How To Install Windows From a Flash Disk

Rufus Dialogue Box

The first time I saw someone installing an Operating System on a computer was in the year 2000. As a young boy, Mr. Wabwire who was in charge of the computer lab at NTC Kaliro had requested me to tidy up the lab as he did some installations. Then, even touching the keyboard needed permission. I was privileged to even enter the lab because I had this knack for tech and Mr. Wabwire was quick to notice.

Related: What it takes to set up a computer lab

As I spent the hours in the lab, I would watch Mr. Wabwire patiently go through the process carefully choosing floppy after floppy till the process was completed.

In the years after that, I was convinced that installations where not for me and so simply using the computer was enough for me. However, in 2007 I was privileged to be shown how to install Windows XP, but this time using a CD. The process was too simple that on that day, I had to do it several times till 3 am in the night just to confirm that I had learnt.

Unfortunately, as CDs became cheaper, their quality went down. The quality of optical drives also declined making the process of installing an operating system using an optical drive a process of challenges. Either the CD became worn out and required you to burn another copy or the optical drive lens was too damaged to read the contents of the CD/DVD.

Also, the market started to flood with laptops that didn’t have optical drives. There needed to be a way of installing an OS on such laptops. This inevitably guided us away from the traditional way of doing things. Just like floppy diskettes, installing an OS using a DVD is slowly becoming a thing of the past.

The writer takes a student through the process of repairing a PC at E-zone School of Computing.

I believe these difficulties were not specific to Uganda alone that is why elsewhere, solutions for this were being sought. That is how the option of using a flash disk came up. You can now comfortably install an OS using a flash disk with the help of several tools, rufus being my favourite.

In today’s article, I take you through the process of making a bootable flash disk using rufus.

What size of flash disk do you need?

If you intend to install the now discontinued Windows XP, a 4GB flash disk will suffice but later versions of Windows will need a flash disk of 8GB or more. It is also important to have a good quality flash disk.

Step 1:           Download rufus from here and save it preferably on the desktop.

Step 2:           Get your OS image and flash disk ready. Plug in your flash disk and make sure you identify the drive letter.

Step 3:           Double click rufus and click Select. Choose the OS image and then click Open.

Step 4:           Click Start.

A warning that All data will be deleted will appear. Simply click OK.

Step 5:           Click close

Your can now plugin your flash disk and boot from it to re-install your OS from it.

This and more tips will be shared at the forthcoming Capacity Development Workshop taking place at Kololo SS on 6th and 7th May 2019. All teachers of ICT and Computer Studies in Uganda will converge for 2 days where sessions from pedagogy, setting standard papers, programming and web design will be discussed by distinguished facilitators. If you are interested in this workshop, kindly click here to signup for the event and take your profession to another level.

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Stephen Dumba
E-zone School of Computing
+256 772 111 223 / +256 752 111 223