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How to install Windows 7 from a USB
flash drive |
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A typical Windows 7, Windows Vista or
XP installation has traditionally required you to
install from a DVD. If you are using a device that does
not have an optical drive such as a NetBook or you just
want to speed up the installation of Windows then a USB
flash drive is definitely the way to go. This guide will
provide you with working procedure for configuring a
bootable USB flash drive to install Windows from. |
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What do we need? |
| You will need a USB
flash drive that is at least 4GB. You will need your Windows
7 installation DVD and a computer that has a DVD optical
drive to make the bootable USB flash drive. The main
advantage after we finish is that you will be able to
install Windows much faster than with an optical drive. Keep
in mind that your motherboard must support booting from a
USB device. |
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| Step 1: |
| Plug your USB flash
drive into a USB port on your computer. Delete all the files
from the flash drive so it is empty (you can format the
flash drive if you want.) |
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| Step 2: |
| Next, open the Windows
command prompt with administrator rights. To do this, type
cmd in the start menu search box then press
ctrl+shift+enter keys. Alternatively, you can open the
command prompt with admin rights by going to the start menu
-> all programs -> accessories, right click on the
Command Prompt then left click Run As Administrator. |
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| Step 3: |
| Next, type DISKPART
and hit the enter key. Then type LIST DISK and hit
the enter key. See the screen below |
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| You will see a listing
of the storage devices connected to your computer - hard
drives, USB flash drives, etc... Write down the disk number
corresponding to your USB flash drive (example: Disk 1).
In the screen shot above the flash drive we were using was
Disk 2. |
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| Step 4: |
| Type out all the
commands listed below. In the example we are using our flash
drive is Disk 2. Near the bottom we have a screen
shot with all the commands executed one after another. |
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| SELECT DISK 2 |
| CLEAN |
| CREATE PARTITION
PRIMARY |
| SELECT PARTITION 1 |
| ACTIVE |
| FORMAT FS=NTFS |
| ASSIGN |
| EXIT |
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| Note: The command
FORMAT FS=NTFS takes a long time to complete, be patient. We
are not quite done, so don't close the command prompt
windows just yet! |
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| Step 5: |
| Next, insert your
Windows 7 DVD into the optical drive. You will need to write
down the drive letters for your optical drive and your USB
flash drive. To find the drive letters, click Start ->
Computer and you will see all the drive letters for all
your hardware (hard drives, optical drives, flash drives,
etc.) In this example, our USB flash drive is H: and
our optical drive is E:
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| Now, back to the
command prompt window. Type out the following commands,
you will need to replace the drive letters E: and H:
with the drive letters of your USB flash drive and
optical drive. |
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| E: CD BOOT |
| CD BOOT |
| BOOTSECT.EXE /NT60
H: |
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| Step 6: |
| Now we are finally
finished with command prompt window, go ahead and close
it. Next, copy the entire contents of the Windows 7 DVD
to your USB flash drive. Simply select all the files on
the Windows DVD, copy them, and paste them to your flash
drive. |
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| Finished! |
| We mentioned in the
beginning that your motherboard must be able to boot
from a USB device. You'll have to go into your
motherboard BIOS and change the boot priority so the
computer boots from the USB flash drive first. One thing
to note: Windows restarts several times during the
installation, you will have to remove the USB flash
drive at a certain point during the install process.
After the computer reboots it will try to start the
Windows installation again - don't panic. If that
happens to you just remove the USB flash drive and reset
the computer, the installation will resume from where it
left off. |
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