Want to install Windows seven on your computer without an optical drive? Perhaps you're using a laptop without a built-in DVD drive, or fifty-fifty an old netbook or Windows tablet. Any the case, you'll demand to make a USB installation disk.

You tin can do this without whatsoever extra software, or you lot can use tools provided by Microsoft and 3rd parties.

Note: Despite the legacy that Windows 7 left backside, it'south time to upgrade to Windows x! With Windows eleven on the fashion, Windows 7 isn't desirable as a personal operating system. Nevertheless, for older hardware, or for those who just like Windows 7, read on.

Two Ways to Make a Bootable USB Windows vii Installation Deejay

You have two choices for making a bootable USB drive that can install Windows seven.

  1. Create a bootable disk using Windows tools: this requires no boosted software
  2. Download the install from Microsoft: this is a far simpler solution

Permit'south take a await at each option.

What You'll Need to Install Windows 7 From a USB Bulldoze

Without an optical drive on the target computer, installing Windows seven as your preferred operating system is impossible. But if you have the original installation media and a USB flash drive, yous tin can make information technology work.

To get started, you'll need:

  • A working Windows 7 calculator with a DVD drive and administrator rights.
  • A Windows vii installation DVD.
  • AUSB wink drive with 4GB of space or larger.

This will also work with external USB hard drives instead of a USB thumb drive. Nevertheless, all the information on the drive volition be formatted and deleted.

The following steps can be completed on a Windows vii reckoner. However, they're well-nigh the same any operating arrangement you're using, including Windows 10.

1. Open an Elevated Command Prompt

To commencement, insert your USB flash bulldoze in your main PC---the one with the optical bulldoze. You should too insert the Windows seven installation DVD.

Click Start > All Programs > Accessories and right-click on Command Prompt. Select Run As Ambassador. Of course, you demand to exist able to authenticate as the administrator on the PC you're using.

On Windows 10, click Get-go then type "control". Right-click the start result and select Run as administrator.

In the blackness command prompt window, open the disk sectionalization tool with the command:

          diskpart

This will open in a new control prompt window. Here, call back a listing of disks fastened to your PC.

          list disk

One of the drives listed will be your USB bulldoze. You'll probably be able to spot it based on the drive's capacity. Brand a note of the deejay number of the USB drive.

screenshot of disk part in windows 10

This is of import to get right; otherwise, you lot'll end upwardly losing information on other drives.

Next, segmentation the disk. Begin by selecting the disk and cleaning it.

Where you see the # sign, substitute it with the disk number of your USB device.

          select deejay #
clean

You can then create a new partition.

          create partition primary
select sectionalization 1

Make the partition active, and then format as NTFS:

          active
format fs=ntfs quick
screenshot of formatting usb for windows 7 iso

Next, upshot the unmarried command to set the deejay every bit drive East:

          assign letter due east

Finally, get out the DiskPart tool.

          get out

The USB flash drive is now prepare for Windows 7's installation files.

2. Make Your Windows 7 USB Bootable

The format step may take some time, depending on your computer's specification.

In the control prompt type

          d:/boot/bootsect.exe /nt60 due east:

(This assumes D: is your DVD drive with the install DVD inserted, and yous named East: your USB drive. This may differ on your PC, then check before entering the control.)

This volition make your USB drive bootable.

3. Re-create Windows vii Installation Files to the USB Bulldoze

The final step can be done from My Computer. Just open the installation DVD, highlight everything, and drag it across to the USB drive.

This can also take a while. When consummate, you lot should exist all set. Insert the USB deejay into your new PC, and then enter the BIOS to suit the boot order. Your target computer may even have the Choose Kicking Device option during showtime-up.

If you want a simpler solution to installing Windows 7 from a bootable USB bulldoze, try Microsoft's dedicated, downloadable tool.

The tool is no longer hosted on Microsoft'southward official servers, so we will find a mirror to the same programme hosted on archive.org.

Download: Windows 7 USB Download Tool

The chief download is just 2.8MB in size, so this should consummate quickly. While y'all look, insert your USB flash bulldoze into your master PC. A 4GB bulldoze should exist large plenty.

Meanwhile, yous'll likewise demand an ISO version of Windows 7. Similar the USB Download Tool, these files are no longer easily attainable from Microsoft's official servers. Below are 2 versions hosted on archive.org.

Download: Windows 7 Ultimate Edition

Download: Windows 7 Professional Edition

Note: You volition even so need a valid product key to activate these products!

While you wait for the download, install the installer tool, then launch from the Offset carte du jour.

You'll be prompted to find the ISO epitome file for Windows 7. Detect the ISO file on your hard disk, and so click Next.

screenshot of the windows 7 usb dvd download tool

Here, select USB device for the media type y'all plan to create. In the adjacent screen, use the dropdown menu to select the USB drive, and then Begin Copying. Look while the process completes.

When the bar reaches 100%, y'all'll spot some status information. Whatever problems that occurred are listed here. If you lot need another bootable USB Windows vii installation deejay, click Start Over to echo the process.

Otherwise, click the X in the top-right corner to shut, earlier safely ejecting your USB disk. It is at present ready to install Windows 7 on a suitable computer of your choice.

It's Piece of cake to Create a Windows 7 USB Installation Deejay

If you've been stuck trying to get an operating arrangement fix on your old laptop or netbook, you'll be relieved to see how uncomplicated it really is. Indeed, Windows seven and after already accept the tools built in to help you make a bootable USB installer.

Declining that, you can take the simple selection by grabbing Microsoft's own USB installer tool for Windows 7 and later. And if you honey the portability of the USB bulldoze, exist certain to bank check out all the other portable apps you tin put on ane too.

100 Portable Apps for Your USB Stick for Windows and macOS

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Nearly The Author

Jason Currie (37 Articles Published)

Jason is a onetime freelancer and tech blogger. Driven and knowledgeable near all things tech, he has a desire to make things simple and digestible. When Jason isn't writing for MakeUseOf, he will usually be flexing his creative muscles in other forms of writing.

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