Bootable USB Drive
Creating a Bootable Usb Drive Using Ventoy

Creating a Bootable USB Drive using Ventoy

Introduction

Ventoy is an open-source tool designed to create bootable USB drives that allow you to boot multiple ISO files from a single USB drive without the need to reformat it each time. You simply copy the ISO files onto the USB drive, and Ventoy presents a menu at boot time to select which ISO to boot from. This makes it extremely convenient for testing and installing multiple operating systems or tools from a single USB drive.

Key Features:

  • Boot multiple ISO files from a single USB drive
  • No need to format the USB drive repeatedly
  • Supports both UEFI and legacy BIOS systems
  • Supports various ISO files, including Windows, Linux, and other utilities
  • Easy to update and add new ISOs

Prerequisites

Step-by-Step Guide

Download and Install Ventoy

Insert Your USB Drive*

  • Plug your USB drive into an available USB port on your computer.

Launch Ventoy

  • Open the extracted Ventoy folder and run the Ventoy2Disk.exe executable file.

Select the USB Drive in Ventoy

  • In the Device dropdown, select your USB drive. Make sure you choose the correct drive as this process will erase all data on the selected USB drive.

Install Ventoy

  • Click the Install button.
  • You will be prompted with a warning that all data on the USB drive will be destroyed. Confirm to proceed.
  • If a security warning pops up, confirm to allow the installation to continue.

Wait for Installation Completion

  • Ventoy will install its bootloader onto the USB drive. This process should be quick.
  • Once the installation is complete, you will see a message saying Installation Successful.

Copy ISO Files to USB Drive

  • Open File Explorer and navigate to your USB drive.
  • Copy and paste the ISO files of the operating systems you want to use into the root directory of the USB drive.

Eject the USB Drive

  • Safely eject your USB drive from the computer, by locating a USB drive symbol on your taskbar and right clicking it. From the context menu eject the USB drive that you are using for this guide.

Boot from the USB Drive

Restart Your Computer

  • Insert the Ventoy USB drive into the computer where you want to use the bootable ISOs.
  • Restart the computer.

Enter Boot Menu

  • During the boot process, press the key that opens the boot menu (usually F2, F10, F12, ESC, or DEL depending on your computer's motherboard).
  • When in doubt pressing all of them has never failed me.

Select USB Drive

  • From the boot menu, select your USB drive to start Ventoy.

Choose an ISO to Boot

  • Ventoy will present a menu with a list of the ISO files you copied onto the USB drive.
  • Use the arrow keys to select the ISO file you want to boot from and press Enter.

You have now successfully created a bootable USB drive using Ventoy. Happy installing!

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