WinToUSB V1.2 Free Version

How to Create a Portable Windows with WinToUSB v1.2 Free Version

WinToUSB is a free software that allows you to create a portable Windows installation on an external hard drive, USB flash drive or Thunderbolt drive. With WinToUSB, you can install and run Windows 11/10/8/7 or Windows Server on any computer without carrying a laptop or installing Windows on the internal hard drive.

In this article, we will show you how to use WinToUSB v1.2 Free Version to create a portable Windows from an ISO file or a CD/DVD drive. You will need a USB drive with at least 16GB of free space and an ISO file or a CD/DVD of Windows 11/10/8/7 or Windows Server.

Step 1: Download and install WinToUSB v1.2 Free Version

You can download WinToUSB v1.2 Free Version from the official website[^1^] or from other sources[^2^] [^3^]. After downloading, run the setup file and follow the instructions to install WinToUSB on your computer.

Step 2: Connect the USB drive and launch WinToUSB

Connect the USB drive that you want to use as the portable Windows drive to your computer. Make sure it is formatted as NTFS and has no important data on it. Then launch WinToUSB from the Start menu or desktop shortcut.

Step 3: Select the source of Windows installation

In the main interface of WinToUSB, you will see two options: \"Create Windows To Go with system disc/ISO\" and \"Clone current Windows OS to USB drive\". The first option allows you to create a portable Windows from an ISO file or a CD/DVD drive, while the second option allows you to clone your current Windows installation to the USB drive.

In this example, we will choose the first option. Click on the button next to \"Image File\" and browse to the location of the ISO file that contains the Windows installation files. Alternatively, you can insert a CD/DVD that contains the Windows installation files and select \"CD/DVD Drive\" from the drop-down menu.

Step 4: Select the destination USB drive

After selecting the source of Windows installation, WinToUSB will scan for available USB drives. Select the USB drive that you want to use as the portable Windows drive from the list and click \"Next\".

Step 5: Select the partition scheme and system type

On the next screen, you will see two options: \"MBR for BIOS\" and \"GPT for UEFI\". These are different partition schemes and system types that determine how your computer boots from the USB drive. You need to select the one that matches your computer's BIOS or UEFI mode.

If you are not sure about your computer's BIOS or UEFI mode, you can check it by pressing a certain key (usually F2, F10, F12 or Esc) during startup to enter the BIOS or UEFI settings. Look for an option that says \"Boot Mode\", \"Boot Option\" or something similar and see if it is set to \"Legacy\", \"BIOS\" or \"CSM\" (which means MBR for BIOS) or \"UEFI\" (which means GPT for UEFI).

In this example, we will choose \"MBR for BIOS\" as our computer's BIOS mode. Click \"Next\" to continue.

Step 6: Select the boot and system partitions

On the next screen, you will see two drop-down menus: \"Boot Partition\" and \"System Partition\". These are the partitions that will be created on the USB drive to store the boot files and system files of Windows respectively.

You can leave them as default or change them according to your preference. The recommended size for the boot partition is 350MB and for the system partition is at least 16GB. Click \"Next\" to continue.

Step 7: Start creating portable Windows

On the next screen, you will see a progress bar that shows how much time is left aa16f39245