ISO image to USB flash

Mount your bootable ISO to an image drive. For this example I will use drive D: as the image drive, and drive E: as the flash drive. This is the command you use to create an exact copy of a disk on to another volume.

xcopy D:\*.* E: /s/e/f

This can be used for instance, to copy the Vista DVD to an appropriately sized USB flash drive to install the OS from there. I have tested this at work a few times and it installs in about the same amount of time, but without the worry of caring for the DVD (scratches) or having problems with the lens in the DVD drive reading the data. I should also note however, that the flash drive I used was not the fastest out there (it was a 4GB Patriot Signature flash drive as shown here)

that is correct xcopy does not copy boot sectors. At least not by default

What if i make the USB flash drive bootable first and then copy the image files to it. Will it work? will i need to edit the boot files. For instance, if i make the USB drive bootable with DOS, do i need to edit the autoexec and config files?

if your just trying to get BackTrack to boot from usb flash drive...no matter what the size....why not try to copy the BT and Boot directories into your usb flash drive's root and going into the boot directory to click the "Bootinst".bat....after that your usb should boot automatically as long as you set your bios to boot from your usb....short simple and sweet.

Actually,
The xcopy command does work. I don't think you can create a bootable USB stick in WinXP. Only Vista. At least I haven't been able to do it. It worked just fine for me in Vista. I made my flash drive bootable and copied the vista files from the DVD and now I have a bootable vista flash drive. I'm going to try to do the same with an ISO file on a cd of ShadowProtect. I hope it works. The instructions I found are these:

This operation assumes your machine can boot from a USB enabled device. Check your BIOS to make sure. You also MUST have a DVD copy of Vista to install the source files from the DVD to a USB flash drive:
1. Insert your USB flash drive and enter the following commands:
(please note this list assumes that your USB flash drive will be seen as disk 1. To confirm that it is type "list disk" after you've entered the DISKPART command) Otherwise you may wipe a different drive (such as your hard disk drive!)
2. Type:

diskpart
select disk 1
clean
create partition primary
select partition 1
active
format fs=fat32
assign
exit
At this point your USB drive is formatted. DO NOT format the drive from within Windows. You MUST have a DVD copy of Vista to copy the source files from.

The final preparation step is to copy the installation files to your flash drive, this can be done by running the following command:
(Please note D: is the drive letter for the source files and E: is the drive letter for your flash drive, if they are different on your system you need to change them accordingly).
Exit DISKPART. Type:

xcopy d:\*.* /s/e/f e:\

Thats it, configure usb device as primary boot device in your bios and install.

http://www.liliputing.com/2008/04/ [...] e-usb.html

heh another similar url to the one above me.

UBCD2USB

why not only use this command script?? its almost as xcopy, but with bootable part and formatting..
And you have to reroute the bootfile since this loads an menu for many options...

wow. perfect. work like a charm. thanx!

For the xcopy thing, I think it is xcopy (sourcedriveletter):\*.* /E/Q/H (usbdriveletter):\
--the /H copies hidden and system files
--the /E copies everything, including empty directory structure, and
--the /Q does NOT list every file copied, making it go a lot faster

Still seeing if it works for my Vista.... but thanks for the tips and information to the OP and the comment writers!

Just like to add that it also works for any old 1.44MB floppy img too. I used it when updating all of my ST31000340AS from SD15 to SD1A firmware through a USB drive. Even though blank DVD is dirt cheap it creates necessary garbage so anytime I need to put a small img/ISO on something I use Unetbootin as well.

@jayedw3 First I want to ask something. Are both disks bootable? If not, then try this. Create an ISO of Disk 1. Then use a Program like WinISO to add the files and folders into the image.

Once done, you can use Unetbootin to create a bootable USB drive.

Good Luck!

Ed

The version linked to from here is a little dated.

Try this version and see if your issue goes away.

http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/

~Ed

unetbootin-eeeubuntu-windows-276.exe is a custom version of unetbootin-windows. The current version at the link I gave is 3.56, interface has been updated, and many bugs have been fixed, and is not a custom ported version.

Give it a shot and see if that fixes the issue for you, also there are archived version on the web page, you may want to try an older version of the non (eeebuntu) custom version.

Hai,

So you want to take an ISO and put it onto a flashdrive and boot from it?

Done this. Only works on some flashdrives though but takes seconds to test

When it works you get 2 visible USB devices reported, a CDROM and a removable disk. You can even boot from the USB CDROM part as well which is why it works great for LiveCDs and stuff


ok ok, the how to bit;

Grab yourself a copy of 'LPinstaller.exe' from the U3 website (This tool needs to 'see' your flashdrive, that is the test, no see no work).
Extract the content of the exe to a folder (I know, sounds odd but 7Zip works good)
Make a file in that folder called 'QA.INI' and add following lines
[QA]
LocalISOPath=C:\YourISO.iso
Run the main exe but you need to add 'local' as an option (i.e. "LPinstaller.exe local" )

Once it is finished you should have your CD loaded onto your stick. Might be other ways but this is eeeeasy!

Hai,

2 Install disks? tricky...

Suggestions...

1. See if you have an install DVD handy rather than the CDs (I remember having both in an OEM box before only seeing the DVD after using the CDs as it was the bottom of the pile)

2. I think just adding the contents of CD2 into the ISO image of CD1 should work ok, not sure if it would have a problem with the size of the data (Though if putting it on a flashdrive you are not limited by the physical CD medium so it might work ok) Lots of ISO editing programs around, just make sure you keep the bootable part. (I think somebody already suggested that along with "unetbootin" - this might also work just as well.)

3. If 2 does not work you might need to try and master your own bootable DVD using all the files from CD1 and CD2, the bootable part is tricky but if you google for "slipstreaming service packs" most of the top links will lead to explanations on how to copy the bootable part of an install disk...assuming the CD and dvd boot parts work the same...[scratches head]


Or, you could look further up this

i have used your prcedure but it is giving an error

please change the disk
press any key to restart

I stumbled on here looking for a solution for to turn my bootable Ghost 11.5 ISO file into a bootable USB drive. I tried UNetbootin with the ISO file with the same results of seeing only the default screen. I then tried it again but using the IMG file I used for the boot image of the ISO. The previous files copied from the ISO were still on the USB drive so everything worked when I tested it. Is there a better method than this or is this the process?

Can you elaborate on what you mean by using the IMG file you used for the boot image of the ISO? I am not entirely sure what IMG file you are referring to. Is this a Ghost specific thing? I used a free utility to create my XP ISO from the disk, and installed the image on my USB using unetbootin. I get only the default unetbootin menu with no OS on the list to install.

My bootable ISO uses an image of a DOS disk to boot from. When I used UNetbootin with the "ISO" option and referenced the ISO file, I only saw the default screen. When I used UNetbootin with the "floppy" option and referenced the DOS IMG file, it worked.

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