Best Free Tools for Creating a Bootable Windows or Linux USB Driv

The Best Free Tools for Creating a Bootable Windows or Linux USB Drive




If you need to install Windows or Linux and you don’t have access to a CD/DVD drive, a bootable USB drive is the solution. You can boot to the USB drive, using it to run the OS setup program, just like a CD or DVD.

We have collected some links to free programs that allow you to easily setup a USB drive to install Windows or Linux on a computer.

NOTE: If you have problems getting the BIOS on your computer to let you boot from a USB drive, see our article about booting from a USB drive even if your BIOS won’t let you.

Windows USB/DVD Download Tool

Editor’s Note: if you want to create a bootable Windows install USB, this is the tool you should choose.

The Windows USB/DVD Download Tool is an official, freeware tool from Microsoft that allows you to install Windows 7 and Windows 8 and Windows 10 without having to first run an existing operating system on your computer. You can change the boot order of the drives in your computer’s BIOS so the Windows installation on your USB drive runs automatically when you turn on your computer. Please see the documentation for your computer for information about how to access BIOS and change the boot order of drives.



UNetbootin

UNetbootin is a free program for both Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X that allows you to create bootable Live USB drives for Ubuntu, Fedora, and other Linux distributions instead of burning a CD. It runs on both Windows and Linux. Either use UNetbootin to download one of the many Linux distributions it supports or provide the location of your own Linux ISO file.

NOTE: The resulting USB drive is only bootable on PCs, not Macs.


Ubuntu Startup Disk Creator

The Ubuntu Startup Disk Creator allows you to convert a USB flash drive or SD card into a drive from which you can run your Ubuntu system. You don’t have to dedicate the whole drive to the Ubuntu system. You can store other files in the remaining space.

The program also allows you to create a drive for Debian, or any other Debian-based OS for which you have a CD or .iso image.


Universal USB Installer

Universal USB Installer is a program that allows you to choose from several Linux distributions to install on a USB flash drive. Select the Linux distribution, provide a location for the appropriate ISO file, select your USB flash drive, and click Create.

NOTE: The USB flash drive must be formatted as a Fat16, Fat32, or NTFS drive.


Rufus

Rufus is a small, portable program that allows you to create bootable USB drives for Windows and Linux. It also allows you to check the USB device for bad blocks, using up to four passes. Rufus runs in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8. You can create bootable USB drives for the listed versions of Windows, as well as almost all popular Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Fedora, and OpenSUSE.

Rufus is very easy to use and the program looks like the default format window shown in Windows when you format a hard disk partition, USB drive, or other external drive.

In addition to Windows and Linux systems, you can also use Rufus to put utilities on USB drives, such as Parted Magic, Ultimate Boot CD, and BartPE.


WiNToBootic

WiNToBootic is another free tool that allows you to create a bootable USB flash drive for installing Windows 7 or Windows 8. It supports an ISO file, a DVD, or a folder as the boot disk source. It’s a standalone tool that doesn’t require installation and it operates very fast.

Note: this tool doesn’t appear to be developed anymore.


Windows Bootable Image (WBI) Creator

Update: this tool doesn’t seem to exist anymore.

WBI Creator is a free program that allows you to create a bootable ISO image from Windows XP, Vista, and Windows 7 setup files. It’s a portable tool that’s easy to use. Simply tell the tool where the Windows setup files are and select a target folder for the new ISO file that will get created. Then, you can use one of the other tools mentioned in this article to setup a bootable USB flash drive or CD/DVD for use in setting up a Windows system.


WinToFlash

Update: we’ve been told by our readers that this application has a lot of adware so we’re removing the link.

WinToFlash is a free, portable tool that allows you to create a bootable USB flash drive from a Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, Server 2003, or Server 2008 installation CD or DVD. It will also transfer a Windows pre-install environments (WinPE), which are handy for troubleshooting and repairs, to a USB flash drive. You can even use WinToFlash to create a MSDOS bootable USB drive.


XBoot

Update: this tool hasn’t been updated in a very long time.

XBoot is a free utility for creating multiboot USB flash drives or ISO image files. This allows you to combine multiple ISO files (Linux, utilities, and antivirus rescue CDs) onto one USB drive or ISO file, allowing you to create a handy utility drive. Simply drag and drop the ISO files onto the XBoot window and click Create ISO or Create USB.

NOTE: XBoot requires .NET Framework 4.0 (Standalone installer or Web installer) to be installed on your system to run.



If there are any other free tools you’ve found useful for creating bootable USB flash drives, let us know.

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How to unlock an iPhone so you can use any SIM: Unlock your iPhone from O2, Three, EE, Vodafone & more

How to unlock an iPhone so you can use any SIM

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How to unlock an iPhone so you can use any SIM: Unlock your iPhone from O2, Three, EE, Vodafone & more

How to unlock an iPhone 4, 4S, 5, 5S, 5C, 6 or 6 Plus from any carrier it's locked to, including O2, EE, Vodaf

one and more.





by istorepakistan. 30 Jul 15









How can I unlock my iPhone and use an alternative SIM from another mobile provider?





In this article we show you how to unlock all iPhones, including how to unlock an iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5S, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and the newly announed iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Our guide includes how to unlock an iPhone for free with an unlock code from your mobile phone company, as well as how to legally unlock an iPhone without requiring a jailbreak.

Read next: Complete guide: How to update iOS on iPhone or iPad

How to unlock an iPhone: Is it legal?





If you purchased your iPhone within the past year or two, it's likely to be unlocked already. However, if your iPhone is older than that, it might be locked to a particular provider. That doesn't mean you're stuck with that provider forever, though. You should be able to get your provider to unlock your iPhone for you for free. In fact, you might even be able to unlock your iPhone yourself without ever needing to contact the original provider.





It's completely legal to unlock your iPhone if you have finished paying for your contract or you purchased it outright unsubsidised. However, if you're still in the process of paying for your contract it means you don't fully own the iPhone yet, so you're best to check with your carrier before unlocking it.





If you're not sure whether your iPhone is locked or not, follow the instructions in ourIs my iPhone locked article. The issue usually occurs if you've purchased your iPhone second-hand or inherited one from a friend or family member who has updated to a newer model. If it's locked, you'll find that the iPhone isn't working on your mobile network, and that's because it's tied to a different network.





If you discover that it definitely is locked, read on to find out how to unlock it. We've separated the article into the UK's popular carriers to talk you through how to go about getting your iPhone unlocked if it's restricted to that network.







How to unlock an iPhone: EE (including Orange and T-Mobile)





If you've had your EE, Orange or T-Mobile account for at least six months and have paid all of your bills to date, EE will unlock your iPhone for you. It'll cost you £8.99, though, and it could take up to seven days, which is not ideal.





If you're a Pay as You Go customer and have enough credit to pay the £8.99 admin fee, EE will unlock your iPhone for you at that price.





However, if you're not an EE customer and you've got an iPhone that's locked to EE, you're going to need to do some digging and if you got it from eBay the chances are it's not going to be easy. You'll need to find out the original owner's name, EE phone number and maybe some additional account information. Then you'll need to fill out the online form.





Of course, it's not always going to be possible to find out the information you need to unlock the iPhone, in which case you might need to use a third-party unlocking service as described later in this article.

How to unlock an iPhone: Vodafone





Similarly, Vodafone requires you to have an account or know the details of the person who did. If those details are already available, you can go straight ahead and use Vodafone's online unlocking form. It'll take up to 48 hours for the company to get back to you and up to 10 days to unlock it.





It's free to unlock your Vodafone iPhone if you've been with the company for more than 12 months, but if you haven't it'll cost you £19.99. Same goes for any Pay as You Go customers.

How to unlock an iPhone: Three





Three makes things much simpler, you'll be pleased to hear. On its website, the carrier states that any iPhone purchased after 1 January 2014 from Three is automatically unlocked as soon as you connect it to WiFi or connect it to iTunes.





But even if you purchased your iPhone before that, you simply need to connect the iPhone to iTunes and restore the device to unlock it. You'll want to back up your content first, though, as restoring it is going to wipe all of its data.





Alternatively, you can fill out Three's online form.

How to unlock an iPhone: O2





If your iPhone is locked to O2, you'll be required to fill in an online form to unlock it. If you're a Pay Monthly customer you can unlock your phone at any time, but you'll still be required to finish paying for the rest of your contract.





Pay & Go O2 customers are required to wait for 12 months before they can unlock their iPhone. That's according to O2's website, which also claims that it'll cost £15, but when we spoke to an O2 representative they said they could unlock all O2 iPhones for free.





The same representative also told us that, if you're not an O2 customer, you can simply put a non-O2 SIM card into the iPhone, plug it in to your computer and then open iTunes to unlock the iPhone, but we've yet to test whether this works (have you? Let us know in the comments). We'll be testing this as soon as possible and will update this article when we know for sure.





We would recommend trying this before filling out O2's online form, even if you are an O2 customer, as it could save you a lot of time (it takes up to 72 hours for O2 to unlock it for you).

How to unlock an iPhone: Virgin Mobile





Virgin says that any iPhone purchased from the company within the past year or so will be unlocked already, but some older iPhones might not have the same luck.





The good news is that all you'll need to do is update your iPhone to iOS 8 an it'll be unlocked for you.





If your iPhone isn't compatible with iOS 8 – that is, if it's an iPhone 4 or older – you'll be able to perform a full restore of your iPhone to unlock it in the same way you can if you're on Three. Don't forget to back up your data first, though.

How to unlock an iPhone: Tesco Mobile





If you've been with Tesco Mobile for 12 months or more, or if you've completed your contract, you'll be able to get an unlock code from Tesco for free by calling 0345 301 4455 and choosing "unlock your mobile."

How to unlock an iPhone: Giffgaff





Giffgaff has a handy tool that helps you figure out how to unlock your Apple iPhone from its network, which you'll find here.

How to unlock an iPhone: Third-party

Using an iPhone unlocking service





An alternative to contacting your carrier and asking them to unlock the iPhone is to use a mobile phone unlocking service. There are many retailers in most areas who will arrange an unlock code for a small fee (usually around £25). Although they aren't always reputable, you can also find online services that will unlock your iPhone, but we would advise against it. If you do decide to use one, please make sure that you read all of the small print before you buy, because they can surprise you with extra bills at the end of the process. For example, Official Unlock Phone.co.uk has a(8.5/10) Trust Pilot rating but it actually charges £80 in addition to the advertised £19.99 when you check out.

How much should I pay to unlock my iPhone?





Ideally you shouldn't pay anything to unlock your iPhone, because your carrier should unlock it for you for free. But some carriers are making admin charges of around £20. Third-party companies seem to charge between £10 and £25 to unlock an iPhone, and we wouldn't pay over £25 to unlock an iPhone. Shop around if anybody quotes you a higher price than that.

How to unlock an iPhone: How to know if the unlock was successful





Once your phone has been unlocked you will receive a confirmation on the phone unlocking from the carrier. Now follow these steps:

Power down the phone. Hold down the Sleep/Wake button and move your finger across.

Use the SIM card tool (or a straightened paper clip) to eject the SIM card holder from the side of the phone.

Remove the old SIM card from the SIM card holder. Place your new SIM card into the SIM card holder.

Reinsert the SIM card holder into the iPhone.

How do I update an unlocked phone without the SIM card?





If you've requested an unlock from your carrier, but have not got the original SIM card, you will need to reset the phone before it will be unlocked. First ensure that you have requested an unlock from the carrier. Now follow these steps

Back up your iPhone. Either using Backup (Settings > iCloud > Storage & Backup > Back Up Now) or by connecting the iPhone to a computer and Using iTunes to perform a backup.

Erase your iPhone. Click on Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings.

Complete the setup assistant and restore from your backup.





The iPhone should now be unlocked.





When you turn the iPhone back on, complete the setup assistant and restore your iPhone from the backup you created. Then you can insert the new SIM card and it should now work. So there you have it, your iPhone is unlocked!





You might also find useful: How to transfer contacts from iPhone to iPhone





Or: How to transfer contacts from Android to iPhone

Our most popular iPhone tutorials:





How to jailbreak an iPhone





How to back up an iPhone





How to block phone numbers on an iPhone





How to reset, factory-reset, restore or restart an iPhone





How to update to the latest version of iOS on an iPhone





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