Comments on: How To Create A Windows To Go Bootable USB Drive

By: Jim Hillier

Jim Hillier — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 11:23:33 +0000

In reply to Boris.

Hey Boris,

First of all; speed has less to do with the creation software and more to do with the specs of the host PC and read/write speeds of the flash drive.

Secondly; UUByte WintoUSB Pro costs $40. Both methods described in this article are 100% free. I think most people would sacrifice a little time for zero cost, especially when creating a WTG is not something one would tend to do over and over.

By: Boris

Boris — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 10:37:43 +0000

In reply to KenW. That's too long. I am using UUByte WintoUSB Pro, which only takes 10 minutes to finish the task with a Samsung BarPlus USB 3.0 drive.

By: Jim Hillier

Jim Hillier — Sat, 02 May 2020 22:42:56 +0000

In reply to Tom.

Hey Tom,

It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure. WTG is setup with you own personal settings and software and you can take it anywhere with you and use it with any machine. It’s highly portable, will fit in a pocket easily. If you are visiting or staying with friends or family, for example, you can use their PC to run your own personal OS. If the operating system on your main machine at home fails and won’t boot, you can boot from the WTG and you’re right back in business.

Or, just for a bit of fun, to see how it all works and gain the satisfaction of successfully creating a WTG. 🙂

By: Jim Hillier

Jim Hillier — Sat, 02 May 2020 22:11:54 +0000

In reply to KenW.

That’s great Ken. You can connect the WTG to any machine and boot from it. No, it won’t go through the installation process again, you only have to do that once.

I’m hearing you… fed up with watching TV myself.

By: KenW

KenW — Sat, 02 May 2020 20:33:37 +0000

Jim, I created my WTG usb drive with Rufus and it worked flawlessly on a budget Lenovo laptop. Now, the question is will it do that whole install thing again if I use it on another system? I guess the only way to find out is to give it a shot 🙂
I used a 64 gig Sandisk mini-usb 3.0 drive. Took about 45 minutes to create a W10 Pro 64 bit install.
I was warned at the end of the Rufus process about disabling secure boot before booting with it, which is a good idea. I installed Chrome on the usb and did some configuration tweaks, but I was missing a few drivers so I didn’t go wild with the configuration.
I’ll keep updating this as I learn more.
Thanks for your inspiration for this project. These days I am looking for projects!

By: Tom

Tom — Sat, 02 May 2020 14:02:03 +0000

Pardon my ignorance but why would one want WTG?

By: Jim Hillier

Jim Hillier — Sat, 02 May 2020 01:53:14 +0000

In reply to KenW.

Hey Ken,

Yes, yes, and yes. 🙂

WTG will behave just the same as if the system was installed on an internal hard drive. You can install and uninstall programs, install Windows Updates, and it will retain all changes between boots. The only proviso is space. Obviously you’ll generally have less space to play with on a flash drive. So you’ll need to be selective (essentials only) and keep an eye on free/used space.

By: KenW

KenW — Sat, 02 May 2020 00:51:09 +0000

Great article Jim;
After we create the usb WTG, can we install programs onto it, such as browsers, etc?
What about updates? Will all data created on the usb system stay within it after a reboot?
I guess I am talking about persistence; is that part of the WTG system?
Thanks!

By: John

John — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 23:26:15 +0000

In reply to Jim Hillier. Tanks

By: Jim Hillier

Jim Hillier — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 06:44:54 +0000

In reply to John.

Hey John,

Windows Presinstallation Environment (WinPE) is not Windows 10, it’s a very simple and basic OS mainly used for performing a limited set of tasks such as troubleshooting a Windows operating system, performing recovery options, and installing a complete Windows operating system.

Windows To Go, on the other hand, is a full blown Windows 10 installation on a bootable USB drive. No, Aomei Backupper Pro does not include a feature to create a Windows To Go bootable drive. If you are concerned about installing additional software, try the Rufus method, Rufus is free and portable (as in does not require any installation).

By: John

John — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 04:54:14 +0000

What is the difference between Windows to Go and Windows PE? Some of my utilities produce USB bootable Windows PE (For example Aomei Buckupper Professional. Wondering if I can use that instead of getting Aomei Partition Assistant.