UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive - Create in Windows

How to Create a Bootable UEFI USB Flash Drive for Installing Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1

This tutorial will show you how to create a Windows 7 or Windows 8 or 8.1 installation bootable USB flash drive for UEFIfrom either a Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 installation ISO or DVD.

Requirements:
  • At least a 4GB USB flash drive
  • 64-bit Windows 7 ISO or DVD (If you want to install Windows 7)
  • 64-bit Windows 8 ISO or DVD (If you want to install Windows 8)
  • 64-bit Windows 8.1 ISO or DVD (If you want to install Windows 8.1)
  • 32-bit is not supported.
  • Set the boot mode to use UEFI and not CSM (Compatibility Support Module) in your UEFI firmware settings.
  • Temporarily disable Secure Boot in your UEFI firmware settings. Some motherboards will not boot from a USB unless you do this first. When the Windows installation is finished, you can enable secure boot if you like.
  • If you have fast boot or ultra-fast boot enabled in your UEFI firmware (if supported), then you may need to temporarily disable it until Windows has finished installing to be able to boot from a USB flash drive at boot.

EXAMPLE: UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive
NOTE: This is it listed in the motherboard's boot menu.

UEFI_USB_Boot_Menu.jpg





OPTION ONE

To Create a Bootable UEFI USB Flash Drive using Free Program "Rufus"



1. Download the latest version of Rufus at the link below, and save it's .exe file to your desktop.

Note   Note
This is a standalone exe file that doesn't install anything to your PC
For Rufus FAQs, see: FAQ · pbatard/rufus Wiki · GitHub





Rufus - Create bootable USB drives the easy way



2. Connect your USB flash drive if you have not already.

3. Run the rufus_v###.exe file, and click/tap on Yes if prompted by UAC.
NOTE: ### = latest version number.

4. Set Rufus with the settings below: (see screenshot below step 5)


  • Under Device, select the USB flash drive you want to format and use.
  • Under Format Options, check Create a bootable disk using, click/tap on the browse icon icon.jpg to navigate to and select your 64-bit Windows 7 or Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 ISO file, and then make sure that Standard Windows installation is selected (dotted).
  • Under Partition scheme and target system type, select GPT partition scheme for UEFI computer.
  • Under File system, select FAT32.
  • Under Cluster size, select the (Default) (ex: 16 kilobytes or 4096 bytes) it has listed.
  • Under Format Options, check Quick format.
  • Under Format Options, check Create extended label and icon files.
  • Under New volume label, you can enter any name you like for the USB flash drive, or leave the default name.

5. When ready, click/tap on Start. (see screenshot below)


Rufus_UEFI.png


6. Click/tap on OK to confirm. (see screenshot below)

Rufus-confirm.jpg


7. Rufus will now start creating the bootable UEFI USB flash drive. (see screenshot below)

Rufus_working.jpg


8. When Rufus is "DONE", you can close Rufus. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: It could take a little while to finish.

Rufus_Done.jpg


9. You are now ready to do a clean install of Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 using UEFI with your bootable UEFI USB flash drive.






OPTION TWO

To Manually Create a Bootable UEFI USB Flash Drive



1. Connect the USB flash drive.

2. Open an elevated command prompt in Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1.

3. In the elevated command prompt, type the commands below one at a time and press Enter after each one. (see screenshot below step 5)

  • diskpart
  • list disk

4. Make note of the Disk # (ex: Disk 4) for the USB flash drive. (see screenshot below step 5)

It is critical that you use the correct disk #. If you do not, then you could delete the wrong drive below and lose everything on it


5. In the elevated command prompt, type the commands below one at a time and press Enter after each one. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: Substitute # in the first command with the actual disk # from step 4 above. For example: select disk 4


  • select disk #
  • detail disk (this is to verify that you selected the correct disk before using "clean" below)
  • clean
  • create partition primary
  • format fs=fat32 quick
  • active
  • assign
  • list volume
  • exit

Create_UEFI_USB-1.jpg


6. Make note of the volume letter (ex: K) for the USB flash drive in the command prompt. (see screenshot above)

7. Do step 8, step 9, or step 10 below depending on if you are using a Windows 7/8/8.1 ISO or DVD.

warning   Warning
It has been reported that using the downloaded Windows 8 upgrade ISO does not always give you an UEFI bootable USB option in the boot menu.

If this happens to you, then use the ESD-TO-ISO.exe program created by our member Simon (SIW2) below to create an ISO that will work with UEFI. Afterwards, start this tutorial over using this new ISO instead.

See OPTION TWO here: Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 ISO - Download or Create

download






8. If Using a Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 ISO File in Windows 8
NOTE: For a Windows 7 ISO or Windows 8/8.1 ISO file.


A) Open File Explorer, navigate to the .iso file, right click or press and hold on the .iso file, then click/tap on Mount. (see screenshot below)



W8_ISO.jpg


B) The mounted .iso file will now automatically open. Select all files in it, right click or press and hold on the selected files, click/tap on Send to and the Removable Disk for your USB flash drive letter (ex: K) from step 6 above. (see screenshot below)



Copy.jpg


C) This could take a bit to copy the ISO contents to the USB.

D) When finished, go to step 11 below.

9. If Using a Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 ISO File in Windows 7
NOTE: For a Windows 7 ISO or Windows 8/8.1 ISO file.


A) If you have not already, you will need to download and install the latest alpha version of the free program 7-Zip.
NOTE: You can use any program that performs the same function to extract or mount an ISO, but I just find 7-Zip easier to use.

B) Open Windows Explorer, navigate to the .iso file, right click on the .iso file, then click on 7-Zip and Extract files. (see screenshot below)




W7_ISO-1.jpg


C) In the Extract dialog, click on the browse button, select the Removable Disk for your USB flash drive letter (ex: K) from step 6 above, and click on OK, and OK. (see screenshots below)



W7_ISO-2.jpg


D) This could take a bit to copy the ISO contents to the USB.

E) When finished, go to step 11 below.

10. If Using a Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 Installation DVD


A) Insert the Windows 7 or Windows 8 installation DVD into the CD/DVD drive.

B) In the Computer window, open the DVD. (see screenshot below)



DVD.jpg


C) Select all files in it, right click or press and hold on the selected files, click/tap on Send to and the Removable Disk for your USB flash drive letter (ex: K) from step 6 above. (see screenshot below)



Copy.jpg


D) This could take a bit to copy the DVD contents to the USB.

E) When finished, go to step 11 below.


11. If Using 64-bit Windows 7

Note   Note
Thanks to theog for this step

You do not need to do this step unless you are creating a 64-bit Windows 7 UEFI USB flash drive.

If you are not, then go to step 12 below instead.




A) On the USB flash drive, "copy" the efi\microsoft\boot folder up one level into the efi folder as efi\boot. (see screenshot below)



11A.jpg


B) If you have not already, download and install the latest alpha version of the free program 7-Zip, then run 7-Zip.

C) In 7-Zip, navigate to the sources\install.wim\1\Windows\Boot\EFI\bootmgfw.efi on the USB flash drive, select the bootmgfw.efi file, copy it to your desktop, click/tap on OK, and close 7-Zip. (see screenshot below)



7-Zip.jpg



D) Rename the bootmgfw.efi file on your desktop to bootx64.efi.


E) Copy/Move the renamed bootx64.efi file into the efi/boot folder (step 11A) on the USB flash drive.



efi-boot.PNG


F) Go to step 12 below.

12. You are now ready to do a clean install of Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 using UEFI with your bootable UEFI USB flash drive.






That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

 

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Last edited by a moderator:
Click to expand...
in the part where you have to copy the files from the iso to the flash drive. it says that the install.wim is too big for the flash drive. i cant understand what i did wrong and i used a 16 gb flash drive formatted using your instructions. Please help
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows7
How large is the .iso file you are using, and where did you get it from?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
also i have another question...

as of now i installed Windows 7 x64 on my laptop using the legacy type bios via the windows dvd. If i burn a windows 8 x64 and install it using the legacy type bios as well, can i change the bios to uefi type after finishing the windows 8 install?

Thanks for your time sorry i am a newb as i only encountered this uefi bios now

Brink said:
How large is the .iso file you are using, and where did you get it from?
Click to expand...

a friend gave it to me it came from a windows 8 pro legit installation dvd. I think it is somewhat of 5gb +
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows7

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
yes i did. i thought i could just borrow my friend's copy since i have a slow connection. i guess i have no choice.

Thanks for your time :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows7
Brink said:
Sorry, but no. If you want to use UEFI, then both Windows 7 and 8 would have to be clean installed with UEFI instead.

Did you purchase a Windows 8 product key?

If so, then I would recommend downloading a new copy of the ISO file since a 64-bit Windows 8 Pro upgrade ISO should only be 2.9 GB if it came from Microsoft online.

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/18309-windows-8-upgrade-iso-download-create.html
Click to expand...


yes i did. i thought i could just borrow my friend's copy since i have a slow internet connection. i guess i have no choice.

Thanks for your time :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows7
You're welcome.

You can download a 64-bit ISO from any 64-bit computer though. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
I can't get the USB to boot :( When I boot the USB drive it just says that windows failed to start. It mentions the file \EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD and the status 0xc000000d and info: An error occurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data. The USB will boot when UEFI is disabled and changed to Legacy BIOS but it will not let me install. Also in step 11 it mentions the file "sources\install.wim\1\Windows\Boot\EFI\bootmgfw.egi". However I cannot find any file as such - just bootmgfw.efi not .eg​i Is this a typo or not??
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
jamerst said:
I can't get the USB to boot :( When I boot the USB drive it just says that windows failed to start. It mentions the file \EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD and the status 0xc000000d and info: An error occurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data. The USB will boot when UEFI is disabled and changed to Legacy BIOS but it will not let me install. Also in step 11 it mentions the file "sources\install.wim\1\Windows\Boot\EFI\bootmgfw.egi". However I cannot find any file as such - just bootmgfw.efi not .eg​i Is this a typo or not??
Click to expand...

I had similar problem. I solved it by using the Upgrade Assistant or whatever it's called. It created automatically a windows 8 image on my usb stick and it happened to be UEFI as well. My uefi bios recognized it without a problem and i didn't do anything, i just pointed which usb flash drive to use :)
It's probably the windows image that you're using. Try a legit untouched copy, those on torrent sites aren't untouched or use the Upgrade Assistant like i did.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self Made
    CPU
    i5 3570K
    Motherboard
    Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe
    Memory
    Corsair Vengeance LP 8gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gygabite GTX 670 Windforce
    Sound Card
    External Creative Sound Blaster Xi-Fi Pro 5.1
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus VW246H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 830 256gb
    OCZ Vertex 2 60 GB
    Samsung F3 Spinpoint 1tb
    PSU
    Corsair HX650W
    Case
    Bitfenix Prodigy
    Cooling
    Cooler Master Hyper212 Evo
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
I'm using an untouched version as far as I know (it is the legal ISO from digitalriver) and I'm trying to install windows 7 not 8.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
jamerst said:
I can't get the USB to boot :( When I boot the USB drive it just says that windows failed to start. It mentions the file \EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD and the status 0xc000000d and info: An error occurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data. The USB will boot when UEFI is disabled and changed to Legacy BIOS but it will not let me install. Also in step 11 it mentions the file "sources\install.wim\1\Windows\Boot\EFI\bootmgfw.egi". However I cannot find any file as such - just bootmgfw.efi not .eg​i Is this a typo or not??
Click to expand...

Hello jamerst, and welcome to Eight Forums.

Yes, it's bootmgfw.efi and not egi. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Double check to make sure that you do not have "secure boot" and "fast boot" enabled in your UEFI settings.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
I'm just going to bypass the UEFI installation completely, found a post on how to do it. I'm not that bothered about having UEFI and it's just being too much trouble so thanks anyway.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
jamerst said:
I'm just going to bypass the UEFI installation completely, found a post on how to do it. I'm not that bothered about having UEFI and it's just being too much trouble so thanks anyway.
Click to expand...

Are you using a USB 3.0 port?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
No as far as I know as the computer came with very little documentation, but anyway I'm just going to bypass it.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Hi everyone,

(And sorry for bad english)

I've got exactly the same trouble : error 0xc000000d (BCD) when i try to install Windows 7 Pro x64 with USB Flash in UEFI mode on ASUS UX31A (with Windows 8 Pro)

I have carefully follow the tutorial and all i have found on the net : disable secure boot, CMS, enable USB Legacy ...

I have only USB3 Ports (my Flash drive is USB2) but i have turn on USB legacy in "Bios".

I have tried to change the Letter in BCD with Visual BCD Editor but nothing, always the same error.

Perhaps the only way is to buy an External DVD for installation ?

Best regards,

Kiss.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
I don't care of UEFI.

I read the tuto but im not sure its possible to turn on "Legacy Bios"

In the bios, it's possible to delete the boot option : Windows Boot Manager , but perhaps its risky ^^ ?

Or Add New boot option : i can choose a path for boot option.

Kiss
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
Legacy BIOS should be in there somewhere. You have to switch the mode from UEFI in the same selection thing (as in not a separate option if you know what I mean) Mine looks like this and you simply press F6 to toggle the mode. JK6w1ph.jpg
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
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