Creating a bootable USB flash drive in Rufus. Create an exact copy of a flash drive using the USB Image Tool. Is it possible to restore the functionality of a flash drive?

Sometimes there is a need to create or save backup copy flash media. It's about oh no simple copying data from one medium to another, and about full transmission data with saving checksums and the performance of programs, if any.

For example, you have a program installed on a flash drive to save passwords, which you use very often, remove it and run it on different devices. Over time, the flash drive may become unusable due to various reasons, due to improper handling, poor quality due to the fault of the manufacturer and so on. However, if we have a copy, then there is no need to worry too much about this. All we need to restore it is a copy created using the USB Image Tool program and another working flash drive with the required amount of memory.

Picture 1

Next, select the mode “ Device Mode". Then in the right window of the program we see the flash drives that are currently connected to the computer, select the necessary flash drive by clicking on it. In the right window we will immediately see information about the media. To create a backup copy, click “Backup” (Figure 2).

Figure 2

In a pre-created folder for storing backup copies of flash media, or in any other folder that is convenient for you, come up with a name for the backup copy and click on save (Figure 3).

Figure 3

Now we don’t touch anything, the creation of a backup copy has begun. In the lower left corner you will see a percentage bar indicator that shows in real time what percentage of the backup has been created. Next, the program will simply give sound notification that a copy has been created (Figure 4).

Figure 4

The backup copy of the flash drive is ready and saved. If you need to restore it on another media, then simply connect the latter to your computer and wait until it appears in the left window of the program.

Figure 5

Select the previously created backup that we want to restore and click “Open” (Figure 6).

Figure 6

After this, the program will ask us again whether we really want to restore the selected “backup” to the specified flash drive. To which we will agree by clicking on the “Yes” button (Figure 7).

Figure 7

Attention!!!

If the flash media on which you want to write an image of a flash device is not formatted or has recordings, then the program will format it, having previously requested your consent for these actions. Therefore, save the data if it is on the media that is to be formatted. If you need them!

Greetings, dear readers. In this article we will talk about how to recover data from a flash drive yourself and absolutely free!

As a rule, it is not uncommon for users to lose very important information that was either on a flash drive or hard drive! Mostly this can happen due to improper use or virus infection.

Important: Always remove your USB device by safe removal - this measure is necessary for correct operation your carrier!

In addition, there are often cases when a flash drive works for a long time and then a window suddenly pops up, which requires you to format it before you start using it; it is highly not recommended to do this, since there is a risk that the files will not be restored.

If you suddenly formatted your storage device, it is advisable not to save files on it, this is due to the fact that you risk losing important information, since when we delete a file, we do not delete the file itself, but only delete a record about it from file system, so if you copy new file, then it will overwrite the old one!

I think that’s enough for you to write about theory, let’s move directly to practice, namely to a review of a program that recovers data from a flash drive. The program is called GetDataBack for FAT you can download it by following this link

Installing the GetDataBack for FAT program

After you have downloaded installation file run it on your computer and in the installation wizard click “ Further»

In the next window you will be required to specify the path where the program will be installed, I recommend leaving it as default and clicking “ Further»

Select a location to save the shortcuts on your computer after installation and click “ Install»

After everything necessary components will be installed click " Further»

Well, to complete the installation, click “ Ready»

Recovering Deleted Files

After the first launch, the program will require you to initial setup, in the welcome window we leave everything unchanged and click “ Further»

After scanning the disks, a working interface will appear in front of you, in which you will need to specify the item to be restored; I will use as an example simple USB The flash drive on which the pictures will initially be located, and accordingly, to make sure the result, I’ll first delete the photos that are stored on it!

Now my flash drive is clean and there are no photos on it:

We return to recently installed program and carry out necessary settings for successful recovery as follows:

IN top menu select the item “ Settings" and check the boxes as shown in the figure and click " OK»

In the left menu, select the recovery sector; in my example, it is better to select sector 2 since it uses large quantity clusters, I advise you to focus on this setting.

After the sector is selected, click “ Further»

Not every user has a DVD drive; moreover, Lately Rare PCs are equipped with them. But you still need to install the system, and for this it is most convenient to use a bootable USB flash drive. Let's figure out how to install Windows 7 from a flash drive - after all, you won't buy a DVD for this purpose.

Before proceeding with installation, please read carefully this article: Various difficulties may arise in the process, which can be solved using one of the methods described below.

The installation process itself can be divided into the following stages:

downloading the installation image;
computer preparation;
Creation bootable flash drive;
setting up PC BIOS;
Windows 7 installation.

Let's look at each stage in more detail.

Before you burn the image to a flash drive and install the system from it, you need to download it. Today there is great amount ready-made assemblies operating system, which are equipped with many applications and functions.

Very often in such distributions the default theme is changed or sound scheme. But not all users like such innovations. You only need to download original images created by Microsoft. A huge headquarters of the world's leading programmers does their job better than some artisanal modifier.

A little lower you will find a button where you can download a torrent file to download the Russian version of Windows 7 with 32 or 64-bit architecture. The file was taken from the official Microsoft website and is completely original. Proceed with the download, and when the download is complete, move on to the next step.

After the file is downloaded, open it using a torrent client. If you don't know how to work with such programs, follow our step by step instructions.

First, download the torrent client itself. This will be the qBittoorent application.
Install the program and use it to open the previously downloaded torrent file.

Choose Windows version 7 (in our case it’s professional 64 bit) and click “OK”.

After this, the operating system will begin loading at the maximum available speed.

Getting ready to install Windows 7

First of all, you need to copy to safe place all the information that is important to us is located on drive C. Each user stores data in their own way, so each user has their own choice of folders for backup. Most often these are folders: “Downloads”, “Desktop”, etc.

You can save files to another logical drive (the one on which the system will not be installed) or to external storage. You can also use cloud storage, if there is not too much data. For example, the Mail.ru cloud provides 100 GB of free space.

With an eye to the future, remember: while using your PC, you need to store your data on a disk other than the one on which the system is installed. Divide physical disk into partitions and save your files on any of them except the system one. To install Windows 7, a comfortable volume of 70–100 GB will be (depending on the type and amount of software used).

Another important point that should be taken into account before the installation begins is the drivers for our network card. If, after installing Windows 7, it turns out that there is no driver for the network card, additional difficulties will arise that will have to be solved using a second computer by transferring files from it via a flash drive.

If you just bought a computer, no valuable information it is not and cannot be, feel free to move on to the next section, without copying the data.

Create a bootable USB flash drive

In order to create bootable media and begin the operating system installation procedure, we will need:

USB flash drive with a capacity of 8 GB or more. Instead of a USB flash drive, you can use simple map memory with card reader;
"Seven" installation distribution with .iso extension;
a utility with which we will write an image to a flash drive;

Attention! Before you start creating installation media, remember that all data on it will be irretrievably destroyed.

Making installation media using Ultra ISO

Wide famous program for working with disk images can create boot drives. Let's look at the algorithm for recording Windows 7 to a USB device.

Download and install the Ultra ISO program from the link.
Run the resulting file and check the box to “I accept license agreement" Proceed to the next step by clicking “Next”.

Using the “Browse” button, select the installation path, then click “Next”.

We don’t change anything here and just move on.

The program is being installed, we are waiting for it to finish.

The Ultra ISO installation is complete, you can run it and go straight to creating a flash drive for installing Windows 7.

The Ultra ISO program can be launched in trial mode, so its functionality will not suffer at all. Click on the button marked in the picture.

Go to the “File” menu and click on the “Open” item.

Select the Windows 7 image we downloaded, and then “Open”.

Go to the “Startup” section and click on the item that we marked in the screenshot.

We make sure that the media we need is displayed in the devices at the top of the window and click on the “Format” button.

Attention! This will destroy all your data beyond recovery. If the USB storage device has necessary files, save them before doing this.

In the next window, simply click “Start”.

Ultra ISO will once again warn us that all information from the flash drive will be erased. Click "OK".

After formatting is completed, click on “Burn”.

The process of recording “Seven” onto a flash drive has begun. It will take about 5-10 minutes depending on the speed of the drive and the selected OS version.

The recording is complete, our media can be used.

Let's look at a few more options for creating bootable media with Windows 7.

Rufus

This is another program that can create a bootable USB flash drive with “Seven”. First, let's download it.

The application, unlike Ultra ISO, does not require installation, so you can run the downloaded file and immediately proceed to the process of burning the OS to a USB device. To do this we do the following:

Select the recording device. This will be our flash drive, in in this case– 16 GB. Then click on the disk icon.

Select the distribution we downloaded in the PC folder.

We begin the recording process with the “Start” button.

Rufus will notify us that all files will be deleted from the flash drive. If you have already created a backup copy or there was no important information on the media, click “OK”.

As a result, it will begin Windows entry 7 onto a flash drive, upon completion of which you will have a full installation media.

Attention! Before you begin the process of writing the system to a flash drive, be sure to save all the data on it - otherwise they will be irretrievably lost.

As we see, this method turned out to be much simpler than the previous one, but we will not dwell on this and will consider several more options for recording Windows 7 to a USB drive.

Making a bootable USB flash drive using WinSetupFromUSB

Another application focused solely on writing operating system files to an external drive. Let's take a look at the utility and look at the process of working with it.

Select the path where the program will be unpacked (click on the button with the image of three dots) and click “Extract”.

We are waiting for all the necessary files to be unzipped.

We open the directory into which the unpacking was carried out and launch the program depending on the architecture on which your operating system is built. For us it is 64 bit, so we click on the marked file.

We insert our flash drive into the USB port and make sure that it appears in WinSetupFromUSB. Next, check the box indicated by the number “2” in the screenshot. When the bird is placed, click on the icon with the image of three dots, marked with the number “3”.

Select the image of our operating system and click on “Open”.

All that remains is to press the “GO” key and Windows 7 recording will begin.

Windows 7 is being written to an external drive. Once the process is completed, the flash drive can be used to install the system.

We will not stop at WinSetupFromUSB and will tell you how to burn the OS to media via Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool from Microsoft.

Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool

This official application from Microsoft, so it should, in theory, do the best job of writing Windows 7 to a flash drive. Let's get started with the program.

First, download the utility from the link from the official website. Then we launch it and click on the “Next” button.

We are waiting for the program to install.

We complete the installation process by clicking on the “Finish” button.

Let's move on to working with the program. Initially, we need to specify the file that we will record. To do this, click the “Browse” button.

After the path to the image file is registered, you can proceed to next step– click “Next”.

Here we should select the type of media on which we will install the “Seven”. Since this is a flash drive, we click on “USB device”.

We make sure that our drive is displayed in the field marked with the number “1” and click on the “Begin copying” button.

After this, we will be warned that all information from the media will be erased and after confirmation the process will start Windows migration 7 to USB stick.

Upon completion, we will receive a bootable USB flash drive, with which you can easily install the OS on your computer.

For the program to work you need Microsoft library.NET Framework 2.0. If you do not have it, then download the program from the official Microsoft website.

We use the UNetBootin program

The UNetBootin utility is completely free. you can download it without registering or sending SMS. The program does not need to be installed - it works immediately after downloading. An application was created not only for recording on Windows flash drive, but also other operating systems such as Linux or Mac OS.

Let's move on to the instructions for using the application.

First of all, check the “Disk Image” box and click on the button with the ellipsis. In the window that opens, we need a Windows distribution.

In the drop-down list indicated by the number “1”, select a USB device, indicate our flash drive and click “OK”.

The application will warn us that all data that is already on the flash drive will be irretrievably lost. If we don’t need them, click “Yes to All”.

The distribution package is being written to a USB device. Once it is completed, the flash drive can be used to install the OS.

Command line

You can create bootable media with “Seven” without using any programs using the system itself. For this we will use the command line.

The entire process is described in the form of detailed step-by-step instructions, each stage of which is accompanied by a screenshot for clarity.

Initially, launch the command line. This must be done exclusively as an administrator. We will create bootable media at Windows example 10, but you can get the same result on Windows 7 - 8. Press the Win + R button combination and in the window that appears, press the “Browse” key.

We follow the path indicated in the screenshot with the number “1” and find cmd application. Click on it right key our manipulator and select “Run as administrator”.

We write to command line command diskpart and press Enter.

To start recording to a disk, you must initially select it, and take this choice responsibly, because all data from it will be deleted. You can view a list of disks using the operators: “list disk”, “list volume” or “list partition”. The first two show a list of disks, the third displays the number of partitions and their names. Insert the flash drive into the USB port and enter the “list disk” command in DISKPART. Next press Enter. You will see a list of all drives installed on this moment in PC.

Select the disk that we need. To do this, enter select disk disk_number. The disk number can be viewed in the previous step; for us it is “1” since its size is 14 GB, which corresponds to our flash drive.

We remove the disk with the clean command. Make sure you do it again right choice– all data on the media will be completely deleted.

Now we need to create the main partition for the flash drive, from which we will boot in the future. Enter the command create partition primary and press Enter.

We set the drive letter using the assign letter=drive_letter operator. Let's do that. We know that our PC has drives C, D and E - therefore, we specify F. The final command will look like this: assign letter=F.

You can also specify the partition size. If you skip this step, it will take everything free place. Set size logical drive You can use the command create partition primary size=disk_size. The size must be specified in megabytes.

Select our disk using the select partition 1 command (indicate your disk number) and press Enter.

Now we need to make our section active. To do this, use the active operator.

All that remains is to format the flash drive - write a command like this: format fs=fat32 quick.

Exit DISKPART using the exit command. Now you need to prepare the files for recording. We unpack our Windows 7 image using any archiver (we will use the usual WinRAR) and extract all the files to our flash drive.

The installation media is ready and you can use it.

We use the WinToFlash program

Let us describe the process of working with another program for recording Windows 7 and other operating systems on a USB drive. To get started, download the utility from the link from the official website.

Install the program and run it. In the window that opens, select the item marked with a red frame.

At the very top, select “Windows”, then indicate Windows 7 and press the button indicated in the screenshot with the number “3”.

Specify the path to Windows image 7, which we downloaded. To do this, click the “Select” button.

Click on “Add”.

We make sure that the flash drive we need is indicated as the target, and click “Run”.

After this, the process of creating bootable media with Windows 7 will begin, after which the device will be ready for use.

Burn a bootable USB flash drive using WinToBootic

This application is one of the most simple tools for recording operating systems on external media. To work with the utility, you do not need to install it, nor do you need administrator rights. It will work like with Windows files, and with her images. The interface here is simple, and the speed of the program is pleasing.

To burn Windows 7 to a USB flash drive via WinToBootic, do the following:

First, download the program from the link and launch it. Check the box next to “Quick Format” and click “Do It!”

We answer the request for formatting in the affirmative.

We are again notified that all data on the flash drive will be deleted. Don’t forget to save important information from the media, if it is there, and click “OK.”

The preparation of the flash drive is completed, click “Thanks!”

Next, select the files that will be written to our flash drive. To do this, click the icon indicated in the screenshot and select the image we need.

Click the button to start the process again.

Windows 7 will begin recording to the USB flash drive. When it is finished, the device can be used to install the system.

How to boot from a flash drive

To successfully install Windows 7 from a flash drive, it is not enough for us to simply write operating system to the media, you also need to force the PC to boot from something other than hard drive, but from a USB drive. This can be done in two ways: either by modifying the BIOS, or through a special boot menu.

Regarding Boot Menu we can say that it starts different keys, depending on the model of computer or laptop. You can see which button is responsible for this on your device in the instructions for it. We provide a list of combinations for the main brands of computers and laptops:

Launching Boot Menu on PC:

Launching Boot Menu on a laptop:

Below is a list of keys that launch the BIOS on different computers and laptops:

For clarity, we will show the process of installing a flash drive as the first boot device using our PC as an example motherboard Asus:

We turn off or restart the computer and after it starts, press the button to go to the BIOS (for us it’s Del).

This is what the BIOS itself looks like.

Go to the Boot tab.

We install our USB drive as the first device.

The process is similar on different computers, although the names of the tabs and items may differ. To understand how to enter the BIOS of your PC, read the instructions for it.

Installing Windows 7 from a USB flash drive

Once the BIOS has been configured, you can go directly to Windows installation 7 from a flash drive. Let's get started.

Immediately after the system starts, you will see the following window (data for installing Windows 7 is being preloaded).

Set regional parameters. Select your system language, region of residence, and keyboard layout. If desired, all this data can be specified after Windows startup When the setup is complete, click “Next”.

At the next stage, simply click “Install”.

All you have to do is accept the license agreement and the installation will begin. Check the box as shown in the screenshot and click “Next”.

Select a mode complete installation- This is the so-called clean option, when all old data on the system partition is deleted.

We are in the section settings menu. Click on the entry outlined in red.

If your disk is not partitioned, you can do this here (for Windows 7, it would be best to use about 100 GB of free space, the rest will become drive D). Don't forget to format system partition before installing Windows on it. When the operation is completed, click on the “Next” button.

Finally started Windows installation. We are waiting for the process to be completed.

Next, the system will reboot and we will be greeted with the Windows startup screen

Initial optimization is underway. The system prepares all the necessary files.

System services begin to start.

After which we proceed to complete the Windows installation

We are again informed that we need to restart the computer.

The system will check how productive our video card is.

Now we need to provide our details. We write an arbitrary name and computer name. Then click “Next”.

If necessary, you can set a password that the system will request upon startup. We're missing out this step, since the computer will be at home.

If you have Windows key 7, you can enter it here, however, you can do this even after the system starts. We skip this step.

We choose the system protection option depending on our personal preferences. We will be installing another antivirus, so the regular one will not be needed.

Enter the time and time zone. Then click “Next”.

We decide on the type of network. It's pretty important step, since if we indicate home network, but we are connected to the public, our security will suffer greatly.

Settings are being applied and automatic setting networks.

Last minute of optimization before our Windows 7 launches.

As a result, we installed Windows 7 from a flash drive, the creation of which was described above.

Instead of an afterword

We've looked at a ton different programs and tools from Windows itself to answer the question: how to install Windows 7 from a flash drive. However, these are not all options. There are a lot of such programs on the Internet. They differ in their convenience and functionality. Some utilities are better suited for ordinary users, the second - for professionals.

Which method to choose and how to write Windows 7 to a flash drive should be determined based on purely personal preferences. Use the option that you like, and if you have any questions, ask us in the comments. We are committed to the shortest possible time give a comprehensive answer.

Many users neglect safe removal flash drives, as a result of which the drives stop working correctly: they are not recognized by the system, require formatting, do not read/write data, show the wrong size (for example, 14 Gb instead of 16 Gb). If you encounter similar problem, then the question of how to restore a flash drive will probably become relevant for you.

Is it possible to restore the functionality of a flash drive?

Some may think that restoring a flash drive is a pointless exercise. Drives from Transcend, Kingston, A-Data and other manufacturers have flooded the market, making flash memory cheap. Memory cards and flash drives with capacities from 8 Gb to 32 Gb are not so expensive that you can’t easily throw them away and buy new media. However, old flash drives and Micro SD memory cards are usually not thrown away at all: they lie on the table and wait to be restored.

Recovery is possible if the flash drive or memory card has not completely “died” (usually death occurs when the controller burns out).

But if the drive is simply not detected or shows the wrong volume, then the reason for this behavior is most often a controller firmware failure. We will discuss in detail below how to restore a flash drive after such a failure.

Saving information and searching for the necessary software

If it is stored on a flash drive or SD card important information, then before flashing the firmware and restoring the controller (and with it the operability of the drive), it is necessary to extract the data. This can be done using the Photorec utility, which can work with media for which the file system is not detected.

After extraction necessary information From an SD card or flash drive, you can start searching for a utility for flashing the controller firmware. But to flash a controller, you first need to determine its model. To do this, we use the CheckUDisk utility (distributed free of charge) and the website flashboot.ru:

After completing the verification and receiving necessary information(VID Drive PID) you need to download a utility to restore the functionality of a flash drive or SD drive. Go to flashboot.ru and open the “iFlash” tab. Here you need to enter VID values PID and find the desired manufacturer of the memory card or flash drive (HP, Generic Flash Disk, Protex, Oltramax, Smartbuy, etc.).

If your model of flash drive or SD memory card is in the database online service If not, then it’s okay: the main thing is that the VID PID and the manufacturer match. If the required data matches, then you need to get information about exact model controller for flashing and restoring it, as well as the name of a suitable utility.

The table has columns “Controller” and “Utility”. You also need to pay attention to the volume - the controllers of flash drives and SD cards for 16 Gb and 32 Gb may differ. You need to copy the full name of the utility and download it through the “Files” section on the flashboot.ru website or from another source. Often, along with the recovery program, instructions for its use are downloaded, which it is advisable to read carefully.

Controller firmware

Let's say you have a Protec flash drive with a capacity of 16 Gb. You find it by VID PID through the iFlash online service and download the controller firmware utility for free. What to do next? Carry out measures to restore the flash drive (SD memory card).

Universal instructions for restoring all flash drives:

If the firmware will pass successfully, then you should see the positive status of the flash drive - “OK” or “Good”. If problems arise during the operation, an error code will appear: its explanation can be found in the help of the utility found by VID PID, or on other online services.

Restoring any flash drives (SD cards) is carried out approximately according to the same scheme, however, the instructions may differ slightly for different utilities: you need to find the program for flashing the controller using the VID PID and run USB recovery drive.

To restore a flash drive, you must additionally format it. You can do it standard means Windows or using special programs. It is recommended to run full rather than quick formatting. This will take a little more time (especially if the storage capacity exceeds 16 Gb), but you will be sure that the flash drive is now completely clean and functional.