How to Download and Install Windows 11 From an ISO File – Guide

Now that Windows 11 has passed the beta stage, you can upgrade to an official version of the operating system without joining the Windows Insider Program. But what if you’re still waiting for Windows Update, a process that can take months? What if you just want to launch Windows 11 on an old or experimental PC without first installing an activated copy of Windows 10? Or if you want to start over without wiping out all your old programs and settings? What you need is a Windows 11 ISO file that you can boot and use for clean installs or in-place upgrades. Fortunately, there are a few ways to get one. Firstly, you can download Windows 11 ISO directly from Microsoft. Second, you can use tools from a website called UUP Dump to download a file from Microsoft’s update server and create a fully customized ISO. up so far with an internal build that is even newer than the release build. Finally, you can use Aveyo’s open source Universal MediaCreationTool to create an ISO that bypasses the Windows 11 TPM requirement. Whichever method you choose, you will use the Windows 11 ISO file to create a bootable USB flash drive or install Windows 11 in a virtual machine. You can even get away with giving up the product key so you can run the new OS completely for free (at least for now).

Register for the Windows Insider Program

Getting access to the Windows 11 ISO file requires you to be part of Microsoft’s Windows Insider program, so you’ll have to register for that if you haven’t already. To participate in this program, you will need to use a Microsoft account. Open the Windows Insider page and sign in with the Microsoft account you want to use. On the registration page, check the box to accept the terms of this agreement and click Register now. On the next page, click on the Flight Now button button to learn more about the Insider program.

Download ISO file

Your next step is to download the actual ISO file. Navigate to the Windows Insider Preview Downloads page and sign in with the Microsoft account you used for the Insider program. Scroll down to the Select Edit section. Click the drop-down menu for Select Edit. Here, you can choose Windows 11 Insider Preview (Dev Channel) or Windows 11 Insider Preview (Beta Channel). The Dev channel contains the latest features and updates for Windows 11, but it may be more unstable. The Beta channel contains features and updates that have already been polished by Microsoft and are more stable. If you plan to use Windows 11 in a test environment, you want to get the latest version features, and don’t mind a few bugs, the Dev channel is the way to go. Otherwise, the Beta channel may be more appropriate. (You can also download two copies of the ISO file, one for the Dev channel and one for the Beta channel, if you want to test both in different environments.) Anyway, select the desired channel and click Confirm. Then select the product language and click Confirm. Click on Download button for the build and language you chose and save the file to your PC. Once the file is downloaded, you can work with the ISO file in a few different ways.

To define Up a virtual machine

If you plan to install Windows 11 in a virtual machine, you can use the ISO file directly. I tried two free VM products with Windows 11 VMware Workstation Player and Oracle VM VirtualBox. VMware Workstation accepted the Windows 11 Preview edition without any problems; Oracle VM VirtualBox had some issues, although I was able to get it working with a few tweaks. For this reason, you will likely have an easier out-of-the-box experience using VMware Workstation Player. When you create your virtual machine, VMware Workstation Player asks for the location and name of the installer disk image file. Browse and select the downloaded Windows 11 ISO file. Click Next and follow the steps to set up the VM and install Windows 11.

Install the file directly

If you want to install Windows 11 directly on your current PC from the ISO file, you first need to mount the file to access the setup command. Open File Explorer in Windows 10 or 8.1, right-click the Windows 11 ISO file and select Mount from the pop-up window.up menu. Sometimes a third-party program disables the built-in Mount command so that it doesn’t appear up on the menu. In that case, you will have to reset your default program to revive the command. On Windows 10, go to Settings > Apps > Default apps and scroll to the bottom of the page. Click the Set Defaults Per Application link. In the list of applications, click the Windows Disc Image Burner and click Manage. Go back to File Explorer and right-click the ISO file again. The Assemble command should now appear on the menu. Running the Mount command opens a virtual drive visible in the File Explorer sidebar, from which you can install the software. This virtual drive contains the setup.exe file. Double-click this file to install Windows 11. When finished, right-click the virtual drive and select the Eject command. This removes the virtual drive, although your ISO file remains intact. Click the current default application to .iso and change it to Windows Explorer.

Burn the ISO file to a disc or USB drive

Another option is to burn the ISO file to a disc to install Windows 11 on any computer. However, the Windows 11 ISO file is more than 5GB in size, which means it cannot fit on a standard DVD. Instead, you would have to use a dual-layer or dual-layer (DL) DVD, which can store 8.5GB of data, as long as your drive supports these types of discs. Another option is to use a Blu-ray disc if your PC is equipped with a Blu-ray drive. Insert a blank DVD or Blu-ray Disc into your PC’s disc drive. Open File Explorer and right-click the ISO file. From the pop-up menu, select the Burn Disc Image command. The Windows Disc Image Burner tool appears up and it should point to the DVD or Blu-ray drive. Click Record. Depending on the installation settings, you can install the program from disk automatically by placing it on a PC drive or by double-clicking the installation file on the disk as displayed in File Explorer. An effective way to burn the ISO to a disc or copy it to a USB is through a free tool from Microsoft called Windows USB/DVD Download Tool. This program copies the contents of the ISO file to a disk or USB drive, which becomes bootable. This method is useful if you want to install Windows 11 on a clean computer or as part of a dual-boot setup. Microsoft no longer offers this utility on its website, but you can still find it on other websites such as FileHippo and Major Geeks. After downloading Windows7-USB-DVD-Download-Tool-Installer.exe file, right click on it and choose Run as administrator option. Once the installation is complete, launch the tool, then browse and choose the ISO file you want to burn or copy. Click Next and choose a USB device or DVD. If you choose USB, the next screen will ask you to insert USB media. If you have more than one USB drive connected to your PC, make sure you choose the right one. Click Start Copy to copy the file to the drive. If the USB drive still contains data, it will be erased. Click Erase USB Drive to free up space for Windows files. After the files are copied, the tool will inform you that the bootable USB device has been successfully created. You can then use your USB device to install the program. If you choose a DVD, insert a blank dual layer/double layer DVD or Blu-ray disc into your drive and click Start Burning. The tool will inform you when the DVD is successfully burned. Now you can use your bootable DVD to install the program.

Final note

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