Creating A Windows 10 USB Installer
Every now and then, it’s good to format your hard drive or solid-state drive and perform a clean installation of Windows 10. To do this, you’ll need Windows 10 installation media if you don’t already have it. You can easily create Windows 10 installation media using the Microsoft Windows Media Creation tool.
Unless you want to install a previous version of Windows 10, use the Windows Media Creation tool to create a current Windows 10 installer so you can install the most current version of Windows 10 on your computer. You will still need a valid Windows 10 license to fully activate Windows 10 after installation.
First, you’ll need to download the Microsoft Windows Media Creation tool. You’ll also need a USB flash drive with at least 8GB of storage. Make sure the USB flash drive doesn’t contain any information or data that you wish to keep as the Windows Media Creation tool will erase the contents of the USB flash drive.
Once you have the Windows Media Creation tool downloaded, double-click on it to run the tool. You may receive a prompt from User Account Control asking, “Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?” Click Yes. Review the Microsoft software license agreement terms then click Accept. You’ll be prompted with a window that asks, “What do you want to do?” with two choices – Upgrade this PC now and Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC. Choose Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC then click Next.
In Select language, architecture, and edition, the recommended options for the PC that you are currently on should already be selected but you can choose from the available options if necessary. For most, the recommended options should be fine. Click Next.
The next window will prompt you to Choose which media to use. Select USB flash drive then insert the USB flash drive into an available USB port. Give your computer a moment to detect and mount the USB flash drive then click Next. Again, you must use a USB flash drive with at least 8GB of storage. In the next window, you’ll be asked to Select a USB flash drive from the list. Select the USB flash drive you inserted into the USB port of your computer then click Next. If the flash drive does not show up, click on Refresh drive list.
The Windows Media Creation Tool will begin downloading a current copy of Windows 10 and you will be able to see the progress of the download. When the download is complete, the Windows Media Creation Tool will begin creating the Windows 10 media. Again, you will be able to see the progress of the media creation. You can continue using your computer while this process runs in the background.
When the Windows Media Creation tool is done, you will get a message that reads “Your USB flash drive is ready.” Click Finish.
You may want to test the USB flash drive by booting from the USB installer. Follow the instructions provided by your computer manufacturer to boot from a USB flash drive.
Always backup your computer to external storage and/or cloud storage before upgrading Windows or formatting your hard drive/SSD and performing a clean installation of Windows.
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