Rufus: 13 bootable USB drive creator tools similar to Rufus
Microsoft Windows USB/DVD Download Tool
This tool remains a user favorite when it comes to creating bootable flash drives from ISO files. Originally distributed by Microsoft, this utility was migrated to CodePlex but is now back on Microsoft’s servers at this location. To download the utility, just go to the linked page and hit the Download button. In the next page, you’ll see various language options; select the .exe file for your language and click on Next to download the file. You’ll also be shown some installation instructions telling you that formatting the USB drive from within the tool can be bypassed, but that it has to be manually formatted before using the utility to create bootable media. Once you’ve installed the application on your PC, download the ISO file. You can get it from Microsoft’s servers, but you’ll have to go through the Media Creation Tool page to download the disk image. To bypass the media tool, make sure you select the option to Install Windows on a Different PC, as well as the ISO File option when prompted. When your ISO file and the tool are ready, you can create the Windows bootable USB by following the steps shown below: Your Windows bootable USB will be created in a few minutes, and this can now be used for installations, repairs and diagnostics. Please note that this utility can only be used with Windows ISO files that have been downloaded from Microsoft’s website. Also, since it is a single-purpose tool, this is the only thing you can do with it. There aren’t any options to edit the ISO file or extract the contents, which might be necessary when manually formatting the USB drive to hold a Windows installation. For more flexibility and functionality, try the second utility described here.
Step 3: In the final window, make sure the correct USB is showing in the drop-down menu and hit Begin Copying.
UUByte ISO Editor
This all-in-one editor, disk authoring tool and ISO creator is a versatile utility for creating bootable media on a USB drive or a physical DVD. It will also allow you to edit the files inside the ISO, including removing and adding them. You can also create ISO files from files and folders on your system as well as create disk images from physical DVDs and CDs. Consider it the Swiss Army Knife of ISO files. UUByte ISO Editor can be used to burn any bootable ISO file to a USB drive and make a boot source for a Windows installation, repair or diagnostics. It has been thoroughly tested on all the top storage device and PC brands, and is also available for the Mac platform. The interface is highly intuitive, and the developers have made sure that all the complex processes such as formatting the USB are done in the background, leaving the user free to focus on the task at hand. As you can see, the process is very straightforward and requires no techical experience. The USB drive will be formatted to the right partition scheme and file system based on which version of Windows you’re working with, and all you need is one click to copy the bootable ISO file to the USB drive.
Step 3: Insert a USB drive and make sure it has been detected, and that you have selected it from the drop-down menu. Click Burn to create your bootable USB.
RMPrepUSB
RMPrepUSB is an advanced tool for formatting USB drives and installing OS bootloaders for various operating systems including Windows. It can also be used to create multiboot USBs, run a hard drive scan and even flash a new BIOS. For the purpose of this article, we’ll stick to the bootable USB creation function.
You may be a little overwhelmed by the RMPrepUSB interface, so be warned. However, even though it looks complicated, it’s not hard to figure out how to get your bootable ISO file on to a USB drive using this versatile utility since the steps are literally numbered within the software interface. Here’s step by step guide to creating bootable USB, This method is not all that hard to use, but if it’s confusing then we recommend the second method. The software is user-friendly and doesn’t require any technical expertise. If you’re a newbie to creating bootable USB drives, this is the option for you.
