[Article] How to Download Official Windows 11 ISO files and Make a Bootable USB Drive

Question

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Technical Level : Basic

Summary Microsoft has provided instructions how to download the official .ISO files for Windows 11. Read on for instructions how to download ISO media for Windows 11. The Windows 11 ISO image and Create Windows 11 Installation Media tool has all the appropriate editions of Windows 11. This includes Windows 11 Home, Pro, Pro for Workstation, Enterprise, Pro Edu and Education. Please note, there is no 32 bit version of Windows 11. Due to the size of the ISO file, you will need a USB drive that is 8 GBs or more in size or dual layer blank DVD.

OVERVIEW:

Which version and edition of Windows 11 is available for download

Create a bootable USB thumb drive

Downloading the Windows 11 ISO using Media Creation Tool

Downloading the Windows 11ISO directly Using a Web Browser

Make a bootable copy using third party utility Rufus

Which version and edition of Windows 11 is available for download?

When you use the latest copy of the Create Windows 11 Installation Media tool**, it will download Windows 11 build 22000.** Users have the choice of selecting 64 bit versions of Windows 11 Home, Pro, Pro for Workstation, Enterprise, Pro Edu or Education during setup when performing a clean install**.**

Can I use my Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10 product key to install and activate Windows 11?

Yes, you can. Users will need to enter the product key after setup is complete.

Create a bootable USB thumb drive using Media Creation Tool

If you have a USB thumb drive with 8 GBs of free space or more, you can create a bootable copy of Windows 11 using the Media Creation Tool. Start by vising the Download Windows 11 web page: Download Windows 11 (microsoft.com) Scroll down to the section Create Windows 11 Installation Media then click Download Now

After downloading, launch the MediaCreationToolW11.exe file

Wait while Windows 11 setup prepares the available options.

Accept the End User License Agreement

Windows 11 Media Creation Tool setup will default to the current system configuration for the boot media it will create. If you wish to create a bootable copy for a different language or computer setup, uncheck the box Use the recommended options for this PC.

Choose USB Flash drive, please note, this USB drive needs to be 8 GBs or larger.

If Setup does not detect your USB thumb drive:

Make sure it is plugged in then refresh.

Format the USB thumb drive as FAT32

Try another USB port.

If your drive now shows up, select it in the list of Removable drives then click Next.

Setup will download the install files for Windows 11 and copy them to your USB thumb drive. When complete, click Finish, you can then launch setup to upgrade your existing version of Windows or perform a clean install.

Downloading the Windows 11 ISO using Media Creation Tool

If you want to download the ISO file and make your bootable copy using either using the built in DVD Burning utility or a third party utility such as Rufus, you can download the ISO using the Media Creation Tool. During setup, select ISO file then click Next.

Choose where you want to save the ISO file.

Setup will then download the ISO file to the designated location on your hard disk. After downloading you can follow the steps below to make a bootable copy using Rufus.

Download Windows 11 ISO Directly Using Your Web Browser

You can also download Windows 11 ISO media from the Windows 11 Download page too.

Go to Download Windows 11 (microsoft.com)

Scroll down to section Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) then choose Windows 11 (multi-edition ISO) in the list box

Scroll down to the very bottom of the page then click Download

Choose the language of the ISO file then click Confirm

Click the 64-bit Download button to begin the download.

The Windows 11 ISO file should automatically be saved to your Download folder. Depending on the speed of your Internet connection, the download might take a while.

Making a bootable copy on USB Thumb drive manually

If you want to make a bootable copy you can do so using free third party utilities such as Rufus. Here are the steps to do so:

Important:

If you are creating a bootable USB thumb drive, make sure the thumb drive is first formatted as FAT32.

Connect the thumb drive

Open Computer

Right click thumbdrive

Click Format

Make sure FAT32 is selected as the file system.

For UEFI based systems

If your computer is UEFI based, these are normally systems that come pre-loaded with Windows 8 or later, you will need to prepare the ISO file for such a configuration or you will receive an error message during setup. The thumb drive needs to be formatted as FAT32. If you are installing on a hard disks that is 4 TBs or more in size, you need to format the disk using the GPT partitioning scheme. Rufus ensures your copy of Windows 10 is properly prepared to support it.

You can download [Rufus, for free.]

After downloading Rufus, connect your thumb drive, launch Rufus application, click in the Device list box then choose your thumb drive.

Click in the list box then choose your partition scheme. If you select the ISO, Rufus will automatically select the appropriate options for you. Next, click in the File system list box, then choose FAT32. If your thumb drive is larger than 32 GBs, choose exFAT.

Leave the default Cluster size then enter a label for your thumb drive.

Click the choose disk image icon, browse to where the ISO file is located, select it then click Open.

Click Start to copy the files to the thumb drive.

If you have any files on the thumb drive, they will be deleted.

Wait while the files are copied to your thumb drive.

Close when complete

Open File Explorer, then launch setup to begin the installation.

Make a bootable copy on DVD

If you only have a DVD, it needs to be a blank Dual Layer DVD.