Update: Rufus 3.8.1 has been released with new features and improvements. Visit the download link mentioned at the end of this article to download the latest version of Rufus for Windows 10.
There are plenty of free tools out there to make a USB drive bootable in the Windows operating system. One can use the native Command Prompt, Microsoft’s official Windows USB/DVD Download Tool, or any other third-party tools.
Although the majority of Windows users either use the native Command Prompt or Media Creation Tool by Microsoft, the fact is that there is nothing better than Rufus software when it comes to installing Windows from USB. Unlike most other similar tools, this little tool not only allows you to create bootable USB for MBR partition schemes but also supports preparing bootable USB drives to install Windows on GPT partition scheme (for UEFI PCs).
Rufus features
The developer updates the software multiple times in a year, and very recently, Rufus 3.8 has been released with numerous improvements and a couple of new features. Now that Microsoft has released the final build of Windows 10 version 1909 (November 2019 Update), the latest version of Rufus 3.8 will surely help millions of users to quickly install the latest version of Windows operating system on their computers.
The user interface of the software has seen mild tweaks, but the overall user interface is very similar to 3.x versions. As with the case of previous versions, the user interface is easy-to-understand and use.
The ability to create Windows To Go drive is undoubtedly the most prominent feature introduced with Rufus. As you likely know by now, the Windows To Go feature, a feature launched officially with Windows 8, enables you to install and run Windows operating system from a USB drive. In other words, you can always carry your Windows operating system with you on a USB drive. However, note that Windows To Go feature available in Rufus is available only while running the software on Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10.
The recent versions of Rufus support downloading Windows 10 ISO from Microsoft, as well. So you don’t need to manually download the Windows 10 ISO to prepare the bootable drive. Rufus will take care of that.
As always, preparing a bootable USB with Rufus is relatively simple. After downloading and running the software, select your USB flash drive, select your partition and target system type, browse to your Windows ISO, and then click the Start button to begin its job. Your bootable USB should be ready in a few minutes. For your information, Rufus is much faster than the official Windows USB/DVD Download Tool or any other software out there for this purpose.
And if you would like to prepare Windows To Go drive (installing Windows to a USB drive) instead of creating bootable USB, after selecting the ISO file of Windows OS, you need to select Windows To Go option instead of the default Standard Windows Installation option.
Note that before attempting to prepare Windows To Go drive, make sure that you have a USB drive with 32 GB+ capacity to avoid any issues during or after the installation.
Last but not least, unlike many other so-called free software, Rufus software does not include any malware and junkware.
Samnang says
I’ve tried creating bootable Windows 10 USB a few times using Rufus. It finishes the creation but the flash cannot be used in real booting. In fact, the USB flash dive just won’t show up in UEFI environment. My solution is to use Winsetupfromusb, which allow me to format the bootable USB as FAT32. The booting works fine for my Dell Inspiron 13 7000 series. I think tye problem with Rufus is that it won’t allow bootable USB to be formatted as FAT32, only NTFS allowed.
Jason says
I cannot create a windows to Go Usb having Microsoft’s official iso 1809.
Rufus, doesn;t give the option to create a windows to go.
I have a Windows 8.1 iso and rufus gives the option to create a windows To go USB
M T A says
Neither find Windows Standard Installation nor Windows Go To Option appeared after selecting Windows 10 ISO.
Kindly help…….!
Thanks.
falconthp says
I use Rufus but funtion windows to go does not work. (I create windows to go windows 10.iso from MSDN)
multim says
@Andrew Fernie
My Windows 10 iso which I’ve created by MCT is not compatible with latest Rufus.
Andrew Fernie says
@JoeStrange
Media Creation Tool – first screen after accepting the licence is “What do you want to do?”
Answer “Create installation media for another PC, choose your region edition and architecture settings, then select ISO file and click ‘Next’. You’ll then be prompted to download your ISO file. Not rocket science, and information easily obtained by Googling, or reading the instructions.
JoeStrange says
Useless as tits on a board for Windows 10 to go. Windows .iso file isn’t available from Micro$not. You can only use their Media Creation Tool and it is a piece of junk.
admin says
Brian, many thanks for the update. Updated the post to reflect the same.
Brian Wee says
Rufus 2.5 is here
Surya TeJa says
Thanks for the info! Great Article~!