How To Create Windows 10 ISO From ESD

This is not the first time we are talking about ESD files here on IntoWindows. In our previous posts, we talked about creating bootable USB of Windows 10 from ESD file, creating ISO from install.ESD, and then we also showed how to convert install.esd file to install.wim file with the help of third-party tools.

ESD, the abbreviation of Electronic Software Distribution, file type is not supported by tools that help you create bootable USB of Windows 10 to install Windows 10 operating system from USB flash drive. We need to first convert ESD file to ISO image file to be able to create bootable media of Windows 10.

In this guide, we are going to show how to convert a file from ESD to ISO with the help of a free tool called ESD Decrypter. The tool ESD Decrypter supports all recent versions of Windows operating systems from Windows 7 to Windows 10.

NOTE: You don’t need to backup the original install.esd file as the software itself automatically creates a backup copy before converting ESD to ISO file.

Make bootable Windows 10 ISO from ESD

So here is how to create Windows 10 ISO from ESD file

Step 1: The first step is to download ESD Decrypter software on your Windows 7, 8, 8.1 or Windows 10 computer.

After downloading the zip file of ESD Decrypter, extract the contents of the file using 7-Zip or WinRAR to a new folder on your desktop or any other location. But make sure that you create the new folder on a drive with at least 8 to 10GB of free disk space as we need to copy the ESD file to the same folder and the location will be used by the software to back up the original ESD file before beginning to convert the Windows 10 ESD file to ISO.

Step 2: Now, it’s time to copy ESD file to the same folder where all extracted files of ESD Decrypter are saved. Note that ESD Decrypter files and the ESD file that you want to convert to ISO must be in the same folder.

Step 3: Now that both ESD and ESD Decrypter files are in the same folder, right-click on the file labelled Decrypt.cmd and then click Run as administrator option. Click Yes button when you see the UAC prompt.

Step 4: You’ll see the following screen with four options:

1 – Create full ISO with standard install.wim

2 – Create full ISO with compressed install.esd

3 – Create standard install.wim

4 – Create compressed install.esd

Press the “1” key on your keyboard to start creating Windows 10 ISO from the selected ESD file. If you prefer a small ISO image file, you can go for the second option (Create full ISO with compressed install.esd) by pressing “2” on your keyboard.

The software might take up to an hour to complete its job. Once done, the Windows 10 ISO file can be found in the same folder where you have saved ESD Decrypter files and ESD file.

You can now use a tool like Windows USB/DVD Download Tool or Rufus to create bootable USB of Windows 10.

Do let us know if you’re having any issues while following this guide.