A startup disk can be used to restore or repair the operating system after a critical error or virus has rendered the computer unusable or unable to boot the operating system. Learn how to create a startup disk for Windows or Mac by reading this guide.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Create a Startup Disk for Windows 8
Step 1. Swipe from the right corner of the screen on your Windows 8 device
If you use a mouse, place the pointer in the lower left corner of the screen
Step 2. Tap or click on “Start”
Step 3. Type “Recovery” in the search field
A list with the search results will appear on the screen.
Step 4. Click on “Settings” and click on “Create a Rescue Disk”
Step 5. Check “Copy recovery partition from PC to recovery disk”
Step 6. Click on “Next”
Windows will inform you of the required capacity on the chosen media to create the boot disk.
Step 7. Make sure you have a USB stick or blank CD that is large enough to store all the data needed to create the startup disk
The space required depends on the type of Windows 8 device you are using. For example, if your device requires 6Gb of startup disk capacity, you will need to use a USB stick with at least 6Gb of free space.
Step 8. Insert the USB stick into one of the USB ports mounted on your Windows 8 device
If you have decided to use a blank CD or DVD, select “Create a System Recovery Disc to CD or DVD” from the drop-down menu before inserting the CD or DVD into the drive
Step 9. Follow the instructions below to finish the boot disk creation process
After that, the startup disk can be used to restore or repair your Windows 8 installation whenever you encounter problems booting your device..
Method 2 of 3: Create a Startup Disk for Windows 7 / Vista
Step 1. Click on the “Start” button on your Windows Vista / 7 computer
Step 2. Select the "Control Panel"
Step 3. Click on “System and Security” and choose “Backup and Restore”
Step 4. Click on “Create a System Repair Disk” in the left panel of the window
Step 5. Insert a blank CD into your computer's CD drive
Step 6. Select the name of the CD player you just inserted the disc into from the drop-down menu next to “Drive”
Step 7. Click on “Create Disc”
Windows will start writing the files to the CD.
Step 8. When Windows has finished creating the startup disk, click "Close"
You can now use the startup disk to restore the system in case of malfunctions when starting Windows 7 / Vista..
Method 3 of 3: Create a Startup Disk for Mac OS X
Step 1. Open the Applications folder on your Mac
Step 2. Open the Mac App Store
Step 3. Search and download the latest OS X installer from the App Store
At present, OS X Mavericks 10.9 is the latest version of the installer.
If you want to use an older version of Mac OS X that you previously bought from the App Store, hold down the "Options" button in the App Store interface and click on "Purchase" to find and re-download that particular installer
Step 4. Insert the USB stick into the USB port of the computer
The USB stick must have at least 8 Gb of free space.
Step 5. Open the Applications folder and click on “Utilities”
Step 6. Select “Disk Utility”
The computer will begin collecting information on the USB drive you just inserted.
Step 7. Click on the USB stick when it appears in the left panel of the Disk Utility
Step 8. Click on the tab called “Partition” on Disk Utility
Step 9. Select “1 Partition” from the drop down menu under “Partition Layout”
Step 10. Select “Mac OS Extended (journaled) from the menu next to“Format”
Step 11. Click on the “Options” button at the bottom of the Disk Utility screen
Step 12. Select “GUID Partition Table” and click “OK”
Step 13. Open the Terminal from the utilities in the Applications folder
Step 14. Type the following command in the Terminal:
"Defaults write com.apple. Finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE; / killall Finder; / say Files Revealed".
Step 15. Press “Enter” on your keyboard to execute the command
Your mac will begin to format the USB stick so that it can be used as a Mac OS X startup disk.
Step 16. Open the Application folder and find the installer you downloaded from the App Store
For example, if you downloaded OS X Mavericks, the program will be called “Install Mac OS X Mavericks.app”.
Step 17. Right-click on the installer and select "Show Package Contents" from the list of available options
Step 18. Click on "Contents" and select "Shared Media" from the Package Contents window
Step 19. Double click on “InstallESD.dmg”
An icon called "OS X Install ESD" will appear on the desktop.
Step 20. Double click on the "OS X Install ESD" icon
The folder will open showing a number of hidden files, including “BaseSystem.dmg”.
Step 21. Go back to the Disk Utility application and click on the name of the USB drive in the left panel
Step 22. In the Disk Utility application click on the "Restore" tab
Step 23. Click and drag the hidden file "BaseSystem.dmg" to the "Source" field of the "Disk Utility" application
Step 24. Drag the new partition under the USB drive name in the left panel to the “Destination” field
In most cases, the new partition will be called "Untitled".
Step 25. Click on the "Restore" button in the Disk Utility application
Step 26. When prompted, click on “Cancel” to confirm the replacement of the contents of the USB stick
Step 27. Wait for the computer to finish creating the startup disk on the USB stick
In most cases it will take about an hour.
Step 28. When the computer has finished copying the files to the flash drive, click on “System” in the left panel and select “Installation”
Step 29. Delete the folder called “Packages”
Step 30. Return to the mounted folder called “Install ESD.dmg” located on the desktop
Step 31. Copy the folder called “Packages”
Step 32. Go back to the Installation folder and paste the “Packages” folder
The new folder will replace the previously deleted one.
Step 33. Eject the USB stick from your Mac
The USB stick can now be used as a startup disk to restore the system in the event of a malfunction when starting the computer..
