the fact that the commands you enter are indicated by a red underline!

Graphical representation of command input on the command line

Now let's describe the previously entered commands:

DISKPART- launch the program, a text-mode command interpreter that allows you to manage objects (disks, partitions or volumes) using scripts or directly entering commands from the command line.

list disk- display a list of disk drives connected to a personal computer.

select disk 1- select disk number “1”, since in our case it is a removable flash drive.

clean- clears all data from removable media - flash drive.

create partition primary- create a primary partition.

select partition 1- select the created section.

active- make the section active.

format fs=NTFS- format the flash drive in the NTFS file system.

assign letter=T- if necessary, you can assign a letter for the flash drive in this way.

Exit- exit the DISKPART program.

BOOTABLE FLASH DRIVE CREATED!

NOTE: Once you have created a bootable USB flash drive, you need to transfer the files operating system to this removable media. Files must be transferred in unpacked form, do not under any circumstances simply add an operating system image, for example one *.ISO file, it WILL NOT WORK!!!

You can see the complete list of Diskpart program commands in the following table:

Table of commands of the "DISKPART" program

BOOT FLASH DRIVE using the UltraISO program (II method)

The UltraISO program is designed for creating and editing disk images. When creating a bootable flash drive, we will use the built-in functions of this program.

Open the program with administrator rights, as shown in the figure:

Select the required operating system image to create a bootable flash drive, for example, the image is selected here Windows disk Vista:

A pop-up window appears where you need to make sure that the removable media, the image file to be recorded and the recording method are correctly specified (it must be set in USB-HDD+ mode) and click the “burn” button

After clicking the "Write" button, a "Hint" window will appear, prompting you to erase all information on the flash drive. Agree!

Then the data will be written to the flash drive...

And finally, through certain time, the operating system image will be written to the newly created bootable USB flash drive for future installation.

BOOTABLE FLASH DRIVE IS MADE!

NOTE: Don't forget to install on the I/O system BIOS loading primary device, that is, make sure that the computer boots from removable media - the bootable flash drive you created.

BOOT FLASH DRIVE using Windows7 USB/DVD Download Tool (III method)

The Windows7 USB/DVD Download Tool program created by Microsoft for burning operating system disk images to optical and removable media. When creating a bootable flash drive, we will sequentially follow all the instructions of the program.

First you need to download this program from the official Microsoft website. Then you need to install the program following the installer's instructions. After installing the program, a shortcut will appear on the desktop, as shown in the figure:

Run it with "Administrator Rights", click right button mouse on the shortcut and click on the line “Run as administrator”. The program will start, click the "Browse" button and select the operating system image *.ISO

After you have selected the image of the system to be recorded, click “Next”, another window will appear where you will be asked to select the type of media - optical or removable. Since we have a removable storage device - a flash drive, select "USB device"

We select our removable media from the proposed list, i.e. flash drive and press the "Begin copying" button

After clicking the above button, the process of formatting the flash drive will begin...

After some time, the process of writing the disk image data to the flash drive will continue.

We wait some time for the image to be recorded, and eventually we will get 100%, and here we are The bootable flash drive is created!

NOTE: Do not forget to set the BIOS input/output system to boot the primary device, that is, make sure that the computer boots from removable media - the bootable flash drive you created.

On our website there are many instructions on how to make a bootable flash drive from a regular flash drive (for example, for installing Windows). But what if you need to return the flash drive to its previous state? We will try to answer this question today.

The first thing to note is that banal formatting will not be enough. The fact is that when a flash drive is converted into a boot drive, a special service file is written to a memory sector that is inaccessible to the user and cannot be erased using conventional methods. This file forces the system to recognize not the actual volume of the flash drive, but the occupied image of the system: for example, only 4 GB ( Windows image 7) from, say, 16 GB (actual capacity). As a result, only these 4 gigabytes can be formatted, which, of course, is not suitable.

There are several solutions to this problem. The first is to use specialized software designed to work with drive layout. Second, use the built-in using Windows. Each option is good in its own way, so let's look at them.

Note! Each of the methods described below involves formatting the flash drive, which will delete all data on it!

Method 1: HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool

Despite its cumbersomeness, this method is good with an almost one hundred percent guarantee of a positive result in most cases.

The methods described above are the most convenient for the end user. If you know alternatives, please share them in the comments.

If you want to install or reinstall an operating system on a computer or laptop, then it is quite natural that you have a question: how to create a bootable USB flash drive with Windows. In this article we will look at three ways that will help us with this.

Using the first and second, you can make a bootable USB flash drive for Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 10. Using the command line or the WinSetupFromUSB program, you can make a bootable USB flash drive for Windows XP.

Select a flash drive with more memory than the operating system image you have on your computer. Save all information on it to HDD or other external media, since the flash drive will be formatted, and accordingly all data from it will be deleted.

Via command line

To create a bootable USB flash drive using the command line, you do not need to install anything on your computer. third party applications. To launch the command line, press the key combination Win + R, the “Run” window will open. In the "Open" field, write cmd and click "OK".

Let's display a list of all devices - enter list disk .

In this case, two devices are connected to the laptop, Disk 0 and Disk 1. From them you need to select a flash drive, which we will make bootable. I took a 4 GB flash drive, so we look at the “Size” column, it corresponds to Disk 1 - 3.9 GB. Enter the following command – select disk 1. If your flash drive corresponds to another device, for example Disk 2, enter the command select disk 2 - only the number at the end changes.

Enter the clean command.

Using the create partition primary command, we will create a primary partition.

Select it – select partition 1 .

Let’s make it active – active .

Let's format the flash drive in NTFS format - format fs=NTFS. Wait for the process to complete.

After that, select a letter for the section, for example R - enter assign letter=R .

Exit the diskpart program - enter exit. To close the command prompt, type exit again.

The bootable USB flash drive has been created. Now you need to copy the files to it for Windows installations. If you have them stored in an archive or in an image, extract all the files from them onto a flash drive.

To install Windows from a flash drive, in the BIOS we change the boot priority; we need to boot from the created flash drive. You can read detailed articles about installation by following the links at the bottom of the article.

Using the Rufus program

This program does not require installation on your computer, takes up very little space, is free and easy to use. Download the Rufus program by following the link.

We launch it on the computer. In the “Device” field, select the desired flash drive. Make sure the box is ticked "Create a boot disk". Then click on the floppy disk to select the operating system image.

Through Explorer, look for the image on the computer and click “Open”.

A line will appear at the bottom "Using an Image". Click Start. The program will warn that all data from the flash drive will be destroyed, click “OK”.

Wait until the flash drive is formatted and the ISO image files are copied to it. Then click "Close".

Bootable USB flash drive with operating system Windows system created. We change the boot priority in the BIOS and install the new OS on the computer.

Using WinSetupFromUSB

First, download the program WinSetupFromUSB, for this you can follow the link. We insert the USB flash drive, which will be bootable, into the computer or laptop and launch the program.

In area "USB disk selection and format" select the desired flash drive and press the “Bootice” button.

In the next window, in the “Destination Disk” field, select the flash drive from the list again. Here you can navigate by memory capacity. I took a 4 GB flash drive, so USB 3.9 GB is suitable for me. Click "Perform Format".

In the File System field, select file system NTFS and click OK.

In the following windows there will be warnings that the flash drive will be formatted, all data will be deleted, etc. Click "OK". In the last window, click “Yes” and wait for the process to complete.

A window will appear indicating that a bootable USB flash drive has been created and can be written to. necessary files. Close the “BOOTICE” window by clicking on the red cross.

In the main program window, in the “Add to USB disk” area, check the box "Windows 2000/XP/2003 Setup". Click on the rectangle opposite the field and select the folder in which you store your operating system files.

If Windows installation files are stored on your computer in an archive or image, you must first extract them.

Click “GO” and wait for the files to be written to the flash drive.

Using the WinSetupFromUSB program, you can easily make a bootable USB flash drive with the Windows XP operating system.

Without exception, all laptop manufacturers are looking for the perfect balance between ergonomics and performance, cutting down on features that are not in demand today, such as the presence of a CD-ROM. It may well happen that you do not have an external reader at hand, and you will need to urgently reinstall the operating system. This is where a bootable USB flash drive will come to our aid. How to make a bootable USB flash drive? We'll tell you in this article

What is a bootable USB flash drive?

Flash The disk on which the operating system image is loaded is called a bootable USB flash drive. There are at least two ways to turn a regular flash drive into Boot device how to use standard tools Windows and through third party utilities. Using Components Windows the method is the simplest and fastest, and therefore we will consider it first

Creating a boot disk using the command line

You'll need basic command line skills here, but even if you don't have them, follow the detailed instructions:

1. Go to “Start” -> Run, in the dialog box that opens, write cmd.
2. In the empty fields of the command line we need to enter certain commands in a strictly specified order, which you can see in the screenshot.
3. Diskpart a program that allows you to manage volumes and disks using scripts and command line values
4. list disk - displaying those connected to your computer HDD and disk drives. The same as the visual viewing mode through “My Computer”, only in text mode cmd.
5. Select disk capture an object for work, set the value corresponding to the number of the connected device
6. Clean – command that formats all data on the selected media
7. Create partition primary – command to create primary partition
8. Select partition selecting a section with an arbitrary value, select the newly created one
9. Active – activate the section
10. Then we assign the drive a file library type with the command Format fs=NTFS or Format fs=FAT
11. Assign Letter - assigns a letter to the drive, which in standard mode is set arbitrarily or by the manufacturer
12. Exit completes image creation and closes the program.

After all steps are completed, move the files from the operating system to the boot disk (flash drive). VERY IMPORTANT! All components new system move it to a flash drive unpacked(not ISO) form, otherwise the system will not be able to read data from the drive. In addition, on the recipient computer, be sure to BIOS set the correct parameters Boot Device - in the boot device menu we indicate primary Flash- drive so that the system does not boot from HDD, and from the connected device. Done, you can start working

Boot creation sectors using the utility ULTRAiso

Let's say you don't have a boot disk image, but you have new system components that you want to create an image of. The UltraIso program will help us with this, with which you can rivet and modify disk images. Thanks to its wide user functionality, we can create a boot disk using the program's graphical shell, which simplifies and speeds up the process of obtaining the desired tool, unlike the command line method

If the files are successfully copied, the program will inform you that installation image disk is loaded. Click "OK". Now we can use USB as a boot disk exactly the same as in the first case

Mounting the boot disk in the program USB/DVD Download Tool

In it we can create a boot disk from Flash- carrier, and with DVD. Due to the fact that we are considering situations where there is no disk drive, we will show you how to make an image for Flash memory.

As you can see, everything is still simpler here than in the case of the ULTRAiso program, but the functionality of the USB/DVD download tool is correspondingly not so wide. You can use any of the proposed methods for creating a boot disk, limiting yourself only to the presence of components for mounting the image and a list of pre-installed programs.

If an error occurs when loading the system installer from a Flash drive, most likely you did something wrong in one of the image creation steps, or you simply forgot to assign the boot Flash drive as a priority in the computer's BIOS. In cases where the boot interpreter does not see the boot disk, try changing the port of the connected device or burning the image to another boot disk. We hope that our article will help you install Windows correctly and quickly on a new computer.

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A USB flash drive is not recognized as a disk when connected to a computer or laptop? Can't you write anything on it? And you can’t even format the flash drive? In principle, all is not lost. Most likely the problem lies with the controller. But this can be fixed. And everything will take a maximum of 5-10 minutes.

The only caveat is that restoring the flash drive’s functionality is only possible if it has no mechanical damage (+ it appears in device manager). That is, if you disabled it not through “Safely Remove” (or something like that), then this can be fixed. At the very least, it’s worth at least trying to restore a non-working flash drive.

How to get your flash drive working again

Even if it seems that the USB flash drive has come to an end, you should not take it for repairs. And even more so throw it away. First, you can try to restore the damaged flash drive.

The instructions work for all USB flash drives: Silicon Power, Kingston, Transcend, Data Traveler, A-Data, etc. With its help, you can restore the file system and fix any problems (except mechanical damage).

So, the first thing you need to do is determine the parameters of the USB flash drive. Or rather, its VID and PID. Based on this information, you can determine the brand of the controller, and then select a utility that will help restore the damaged flash drive.

To find out these parameters, do the following:

1. Connect the flash drive to your PC or laptop and go to Start – Control Panel – Device Manager.
2. Find the "USB Controllers" section.
3. Double-click on it and look for the item “Memory USB device" This is your flash drive (let me remind you, it must be connected to the computer).
4. Right-click on it and select “Properties”.
5. In the new window, go to the “Details” tab.
6. In the “Property” field, select the “Equipment ID” (or “Instance Code”) item.

   

7. Look at the VID and PID values ​​and remember them.
   
8. Next, go to the website http://flashboot.ru/iflash/, enter your values ​​at the top of the site and click the “Search” button.
   
9. You are looking for the model of your USB flash drive (by manufacturer and memory capacity). In the right column “Utils” there will be the name of the program with which you can try to restore a non-working flash drive.
   

After that, all that remains is to find this utility by name or follow the link (if it exists) and download it.

Restoring Kingstone, Silicon Power, Transcend and other models is easy: just run the program and follow the instructions.

What to do if you have not found a suitable utility for your model? To do this, go to Google or Yandex and write something like this: “Silicon Power 4 GB VID 090C PID 1000” (of course, you should indicate the parameters of your flash drive here). And then look what the search engine found.

Never use programs that are not suitable for the VID and PID parameters of your controller! Otherwise, you will “kill” the flash drive completely, and you will no longer be able to restore it.

In most cases, recovery of a damaged flash drive is successful. And after that it will be detected when connected to a PC or laptop.

This is how you repair a flash drive yourself using a free utility.

And most importantly: in this way it is possible to restore a damaged flash drive in 80% of cases. While the majority specialized programs they may not be able to cope with this task.