How to install several operating systems on a USB flash drive at once
Miscellaneous / / July 11, 2023
You no longer have to format your drive when you have to choose between Windows and Ubuntu.
Creation bootable flash drive - the task is extremely simple, and it no longer surprises anyone. And how do you like the idea of saving several bootable ISO files on the media at once? This solution has several advantages.
First of all, you can immediately write several distributions of Linux, Windows 11 and the time-tested “Ten” to your USB flash drive. And you will not have to format the device 100 times later if you need to install another OS from it.
In addition, it will be possible to install other tools on the USB flash drive - for example, utilities for managing partitions hard drive from AOMEI, Paragon or Acronis, or antiviruses to scan your computer without booting the system. Or applications for backups - so that you can restore a disk from a backup even if the system does not boot.
Finally, a flash drive is useful not only for installing operating systems, but also simply for storing files.
Such a trick will allow you to crank out Your Universal Multiboot Installer (YUMI) - “Your Universal Multiboot Installer”. This utility is simple and convenient, and even a beginner can easily figure it out.
There are three program options: YUMI exFAT, YUMI UEFI and YUMI Legacy. They can be downloaded at site developer. YUMI UEFI and YUMI Legacy are only needed if you have a relatively old computer that does not support booting from exFAT media. For all other machines, it is recommended to use YUMI exFAT.
Download the latest version of the program from the official website of the developer. Insert the flash drive into a free USB port on your computer. Launch YUMI and agree to the license terms.
In the "Step 1: Select the Drive Letter of your USB Device" section, select your flash drive from the drop-down list.
Under Step 2: Choose a Distribution, find "Windows 11" in the list of operating systems and click on it. Next to the "Browse to your *.iso" field, click on the "Browse" button and select the Windows ISO you want to use. If you don't have it, you can click "Download link" on the right to download the image from the official Microsoft website.
After selecting the Windows ISO image, click the "Create" button. Wait for the process of creating a bootable flash drive to complete. After that, you can add Ubuntu to the same media. In the "Step 2: Choose a Distribution" section, find the desired option in the list of operating systems and click on it.
In the window that appears, select the Ubuntu ISO you want to use. You can also download it from the official Ubuntu website by clicking on the blue link on the right. Click the "Browse" button next to the "Step 3: Browse for ISO" field to select the desired ISO image. Then click the "Create" button. Wait for the process of creating a bootable flash drive to complete.
Similarly, you can install as many ISO images as you like. You can also keep memory scanning utilities like MemTest86 or ResqueCD from various antiviruses on a flash drive - just in case.
After all the necessary ISOs are written to the USB flash drive, boot your computer from it, as indicated in our leadership. Usually, to do this, immediately after turning on, press the F12, F11 or Esc key - it all depends on the manufacturer. Select your flash drive from the boot menu, and then from the YUMI menu select which operating system you want to run on the USB drive.
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