How to create Windows7 bootable disk?

What is bootable disk?

A boot disk or bootable disk is a removable digital data storage medium from which a computer can load and run (boot) an operating system or utility program. The computer must have a built-in program which will load and execute a program from a boot disk meeting certain standards.
Boot disks are used for:

• Operating system installation
• Data recovery
• Data purging
• Hardware or software troubleshooting
• BIOS flashing
• Customizing an operating environment
• Software demonstration
• Administrative access in case of lost password is possible with an appropriate boot disk with some operating systems

How to create Windows7 bootable disk?

Here we are using WAIK to create bootable disk.

What is it?
It’s the Windows 7 Automated Installation Kit, or WAIK.  WAIK is useful for IT Professionals to have a boot disk that will boot up from a CD instead of the computer’s hard drive.  With the boot CD, you can boot with a CD and open up, you have the same basic functionality as you would have if you had booted up with a DOS floppy disk.  This boot disk also gives you a little extra functionality that I talk about a little later.

Why do I need it?

• Have you ever had a computer blue screen on you and you needed to get a file off the hard drive now?
• Have you noticed that the use of floppy disks as a boot media is all but completely dead?
• Have you ever had a boot sector virus that you needed to clean but couldn’t get to?
• Have you ever wanted to install an OS from the ground up but needed a way to boot the computer first? 

       This allows you to do this.

What do I need to install it?
To install the Windows 7 AIK, you need to have one of the following OSes (Operating Systems) installed on a computer:

• Windows Server 2003 R2 SP3
• Windows Vista SP1
• Windows Server 2008 family
• Windows 7 family
• Windows Server 2008 R2 family

Where do I get the download?
The Windows 7 AIK ISO image can be downloaded here.  The Windows 7 AIK Documentation can be downloaded here.

After you’ve burned the DVD from the ISO image, insert it into a DVD drive.  The installation menu will appear:

Select the Windows AIK Setup option highlighted in Red in this image (below):

This batch file assumes the following:

1. that you have installed the WAIK on the computer’s C: drive in the default directory.  If you install in the WAIK in another directory, you’ll need to update the paths in the batch file (noted in blue).
2. that you are installing the 32bit version (denoted as the “x86” parameter in purple);
3. That you don’t currently have a directory (folder) on the C: drive called “winpe_x86”.  If you need to change the target folder, change the folders in orange.

Open Notepad and copy the following batch file commands into Notepad:
CD "C:\Program Files\Windows AIK\Tools\PETools"
CALL copype.cmd x86 c:\winpe_x86
copy c:\winpe_x86\winpe.wim c:\winpe_x86\ISO\sources\boot.wim
copy "C:\program files\Windows AIK\Tools\x86\imagex.exe" C:\winpe_x86\iso\
oscdimg -n -bC:\winpe_x86\etfsboot.com C:\winpe_x86\ISO C:\winpe_x86\winpe_x86.iso
rem To remove the "Press any key to boot from CD" prompt during boot,
rem remove the bootfix.bin file from the \boot folder within your mounted image.
pause 


This will build a bootable CD ISO image that can be burned using any CD burner program that can burn a CD using an ISO image.

What else can I do with this disk?
Okay, I’ve booted to a command prompt.  What now?  Well, now you have access to NTFS file system drives, older FAT/FAT32 drives via command prompt.  You also have access to USB devices thanks to plug-and-play being enabled.  You have access to the CD/DVD drives.  You have complete access over the local computer hard drives.  If you plug in a USB thumbdrive, it will automatically be assigned a drive letter and you will have access to it.

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