Program for opening images. The best programs to create an ISO disk image

How to open an ISO file? Review of programs, the best fast and free solutions for viewing and running ISO images.

When downloading movies and games on the Internet, it’s common to come across .avi, .exe formats. Sometimes you come across similar ones. For example, after downloading the necessary materials, you may stumble upon an .iso file. How to open something like this, and what the significance of this format is, can be found in this article.

What is the ISO format for?

This type of material is very common. Its popularity is due to its practicality and ease of use. Answering the question “what is ISO needed for?”, it’s worth starting with the fact that this format is an image (an archive with the full contents of a disk) of a CD, DVD, as well as BR (an abbreviation for the Blue Ray format).
ISO files are designed to be opened in so-called virtual drives. There are special programs for this. The difference between virtual and classic drives is that the former do not physically exist, but if you connect a file with .ISO resolution to one, the PC will perceive it as a standard CD, BR or DVD.

Important! The ISO format allows you to back up and access discs without having to use the standard disc that came out of the box. This ensures ease of use and extends the life of standard media, which can wear out over time.

Despite all the convenience of working with this format, there is one significant feature - it can be opened using special programs for the so-called burning of discs. We’ll talk further about how to do this and with what tools.

Overview of programs for opening ISO files

So, if an .ISO file has entered your PC, a program that writes data to the disk or cleans it will help you open it. Suitable ones include the following:

Alcohol 120%
DAEMON Tools
Ultra ISO

Important! Even the standard WinRAR archiver will help with the issue of opening ISO materials. Other versions of programs for similar purposes are also suitable, for example, 7z.

Alcohol 120%

A very popular program for working with this kind of materials. It has two important features that need to be taken into account:

the licensed version is paid
For beginners, Alcohol 120% may seem a little difficult

If, nevertheless, you plan to use this particular utility, then to open and launch the materials you need to perform the following sequence of actions.

Download and install the program on your PC
At the moment when the installation takes place, a proposal to create a virtual drive will appear. It needs to be accepted
Once the installation is complete, restart your PC. Upon completion of this operation, you will be able to see a new, virtual drive in the general list of available drives.
Select the desired .ISO file and right-click on it. A context menu will appear in which you need to select the “Mount image” option.
Next, a dialog box will open. It requires you to specify the required file
After these manipulations in automatic mode, Alcohol 120% ISO file will open for viewing and launching the content

DAEMON Tools

This utility is no less popular than the previous one. In addition, it is free, and the algorithm for its use is somewhat simpler.

Open the program. In its main menu, select the “Add image” option
Select the file we need and click on the button called “Open”
You need to right-click on the shortcut of the open file, thereby calling up the context menu. In it, select the option “Mount Drive” (Mount image)

After this, it will start automatically.

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Ultra ISO

The utility is designed specifically for working with materials of this type. UltraISO is a simple and easy-to-use program.

After installing the utility, run it and in the section called “File” select the “Open” option
Specify the location of the required file and open it in UltraISO
The material will appear on the right side of the window. All files contained in the image can be extracted to a PC and run

WinRAR

This utility is built into the standard set of Windows programs. Winrar unpacks ISO files similarly to other archives. Just right-click on the image of interest, click the “Extract” option in the context menu and in the dialog box that appears, specify the location for storing the unzipped materials. All that remains to be done after this is to wait for the process to complete.

Nero

Previously, the familiar package of utilities from Nero had a special project that supported an ISO image (Nero Image Drive). He is currently inactive. Therefore, this program, unfortunately, is not suitable for launching virtual drive files.

Important! All the described utilities have Russian-language versions. This, combined with a simple and intuitive interface, makes using such programs extremely easy.

The presented list of solutions is quite suitable for choosing one of the most acceptable options for opening ISO images. Working with each of them is simple and does not require special skills. You can clearly see the process of using the utilities in the video review.

How to open an ISO image: video

Every user may at some point encounter the problem of files with the iso extension. It is not always possible to understand how to open a disk image or how to use it the first time. For this purpose, special programs have been created that allow you to unpack or view such files.

What is an ISO file?

By default, Windows does not indicate how to open an ISO extension, and the user must select the utility independently. Disk images are saved in this format, which can then be burned or used on a computer. To put it differently, this is an archive that completely collects all data from the media and is its complete copy. You can create it from any CD or DVD media. As a rule, discs with games or operating systems are saved this way.

Often the iso format is used to create a copy of Windows, which can later be written to a disk, flash drive and used for installation on another computer. Many people have a question about how to open an iso image. For example, this can be done using tools built into the operating system or using conventional archivers.

How to open a disk image

A person may need to open the image in order to pull out one specific file or to use the entire content. There are two ways for these purposes:

use archiving programs WInRar or 7Zip;
through special utilities with virtual drives.

Opening files with archivers

The easiest way to open a disk image is to use archivers. They are very easy to download and install and are free to use. It is better to download from official sites so as not to introduce viruses along with the installer. The most popular and reliable options for opening archives are WinRar and 7Zip. All modern versions support the Russian language, so it will be easy to navigate the interface.

Both of these utilities provide the same functionality, which is the ability to open an iso and extract the necessary files from it. During installation of the archiver, you must check the box “Integration with the operating system shell.” After this, you can simply right-click on the file. In the menu, select the appropriate item where the name of the utility for archives is indicated. An additional list will offer you a choice of several different actions:

open;
extract (you can select any folder);
extract to current folder.

It should be taken into account that this method allows you to work with the image only in read format; you will not be able to write files to a disk or flash drive through the archiver. This allows you to work with content only on the computer itself. For example, if you need to reinstall the operating system, you won’t be able to burn a flash drive with OS files.

Using special programs

A program for reading disk images offers wider functionality for working with iso. As a rule, to fully use them you need to buy a license, but for working at home, the trial version will be quite enough. At the moment, two utilities are considered the most popular:

Deamon Tools;
Ultra ISO.

Program for mounting disk image Daemon Tools

One of the options for opening iso is Deamon Tool. To use it free of charge, you can download the Lite version; it is freely available on the official website of the developers. The essence of the utility is that it creates several virtual drives on your PC into which you can mount iso. Install the program: an icon should appear in the tray that will help you quickly disconnect and connect disk images.

Automatically after installation, one virtual drive will appear, which can be used immediately. For this:

Left-click on the utility icon.
Hover over the drive name. We click on it.
An explorer window will appear, through which you should specify the path to the folder with the iso. Select it.
Go through Explorer to the drive created by the program and perform the necessary actions with the content.

If necessary, you can right-click on the program icon and open the settings and control panel. A more “friendly” and visual version of the utility’s interface can be seen if you launch it in full screen mode from the desktop (or from the folder where you installed it). Additional tooltips will pop up in the menu when you hover over the controls.

Open ISO file with UltraISO

Another option for opening iso is the UltraISO disk image program. The full version must be purchased, but for home use you should always choose to run the trial version after installation. To install, you need to go to the official page of the utility and download it, where you can also select the required interface language before downloading. Next, the algorithm is as follows:

Run the UltraISO installation, agree with all points. There is no need to check or uncheck any additional boxes.
After installation, you can click on any iso file and select a utility from the list provided. After this, such an extension will open automatically through it.
By double clicking, a window will appear in front of you where the entire contents of the image will be shown.

The main advantage of UltraISO is that you can immediately unpack all the data or start the burning process to disk. To do this, select the icon with a burning disk (“Burn CD image”) in the top menu. If you want to install the game, first mount the iso into a virtual drive or unpack it to any folder on your computer. For this:

in the top menu, click on the “Actions” tab;
select “Extract...”;
indicate the location where to unpack.

Here is another program to open ISO files.

Video: how to open an ISO file

Yesterday I urgently needed to extract several files from the ISO image, but there was no time to install any programs, so I asked myself the question - how to open an ISO file quickly and without unnecessary movements.

A huge amount of software and operating systems are distributed in the form of ISO images, so you just need to know how to work with this format.

There are several ways to open an iso file, but not everyone knew that it can be opened even by a program that is installed on everyone’s computer. What kind of program is this and what alternative methods are available, read in this article.

What is an ISO image?

So, what is an ISO file and what does it come with? In simple words, an ISO image is an electronic version of an optical disk, which is a file with its own file system and the actual contents of the disk.

Having a disk image, you can connect it in the operating system as a regular optical disk. There are a lot of options for using disk images! Starting from installing games and programs, ending with the work of special programs that work exclusively from an optical disc. Beta versions of operating systems are also posted in image format, for example in an ISO image you can

How to open an ISO file using UltraISO

The first, and once the most convenient way for me to open ISO files, is using the UltraISO program. I won’t give a link to the program; you can buy a paid version on the official website, but in open sources there are versions for which you don’t need to pay;).

To open an ISO file, you need to run the UltraISO program, select “ Open”

and specify the path to your ISO image. Then in the program window you will see the contents of the disk image

In order to extract a file from the image, right-click on the desired file and select the menu item “ Extract to…”

How to open an ISO file using DAEMON Tools

A very cool program for mounting optical disk images. Not the most convenient way if you just need to extract a file from a disk image, but I’ll still describe it as an option.

For us, the version of the program is quite enough DAEMON Tools Lite. You can download it from the official website absolutely free of charge.

After downloading the program, install it and run it. An image catalog window will open, add your image

Now you only need to select the added image and click the “ Mount“,

after which you will have a drive in your system (in my case, drive D)

Working with a mounted disc is no different from working with regular optical discs inserted into a DVD drive.

How to Open an ISO File with 7-Zip

My favorite and, in principle, the most convenient way to open ISO disk images. I found out about it relatively recently, and was pleasantly surprised. After all, today almost every computer has a 7-Zip archiver installed. It's free and easy to use.

You can download it from the official website using a direct link:

After installation, open 7-Zip File Manager, it is a regular explorer with archiver tools

To open an ISO image, you just need to go to the folder in which it is located and double-click on it. It will open like a normal folder

You can extract a file from an ISO image by selecting it and clicking on the “ Extract“.

Last week we asked you to share your favorite disk image tools, then we rounded up the five most popular responses for a vote. Now we"re back to highlight your favorite. DAEMON Tools led the pack by a comfortable margin with 40% of the vote.

Softpedia.com DAEMON Tools Lite is a software solution that will impress you, especially thanks to its advanced features that can deal with virtually all image formats on the market. Reliable application that creates virtual drives on your computer, providing you with the possiblity to emulate CDs and DVDs for instant access.

PCWorld.com If you spend a lot of time swapping and hence waiting on CDs or DVDs to mount, Daemon Tools Lite is worth its weight in gold. Even if you don"t, it"s a program you should download to keep in your bag of tricks--you"ll find a use for it eventually.

Download.com The advantage is that you can burn the images you"re using with DAEMON Tools Lite right away or just test an image before burning it to see if it was created correctly. DAEMON Tools Lite works with most image formats.

Filecluster.com Pros
- Small and highly stable program.
- Low resource requirements.
- Simple and functional interface...

Software.Informer.com DAEMON Tools Lite manages to be more comprehensive and feature-rich than many of its competitors. And that's quite remarkable, especially considering that DAEMON Tools Lite is free while many of its competitors are not.

downloads.tomsguide.com As a disc imaging tool, Daemon Tools Lite"s free nature automatically makes it a lot better than many competing applications simply because it offers most of what they offer at the vastly reduced price of free.

www.techadvisor.co.uk When you have a disc that you know you"ll need to access regularly, then, DAEMON Tools Lite allows you to create an image in just a couple of clicks. This then shows up in its Image Catalog for speedy reloading later, and you can put the real disc away.

techgyd.com Daemon Tools Lite is one of the best software for emulating and organizing your disc images. The software is very easy to use and fulfills all your disc related requirements. The virtual drives support is amazing.

maddownload.com If you are looking for the best software to work with ISO, MDX, MDS, and MDX files? Well, you have come to the right place. DAEMON Tools Lite is an easy and ready to use downloadable software compatible with Windows. It is well known reputable software that gives you the power of having a DVD-ROM emulator right into the comfort of your own home.

GIGA.de Mit dem Daemon Tools Lite Download könnt ihr virtuelle Images erstellen, speichern und einbinden sowie virtuelle Laufwerke emulieren.

UltraISO is an indispensable program for working with images on Windows computers.

ISO images are images of CD/DVD discs. To work with the .ISO format you need to download UltraISO for Windows. Your OS can only write data to disk if you have a disk drive, but it won't be able to work with images unless you have additional software. The program's developers are not the inventors of the format, but they are the developers of the product that has become the most popular tool for working with this format. The software needs to be downloaded not only by those who have a disk drive, but also by those who do not have a disk drive, but need to create an image or work with virtual disks, as well as interact with boot disks/flash drives.

A convenient tool for working with images.ISO

You can download a disk image with some program, or create this image yourself. To interact with this format you need to download the software. These programs are distributed free of charge, but you can not only download the software for free, but also continue to use it. There is also a paid version of this utility (costs 1,400 rubles), but for everyday purposes you will definitely have enough free options. They are limited only by file size, but to create a bootable USB flash drive, the free version is definitely enough.

The program interface is very similar to the standard Explorer interface in Windows, so you should not have any difficulties in working. In addition to this, UltraISO is in Russian, which means everything is as simple and clear as possible without any translation. The latest version of Ultra ISO allows you to work with the structure of the disk image to save space both on the HDD, when storing the ISO disk, and to reduce the size on optical media. This is not the only advantage of the latest version; here are several innovations and improvements:

Working with boot sectors of hard drives;
Interaction with Daemon Tools;
Ability to create a boot floppy disk;

Boot sectors of hard drives and floppy disks are the lot of not only computer professionals, but also ordinary users who use UltraISO. You can configure the HDD the way it suits you. This feature appeared only in the latest version of the utility. You can also work with boot sectors of optical disks and floppy disks.

Floppy disk support is not a relic of the past. For example, this support will allow you to write a bootable floppy disk with legacy operating systems, for example, you can create a bootable floppy disk for DOS OS. Of course, there is support for bootable disks and even bootable flash drives. You can create a bootable USB flash drive in standard mode or with dual mode – USB-HDD and USB-ZIP. You will learn more about creating such flash drives from the video:

For those who want to use software to create virtual disks or floppy drives, we recommend using this utility in conjunction with or. And although these utilities have different developers, the software supports both utilities for working with virtual disks. You can use a tandem of these utilities to bypass disk protection.

UltraISO in Russian runs not only on Windows 32 bit, but also on the x64 version; in our archive you will find an installer for both versions of the OS. To run the utility, just install it. You will not need activation and an activation code until you decide to burn a large disc or flash drive. Reviews show that the free version is sufficient to handle 99% of the tasks of the average user.