How do I create a bootable USB flash drive with Windows?

For many years, computer systems and programs were installed using CDs/DVDs or (at least on Windows) via .exe files—that is, as standard applications. However, due to the growing popularity of digital versions of applications, as well as the nearly defunct disc market, the operating system is often installed directly onto the hard drive from a USB flash drive. To install Windows on a hard drive using a USB flash drive, you just need to follow a few steps to enjoy your new OS. How do you create a bootable USB flash drive? You’ll learn that in this guide.

A bootable USB drive with an ISO file – what is it?

Before we get into the instructions for creating a bootable USB drive, let’s start by reviewing the basics. The name of the ISO file format comes from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), or more specifically ISO 9660—one of its standards that defines the specifications for writing files to a CD.

An ISO file is a complete copy of the data contained on a disc. This allows you to copy the ISO file to a USB flash drive to create, for example, a bootable Windows 10 USB drive, and thus install the operating system without needing a CD or DVD, using only the file and a USB storage device for the installation. This is particularly important when a user purchases a digital version of the system instead of a physical one, or when the computer does not have a CD/DVD drive installed—these days, due to the massive decline in the popularity of discs as a storage medium, many laptops and even desktop computers no longer come equipped with these drives.

For many years, ISO files—in addition to being used to install operating systems—were a popular tool for games and computer programs downloaded illegally or semi-legally from the Internet. Thanks to programs like Daemon Tools and UltraISO, files containing pirated applications could be mounted on virtual drives, allowing them to be run. This is, of course, just one option—when purchasing a legal digital version, such as Windows 10 or Windows 11, installation using a bootable USB drive is fully permitted in every respect.

A valid product key for the Windows 10 operating system (as well as for other editions of Microsoft Windows) can be purchased at a low price at Key-Soft.pl—just visit the product page Windows 10page.

How to Create a Bootable USB Drive – A Step-by-Step Guide

To create a bootable Windows 10 USB drive from an ISO file, you need three things: an ISO image of the operating system installer, a USB drive with enough storage space (at least 8 gigabytes), and a program that can write the ISO file to the USB drive and make it bootable.

Note: When creating a bootable USB drive, any data previously stored on the flash drive will be deleted.

You can download the installation file from the official Microsoft website—for Windows 10, the link is https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

With this software, you can both update your system to the correct version and create a bootable USB drive.

Go to the appropriate section, then click the "Download Tool" button.

After downloading the installation file and running it, the license agreement will appear. Read it and accept it if you want to continue with the process. You will then be able to choose between two options: upgrade your computer to the selected version of Microsoft Windows or create a bootable USB drive. Select “Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another computer.”

A new selection menu will appear, where you can choose the language, Windows version, and the architecture of your computer—in the vast majority of cases, this will be the 64-bit (x64) version.

After clicking "Next," a menu with two options will open—select "USB flash drive" to create a bootable USB drive or an ISO file that you can burn later, which will remain on your hard drive for now. In our case, it’s better to choose the USB flash drive option and prepare a sufficiently large USB drive in the meantime (the installer will suggest that it should be at least 8 GB).