How to Install Windows 10 from External Hard Drive?

By adminBlog

Installing Windows 10 from an external hard drive is a useful method when you don’t have a bootable USB drive or a DVD to install the operating system. Whether you need to reinstall Windows on your PC, upgrade your system, or repair an existing installation, using an external hard drive is a viable solution.

This guide will take you through the entire process of preparing the external hard drive, creating a bootable drive, and installing Windows 10 on your system.

Prerequisites

Before you start, make sure you have the following:

  1. A working PC: The PC where you want to install Windows 10.
  2. External hard drive: The external hard drive with at least 8GB of free space.
  3. Windows 10 ISO file: You can download the official Windows 10 ISO from the Microsoft website.
  4. Rufus tool: A free utility to make your external hard drive bootable.
  5. Windows 10 product key: You’ll need this to activate Windows 10 during installation.

Step 1: Download the Windows 10 ISO File

To get started, you need the Windows 10 ISO file, which contains the files needed to install the operating system.

  1. Visit the Microsoft Windows 10 download page.
  2. Click on Download tool now to download the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool.
  3. Run the tool and choose Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file).
  4. Choose the appropriate language, edition, and architecture (64-bit or 32-bit).
  5. Select ISO file as the media to create, and choose a location to save the file.

Step 2: Prepare the External Hard Drive

To make your external hard drive bootable, you need to format it and install Windows 10 on it.

  1. Plug your external hard drive into your PC.
  2. Open File Explorer, right-click on your external hard drive, and select Format.
  3. Choose the file system as NTFS and ensure the Quick Format option is selected.
  4. Click Start to format the external hard drive.

Note: Be aware that formatting will erase all data on the external hard drive, so make sure you back up any important files before proceeding.

Step 3: Create a Bootable External Hard Drive Using Rufus

Rufus is a free tool that allows you to create a bootable drive from an ISO file.

  1. Download Rufus from the official website: https://rufus.ie/.
  2. Open Rufus and plug in your external hard drive.
  3. In Rufus, under the Device dropdown, select your external hard drive.
  4. Under Boot selection, choose Disk or ISO image (Please select) and then click the Select button to browse and select the Windows 10 ISO file you downloaded earlier.
  5. Under Partition scheme, choose GPT if your system uses UEFI, or MBR if your system uses BIOS.
  6. Leave the File system as NTFS.
  7. Click Start to begin the process of creating a bootable external hard drive.

Rufus will warn you that all data on the external hard drive will be erased. Click OK to proceed.

Step 4: Boot from the External Hard Drive

Now that your external hard drive is set up as a bootable drive, it’s time to boot your PC from the external hard drive.

  1. Plug the external hard drive into the target computer that you want to install Windows 10 on.
  2. Restart the computer, and as it boots, enter the boot menu (typically by pressing the F12, Esc, or F2 key—check your manufacturer’s instructions).
  3. In the boot menu, select your external hard drive as the boot device.

Step 5: Install Windows 10

Once you boot from the external hard drive, the Windows 10 setup process will begin.

  1. Choose your language, time, and keyboard preferences and click Next.
  2. Click Install Now to start the installation process.
  3. When prompted, enter your Windows 10 product key. If you don’t have one, you can skip this step and activate Windows later.
  4. Accept the license terms and click Next.
  5. Select Custom: Install Windows only (advanced) to perform a fresh installation.
  6. Choose the partition where you want to install Windows 10. If you are installing on a new hard drive or want to clean the existing installation, you can delete all partitions, and Windows will automatically create new ones.
  7. Click Next to begin the installation.

Windows will copy files and install the operating system. This process can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, depending on the speed of your PC and the external hard drive.

Step 6: Set Up Windows 10

Once the installation process is complete, your PC will restart, and you’ll be prompted to set up your new Windows 10 installation.

  1. Choose your region and keyboard layout.
  2. Sign in with your Microsoft account or create a local user account.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions to configure privacy settings, select preferences, and connect to a Wi-Fi network (if applicable).
  4. Activate Windows: If you skipped entering the product key earlier, you’ll be prompted to enter it now. If you don’t have a key, you can choose to continue using Windows without activation (you’ll need to activate later).

Step 7: Finalizing the Installation

After completing the setup, Windows 10 will finalize the installation and install any necessary updates. Your PC will be ready to use once everything is set up.

Conclusion

Installing Windows 10 from an external hard drive is a convenient way to perform a clean installation on your PC without needing a USB flash drive or DVD. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can create a bootable external hard drive, install Windows 10, and set up your system in no time.

If you encounter any issues, ensure that your PC’s BIOS/UEFI is configured to boot from external devices and that your external hard drive is correctly formatted and configured as a bootable drive.

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