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Barbarank's avatar
Barbarank
Iron Contributor
Jan 10, 2025

Does Windows 8.1 have a media creation tool?

I can see both Windows 11 and Windows 10 have Media Creation Tool for making bootable USB from ISO. Where to download Windows 8.1 media creation tool? I searched the Microsoft website and unable to f...
HenryIngram's avatar
HenryIngram
Iron Contributor
Jan 10, 2025

I had a similar problem before. I wanted to find Windows 8.1 Media Creation Tool, but I couldn't find it on Microsoft's official website. Later I found out that Microsoft seemed to have removed this tool a long time ago. But don't worry, you can still easily make a Windows 8.1 bootable USB without the Media Creation Tool. The method is simple and free!

Method 1: Download the official ISO file directly
Although the Windows 8.1 Media Creation Tool has been removed, Microsoft still provides the official Windows 8.1 ISO file for download. You can use this file to make a bootable disk directly.

Steps:

  1. Go to Microsoft's Windows 8.1 ISO download page.
  2. Select your Windows 8.1 version (Home, Professional, etc.) and language, and then click "Confirm".
  3. Download the 32-bit or 64-bit version ISO file for your device.

 

Method 2: Use the command line to create a bootable disk
You can use the built-in command line function of Windows to write the ISO file to the USB and turn it into a bootable disk without using third-party tools.

Steps:

Insert an empty USB with at least 8GB and remember its drive letter (such as F:).
Open the command prompt (administrator mode).
Enter the following command to format the USB:

diskpart list disk select disk X clean create partition primary format fs=fat32 quick active exit

5. Then extract the contents of the ISO file to the USB using the command:

xcopy X:\*.* Y:\ /E /H /F

(Replace X with the path to the ISO file and Y with the USB drive letter.)

 

Method 3: Use Windows built-in burning tool

Right-click the downloaded Windows 8.1 ISO file and select "Mount".
Open the virtual optical drive and copy the file contents to the formatted USB.
After completion, your USB can be used as a boot disk!

Although you can't find the Windows 8.1 Media Creation Tool, you can still easily create a boot disk using the ISO provided by Microsoft and the system's built-in tools. These methods are not only free, but also do not have to worry about privacy issues. Hurry up and try it, I wish you a successful system reinstallation!

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