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How to create a bootable Windows USB drive.
A common use of a bootable USB flash drive is to use it to boot into Windows. Booting from removable media such as a USB drive allows you to perform diagnostics on a computer that is having trouble booting from the hard drive. You can also use the flash drive to install Windows, instead of using the Windows installation CD.
This guide will outline making a bootable USB flash drive with Windows XP, Vista, or 7. Before we begin, it is important to note that the computer you want to use your bootable USB drive must be able to use a USB drive as a boot device. Most computers built since Windows Vista was released are capable of booting to a USB device. Prior to the Windows Vista time frame, it is hit or miss with motherboards.
To determine if a computer is capable of booting to a USB device, access the computer's BIOS and check the bootable device list. If a USB device is listed, set the USB drive to be the first boot device. If you do not see a USB device in the list of bootable devices, your BIOS is not capable of booting to a USB device.
Note: You may need to have your USB flash drive plugged in when you access the BIOS).
Windows Vista and Windows 7 users
To make a bootable USB drive for Windows Vista or Windows 7, you need to have Windows Vista or 7 installed on your computer. It is recommended that you have a flash drive of at least 4 GB in size, to store all the necessary files.
Tip: Before you start, plug in the USB drive and backup any files you have stored on the USB drive. The drive will be formatted during this process and all files on it will be deleted.
Note: You need to have a Windows Vista or Windows 7 DVD for these instructions to be successful.
1. Open an elevated Windows command line window by clicking Start, typing in cmd in the search text field, then pressing CTRL + Shift + Enter on your keyboard (at the same time). You can also access this by navigating to Start, All Programs, Accessories, right-click with your mouse on the Command Prompt menu item and select Run as Administrator.
2. At the command prompt, type cd c:\windows\system32 to change the directory to the Windows system32 directory. Ensure your USB drive is plugged in, type DISKPART, then press Enter. Type LIST DISK and press Enter.
See our diskpart command page for additional information on this command.
3. You will see a listing of the disk drives connected to your computer. Find the disk number of your USB drive and type SELECT DISK [USB disk #], where "[USB disk #]" is the disk # for your USB drive. It should now state that your USB drive is the selected disk. If you're not sure what disk is the USB disk, eject the USB drive, perform step number 2 again, connect the USB drive again, and compare the results. Usually the USB drive will be the last drive.
4. Type in the following commands, one by one, pressing Enter after each command.
CLEAN
CREATE PARTITION PRIMARY
SELECT PARTITION 1
ACTIVE
FORMAT FS=NTFS
(may take a couple minutes, depending on the USB drive size)
ASSIGN
EXIT
Keep the command prompt window open, but you can minimize it for a little bit.
5. You will now need your Windows Vista or 7 Installation DVD. Put the DVD in your computer's DVD drive. Open up My Computer and note which drive letter is assigned to your DVD Drive and your USB flash drive.
6. Go back to the command prompt window and type in D: CD BOOT (substitute your DVD drive letter for "D:", if necessary) and press Enter. Type CD BOOT again and press Enter. Lastly, type BOOTSECT.EXE /NT60 H: (substitute your USB flash drive letter for "H:", if necessary) and press Enter.
7. The last step is to copy the entire contents of the Windows DVD to your USB flash drive. To do this, in the My Computer window (opened in step 5 above), right-click on the DVD drive and select Open to view the contents of the DVD. Copy all the files and folders on the DVD to the USB flash drive.
Your USB flash drive is now set up to be a bootable USB drive for Windows Vista or 7. How to or can boot from CD or DVD
<b>Steps to create a bootable USB flash drive for the purpose of installing a Vista or Windows 7 OS<br />
<br />
<br />
Microsoft Provides a tool to do this for you - Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool which is available for <a href="http://images2.store.microsoft.com/prod/clustera/framework/w7udt/1.0/en-us/Windows7-USB-DVD-tool.exe">download here</a>. If you need instructions on how to use the tool, see the Microsoft Store Help on the ISO-Tool (<a href="http://store.microsoft.com/Help/ISO-Tool">http://store.microsoft.com/Help/ISO-Tool</a>).<br />
<br />
or <br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="text-decoration: underline;">Please follow the steps below</span><br />
<br />
</b>
<b>Required:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>USB Flash Drive (4GB+)</li>
<li>Microsoft OS Disk (Vista / Windows 7)</li>
<li>A computer running Vista / Windows 7</li></ul>
<b>Step 1: Format the Drive<br />
</b>The steps here are to use the command line to format the disk properly using the <i>diskpart</i> utility. [Be warned: this will erase everything on your drive. Be careful.]<br />
<ol>
<li>Plug in your USB Flash Drive</li>
<li>Open a command prompt as administrator (Right click on Start >
All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt and select "Run as
administrator"</li>
<li>Find the drive number of your USB Drive by typing the following into the Command Prompt window:<br />
<span>diskpart<br />
list disk</span><br />
The number of your USB drive will listed. You'll need this for the next step. I'll assume that the USB flash drive is disk 1.</li>
<li>Format the drive by typing the next instructions into the same
window. Replace the number "1" with the number of your disk below.<br />
<span>select disk 1<br />
clean<br />
create partition primary<br />
select partition 1<br />
active<br />
format fs=NTFS<br />
assign<br />
exit<br />
</span><span>When that is done you'll have a formatted USB flash drive ready to be made bootable.</span></li></ol>
<b>Step 2: Make the Drive Bootable <br />
</b>Next we'll use the <i>bootsect</i> utility that comes on the
Vista or Windows 7 disk to make the flash drive bootable. In the same
command window that you were using in Step 1:<br />
<ol>
<li>Insert your Windows Vista / 7 DVD into your drive.</li>
<li>Change directory to the DVD's boot directory where <i>bootsect</i> lives:<br />
<span>d:<br />
cd d:\boot</span></li>
<li>Use <i>bootsect</i> to set the USB as a bootable NTFS drive
prepared for a Vista/7 image. I'm assuming that your USB flash drive has
been labeled disk G:\ by the computer:<br />
<span>bootsect /nt60 g:</span></li>
<li>You can now close the command prompt window, we're done here.</li></ol>
<b>Step 3: Copy the installation DVD to the USB drive<br />
</b>The easiest way is to use Windows explorer to copy all of the
files on your DVD on to the formatted flash drive. After you've copied
all of the files the disk you are ready to go.<br />
<b>Step 4: Set your BIOS to boot from USB<br />
</b>This is where you're on your own since every computer is
different. Most BIOS's allow you to hit a key at boot and select a boot
option.<br />
<br />
Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 should be able to automatically detect and install it. Try using it
on another computer that has either Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 on
it. If it doesn't automatically detect and install it on that one then
the flashdrive is dead.
If you have an older operating system then go here to download the driver: http://www.sandisk.com/sandisk-support/driver-download-wizard
Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 should be able to automatically detect and install it. Try using it
on another computer that has either Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 on
it. If it doesn't automatically detect and install it on that one then
the flashdrive is dead.
But if you have an older operating system then go here to download the driver: http://www.sandisk.com/sandisk-support/driver-download-wizard
Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 should be able to automatically detect and install it. Try using it
on another computer that has either Windows XP, Vista , or Windows 7 on
it. If it doesn't automatically detect and install it on that one then
the flashdrive is dead.
If you have an older operating system then go here to download the driver: http://www3.pny.com/categories/usbflashdrives.aspx?category_id=12
This will walk through the steps to create a bootable USB flash drive for the purpose of installing a Vista or Windows 7 OS. These instructions assume that you have a computer with Windows Vista installed on it. Required: ·USB Flash Drive (4GB+) ·Microsoft OS Disk (Vista / Windows 7) ·A computer running Vista / Windows 7 Step 1: Format the Drive The steps here are to use the command line to format the disk properly using the diskpart utility. [Be warned: this will erase everything on your drive. Be careful.] Plug in your USB Flash Drive Open a command prompt as administrator (Right click on Start > All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator” Find the drive number of your USB Drive by typing the following into the Command Prompt window: diskpart list disk The number of your USB drive will listed. You’ll need this for the next step. I’ll assume that the USB flash drive is disk 1. Format the drive by typing the next instructions into the same window. Replace the number “1” with the number of your disk below. select disk 1 clean create partition primary select partition 1 active format fs=NTFS assign exit When that is done you’ll have a formatted USB flash drive ready to be made bootable. Step 2: Make the Drive Bootable Next we’ll use the bootsect utility that comes on the Vista or Windows 7 disk to make the flash drive bootable. In the same command window that you were using in Step 1: Insert your Windows Vista / 7 DVD into your drive. Change directory to the DVD’s boot directory where bootsect lives: d: cd d:\boot Use bootsect to set the USB as a bootable NTFS drive prepared for a Vista/7 image. I’m assuming that your USB flash drive has been labeled disk G:\ by the computer: bootsect /nt60 g: You can now close the command prompt window, we’re done here. Step 3: Copy the installation DVD to the USB drive The easiest way is to use Windows explorer to copy all of the files on your DVD on to the formatted flash drive. After you’ve copied all of the files the disk you are ready to go. Step 4: Set your BIOS to boot from USB This is where you’re on your own since every computer is different. Most BIOS’s allow you to hit a key at boot and select a boot option. I used these instructions to get my new Dell Mini 9 laptop loaded with Windows 7 (the PDC bits). HTH.
try removing off the launchpad program from the pen drive through an XP system with this software and then try inserting it on the vista as an ordinary pen drive.
Is the account that your tying to access the drive with an Administrator account? If not, Log in as Administrator and try to access the new drive. If you ARE using Administrator privileges on the vista machine, the problem lies in the U3 smart driver. Try downloading and installing the drivers for the XP SP2 os on scan disks website, If vista rejects the install package off of the scan disk website, let me know and i'll extract the drivers and build an install for them for you.
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