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Creating a bootable USB flash drive for Linux Mint. Installing Ubuntu Linux from a USB flash drive using Rufus

Microsoft is a virtual monopoly among operating system suppliers, if you do not take into account products Apple, which uses Mac OS own development. However, in search of an alternative, many users began to resort to installing certain versions of Linux, which this moment also has an excellent graphical shell, functionality. In this case, it is very important to know how to create a bootable USB flash driveUbuntu to install a new OS, because DVD drives are now absent on almost all new laptop models, and users no longer always install it on computers.

As a rule, Linux distributions are installed by those who have already used or are currently using an OS from Microsoft. Accordingly, in order to proceed to the installation process, you first need to make an external bootable media, using an already pre-installed operating system. As such standard tools there is no way to perform these actions, but on the Internet you can find many programs that are designed to solve this task. One of the most popular is UNetbootin. It can be downloaded from the official website. Next, you need to download the image of the OS itself from the developer’s home page, selecting the appropriate bit depth. The overwhelming majority of Linux versions, including Ubuntu, are distributed absolutely free of charge, with the exception of those that specialize in the solution specific tasks. After this application starts, you must:

Wait until the procedure is completed, after which, if the operation is successful, a window will appear on the screen, in which there will also be a record that to boot from of this medium It is necessary to make certain BIOS settings in the “Boot” section.

Such creation of bootable removable media can be performed not only with Linux version Ubuntu, but also virtually any other.

Creating a bootable USB flash drive in Linux OS environment

If you already have it installed on your computer or laptop this version OS, such actions can be caused for several reasons:

  • slow Internet connection that does not allow you to update the operating system to initial state(a similar process can be compared to resetting a smartphone to factory settings, but here you need to be connected to global network);
  • a decision was made to try other Linux distributions or the same one, but a different version;
  • sometimes, when using several operating systems in parallel, problems may arise with boot sector, which will make it impossible to start the operating system;
  • You need to install Ubuntu on another computer or laptop.

A bootable USB flash drive can also be made using the already discussed UNetbootin program, only downloaded for the corresponding OS, but many users do not like to install additional software so as not to clog up the system. Similar actions can be performed using built-in tools and in several ways. Let's look at each of them:

  1. Using Startup Disk Creator

The operating system provides a utility that allows you to work with disks. Before you launch it, you need to connect a flash drive to which recording will be made, and then:


Upon completion, a corresponding message will appear on the screen.

  1. Using the terminal

Initially, Linux did not have any graphical shell and all commands, without exception, were entered using command line. Therefore, even if it is possible to perform certain actions using a manipulator, experienced users To this day, certain commands are entered using the keyboard. To create a bootable USB flash drive with the appropriate OS version, you must:


Next, the creation process will begin, but there will be virtually no evidence of this except that it will be impossible to type any text in this terminal window. It will all end when the cursor is displayed here.

Make a bootable Ubuntu USB flash drive on Mac

Taking into account the fact that this OS was developed similar to Linux, then graphical shell and the functionality here is quite similar, although it can only be fully installed on Apple devices. Let's do it necessary procedure using the same terminal. For this:


Once the cursor becomes active again, the operation is completed.

If you don’t particularly like typing in certain commands, you can also use UNetbootin here, after installing this application.

Summarizing all of the above, we can say that the creation procedure bootable flash drive Ubuntu is not complicated and even a beginner can handle it.

In contact with


First, you should understand the concept itself, a bootable Linux flash drive. Many users ask this question world wide web. How to create a bootable USB flash drive? Linux installation and how to install the driver from a flash drive on a PC? But despite the answers provided, there is very little detailed explanation of what a flash drive of this type is used for, and this is what we will try to explain in the article.

Don't be afraid, you will need a simple flash drive that connects to USB port on a personal computer. Before the installation procedure, the flash drive must be preloaded operating system. The media may contain several operating systems, various types.

The first way to create a bootable USB flash drive using UNetbootin.
UNetbootin - special utility, which allows you to install Linux without using a CD/ DVD disc ov. It installs without problems Personal Computer and creates bootable flash drive with embedded Linux/BSD, which was previously downloaded from the network.

Before you start using UNetbootin, you should format your USB drive by selecting file system FAT32. This operation shown in the figure below:

After complete removal all the information on the flash drive, run the UNetbootin utility. As mentioned above, the program makes it possible to burn a Live CD/DVD directly from the World Wide Web.

To create a disk image with the OS (for example, the Debian Wheezy distribution package is loaded) on a flash drive, you should select the "Disk Image" section, and then activate " ISO standard" and select the path to the distribution with ISO format. Don’t forget to indicate the type of your device and the type of media (the procedure is shown in the figure below). All data is specified, then click on the OK button, which will begin the process of duplicating and extracting files, which is fully automated. This procedure will take about five minutes.

After finishing unpacking necessary files, the utility will independently install the bootloader and report when the boot drive is ready. If necessary, installation of an operating room Linux systems can be done immediately. To do this, you will need to restart your personal computer, after which you need to enter the BIOS menu, where you should specify the boot path via USB.

If reinstalling the OS is not required, then you do not need to restart the PC. Click on the exit button and you're done. The procedure is quite simple and only takes a few minutes. In the meantime, the Linux bootable flash drive is ready to go.

The second method uses the Universal USB Installer utility.
Main feature of this software is to automatically format the flash drive. Let's look at the utility in more detail below.

First you need to install the program and then run it.
Next, you need to configure some of the characteristics required to create bootable media.
- The first stage will show the definitions of Linux operating systems. You need to select the Linux that you are going to use in the future on removable media. If the presented options do not suit you, then you should specify “Try Unlisted Linux ISO”.
- At the second stage, you need to specify the path to the already downloaded Linux distribution on your personal computer, but if the folder was not selected automatically, then you should look in the “Download” folder.
- On last stage you should indicate your flash drive, basically it is an H drive, followed by the name of the removable media.

Vypolniv higher listed actions, it’s worth checking everything again so that errors do not occur in the future. Next, click on the “Create” button. Don't forget to check the box with FAT32.9 formatting

Afterwards, a window will pop up warning you to close unused OS windows. Close everything unnecessary and click the continue button. The utility will automatically format the flash drive and create an MBR boot space. The volume label on the UUI will also change, and then the Linux operating system image will be installed. The user only needs to confirm the actions.

The utility will automatically complete the installation. Look at the picture below.

All is ready. A bootable USB flash drive with Linux has been created.

Third and last method performed by Xboot.
This time, useful utility will become Xboot, which does not require installation on a PC. It launches immediately after downloading it from the network.

The interface of this program is easy to use. To start adding, you will first need to send the image files to the main part of the utility window or simply go to the File-Open section, as shown in the figure.

As soon as you specify the path to the file, a question window will pop up. You should select Uilitu-Ubuntu to create a bootable Linux flash drives. But if you are preparing a flash drive for Windows OS, then the best option will be Add using Grub4sod ISO image Emulation. Be careful, standard item is the section for Windows.

A special feature of this utility is the ability to write to boot function Along with the system there are various antiviruses, such as: Kaspersky Rescue Disc, Live CD or Dr.Web. These antiviruses are specially made for such cases. They are the ones who will protect your operating system in the future.

The image above shows what the utility suggests to install necessary programs, both for Linux and Windows. Xboot does not have built-in software, so everything you specify will be downloaded directly from the network. This process shown below.

For more comfortable work with images, you should write a name for each.

Before you begin, you should check all the completed steps, after which you confidently click on the “Register for USB drive". Don't make the mistake of choosing "Make bootable dvd disk". Also, do not forget to format the flash drive in FAT32 mode.

If your possession English language low, then you should find two buttons at the bottom of the screen and select “Create USB”.

After clicking on the "Create USB" button, a window will pop up where you will be given a choice USB devices. This is done to record and select the desired bootloader. The standard option will look like this "Syslinux", which can also be automatically recommended for this procedure.

But if an error pops up, then you should change your choice to "Grub4dos", which fully supports NTFS cleaning.

Before clicking OK, you need to check the selected USB drive more carefully to avoid deleting information from hard drive. Once you are sure that the media is correct, click OK and wait until the procedure is completed. The utility may also recommend checking flash media in virtual mode.

After the recording process is completed, a window with a convenient menu will appear. Here, if you wish, you can select the OS for your personal computer and start hard check disk for virus files.

Instructions

First of all, you need to prepare a flash drive for installation on it installation image Linux distribution. To do this you need to download the program USB Disk Storage Format Tool. You can easily find it on the Internet. With this utility you need to format the flash drive into a file one. FAT system(note not FAT32, but FAT) for better compatibility. The same can be done in Linux using built-in tools. On Ubuntu this is disks or gparted (needs to be installed separately).

Download and install the Unetbootin program. On Linux distributions such as Ubuntu and its derivatives this utility is already in the repositories, so just install it through your package management program (App Center, Synaptic, etc.). For Windows program can be downloaded from the official website http://unetbootin.github.io/

Insert the flash drive into the USB port. Launch the Unetbootin program from the menu. Please note that the program will require administrative privileges. If you have not yet downloaded the Linux distribution, you can do so directly from Unetbootin program. At the top of the window, select the distribution and then the version. Then at the bottom of the window, select the USB drive and indicate which media you want to install on. I recommend disconnecting all unnecessary flash drives during the installation procedure so as not to destroy important data. Click the "OK" button, after which the image will begin downloading and its subsequent installation on the flash drive. The procedure may take long time if you have slow internet connection.

If the Unetbootin menu does not contain the distribution you need or you have already downloaded the image yourself, then select the “Disk Image” option at the bottom of the window. Then click on the button with three dots and find the distribution image. Specify the USB flash drive as in the previous step and click the "OK" button. The image will begin immediately unpacking onto the flash drive. This way you can install almost any image on a flash drive. For example Live CD Drweb or Hirens Boot CD.

Operating room users Windows systems can very easily create a bootable USB flash drive with Ubuntu way on her. To do this, you can use special software.

To burn Ubuntu, you must have ISO image operating system, which will be stored on removable media, as well as the drive itself. It is important to understand that all data on the USB drive used will be erased.

Before creating a bootable USB flash drive, download the distribution of the operating system itself. We recommend doing this exclusively on the official Ubuntu website. There are many advantages to this approach. The main one is that the downloaded operating system will not be damaged or unfinished. The fact is that when downloading an OS from third party sources, it is likely that you will download an image of a system modified by someone else.

If you have a flash drive from which you can erase all data and a downloaded image, use one of the methods listed below.

Method 1: UNetbootin

This program is considered the most basic in matters of recording Ubuntu on removable media. It is used most often. You can read how to use it in the lesson on creating boot drive(method 5).

We skip point 3 in LinuxLive USB Creator and do not touch it.

As you can see, the program has a rather interesting and non-standard interface. This, of course, is attractive. A very good move was adding a traffic light near each block. A green light on it means that you did everything correctly and vice versa.

Method 3: Xboot

There is another very unpopular, “unpromoted” program that does an excellent job of writing an Ubuntu image to a flash drive. Its huge advantage is that Xboot is capable of adding to the bootable media not only the operating system itself, but also additional programs. These could be antiviruses, all kinds of startup utilities, and the like. Initially, the user does not need to download ISO file and this is also a big plus.

To use Xboot, follow these steps:


So, create a bootable USB flash drive with an Ubuntu image Windows users very easy. This can be done in literally a few minutes and even a novice user can cope with this task.