How to Use Ventoy for Bootable USB Creation

Are you tired of creating bootable USB drives with slow and outdated software? Well, fret no more my friend because Ventoy is here to save the day! In this article, we’ll be walking you through the steps on how to use Ventoy for bootable USB creation. Trust us, it’s a game-changer.

Gone are the days of having to format your USB drive every time you want to create a bootable drive. With Ventoy, you can just drag and drop your ISO files onto your USB drive and you’re good to go. Plus, it supports multiple operating systems, so you can have multiple bootable drives on one USB.

So, grab a cup of coffee and let’s get started on this tech-savvy adventure. By the end of this article, you’ll be a Ventoy pro and wonder why you haven’t been using it all along. Let’s go!

Getting Started with Ventoy

Ventoy is a popular open-source tool that allows you to create a multiboot USB drive that can boot ISO images of various operating systems and other utilities. In this guide, we will cover the basic steps to download, prepare, and install Ventoy on a USB drive.

Downloading Ventoy

The first step in creating a Ventoy USB drive is to download the Ventoy software from the official website. You can download the latest version of Ventoy for free from the following link:

https://www.ventoy.net/en/download.html

On the download page, you will find different versions of Ventoy for Windows, Linux, and macOS. Choose the appropriate version for your operating system.

Preparing Your USB Drive

Before installing Ventoy on your USB drive, you need to select a suitable USB drive and format it correctly. Here are the basic steps:

Selecting a suitable USB drive: Make sure to choose a USB drive with enough storage capacity to accommodate the ISO images of the operating systems and utilities you want to boot from. It is also recommended to use a USB 3.0 or newer drive for faster data transfer speeds.
Formatting the USB drive: Ventoy requires the USB drive to be formatted as FAT32, NTFS, or exFAT for BIOS mode, and as FAT32 or NTFS for UEFI mode. If you are not sure which mode your computer uses, you can format the USB drive with both BIOS and UEFI support. To format the USB drive, connect it to your computer, right-click on it, and choose the “Format” option from the context menu. Select the appropriate file system and allocation unit size, then click on the “Start” button to begin the formatting process.

Installing Ventoy on the USB Drive

Once you have downloaded and prepared your USB drive, you can proceed to install Ventoy on it. Here are the basic steps for installing Ventoy on Windows and Linux.

Installing Ventoy on Windows

Running the Ventoy2Disk executable: Extract the downloaded Ventoy file, and then double-click on the “Ventoy2Disk.exe” file to run it.
Choosing the target USB drive: In the Ventoy2Disk window, select the USB drive you want to install Ventoy on from the drop-down menu.
Ventoy installation options: By default, Ventoy will install in UEFI mode. If you want to install Ventoy in BIOS mode, check the “Install for BIOS and UEFI” option. Click on the “Install” button to start the installation process.

Installing Ventoy on Linux

Granting execution permissions: Open a terminal window, navigate to the directory where you downloaded the Ventoy file, and run the following command to grant execution permissions to the “Ventoy2Disk.sh” script:

chmod +x Ventoy2Disk.sh

Running the Ventoy2Disk script: Run the following command to start the Ventoy installation process:

sudo ./Ventoy2Disk.sh -i /dev/sdX

Replace “/dev/sdX” with the device name of your USB drive.

Ventoy installation options: By default, Ventoy will install in UEFI mode. If you want to install Ventoy in BIOS mode, add the “-mbr” option to the command:

sudo ./Ventoy2Disk.sh -i /dev/sdX -mbr

After the installation process is complete, you can copy ISO images of various operating systems and utilities to the USB drive and boot from them using Ventoy.

Creating a Bootable USB Drive with Ventoy

Now that you have installed Ventoy on your USB drive, you can start adding ISO files to it and creating a multiboot USB drive. Here are the basic steps for copying ISO files to the USB drive and booting from it.

Copying ISO Files to the USB Drive

To add ISO files to the Ventoy USB drive, you can use either of the following methods:

Drag-and-drop method: Open the folder where you have stored the ISO files, and drag and drop them onto the Ventoy USB drive window.
Copy-paste method: Open the folder where you have stored the ISO files, select the files, right-click, and choose the “Copy” option. Then, open the Ventoy USB drive window, right-click, and choose the “Paste” option.

Once you have added the ISO files to the USB drive, you can start using Ventoy to boot from them.

Booting from the Ventoy USB Drive

To boot from the Ventoy USB drive, follow these steps:

Accessing the boot menu: Restart your computer, and press the appropriate key (usually F2, F10, F12, or Del) to access the boot menu. The key may vary depending on your computer’s manufacturer and model.
Selecting the Ventoy USB drive: In the boot menu, select the Ventoy USB drive and press Enter to boot from it.
Choosing the desired ISO file: After booting from the Ventoy USB drive, you will see a menu with a list of ISO files. Use the arrow keys to select the ISO file you want to boot from, and press Enter to start the boot process.

You can repeat these steps to boot from different ISO files on the same Ventoy USB drive.

Customizing Ventoy

Ventoy offers various customization options that you can use to personalize your multiboot USB drive. Here are some of the main customization options available in Ventoy.

Ventoy Configuration File

The Ventoy configuration file (ventoy.json) allows you to customize the appearance and behavior of the Ventoy boot menu. Here are some of the things you can do with the configuration file:

Change the default boot entry
Change the boot menu timeout
Add custom boot entries
Customize the boot menu theme and background image

You can find more information on how to customize the Ventoy configuration file in the Ventoy documentation.

Ventoy Plugins

Ventoy also offers various plugins that you can use to extend its functionality. Here are some of the available plugins:

Persistence plugin: Allows you to save data and settings on the Ventoy USB drive across reboots.
WebUI plugin: Allows you to control the Ventoy boot menu and select ISO files from a web interface.
Secure Boot plugin: Allows you to boot ISO files with Secure Boot enabled.

To use a Ventoy plugin, download the plugin file and copy it to the “ventoy” folder on the USB drive. Then, add the plugin configuration to the Ventoy configuration file.

You can find more information on how to install and use Ventoy plugins in the Ventoy documentation.

Troubleshooting Common Ventoy Issues

Ventoy is generally a reliable and straightforward tool, but you may encounter some issues when using it. Here are some common Ventoy issues and how to troubleshoot them.

Ventoy Boot Failure

If your computer fails to boot from the Ventoy USB drive, here are some possible causes and solutions:

Incorrect BIOS or UEFI settings: Make sure that your computer’s BIOS or UEFI settings are configured to boot from USB drives. Also, check that the boot order is correct and that the USB drive is detected by the system.
Incorrect Ventoy installation: Ensure that you have installed Ventoy correctly on the USB drive. You can try reinstalling Ventoy or using a different USB drive.
Corrupted ISO file: The ISO file you are trying to boot from may be corrupted or incomplete. Try downloading the ISO file again and verifying its integrity.

ISO File Not Detected

If the ISO file does not appear in the Ventoy boot menu, here are some reasons why and how to resolve the issue:

Incorrect file path: Check that the ISO file is stored in the correct location on the USB drive. The ISO file should be in the root directory or a subdirectory of the USB drive.
Unsupported file format: Ventoy supports booting from most ISO files, but some ISO files may not be compatible. Ensure that the ISO file you are trying to boot from is supported by Ventoy.
Ventoy version compatibility: Check that you are using the latest version of Ventoy, as older versions may not support some ISO files.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Ventoy is an excellent tool for creating multiboot USB drives that can boot ISO images of various operating systems and utilities. With its user-friendly interface, customization options, and plugin support, Ventoy provides a flexible and efficient solution for bootable USB drives.

In this guide, we have covered the basic steps for downloading, preparing, and installing Ventoy on a USB drive, as well as how to troubleshoot some common Ventoy issues. We encourage readers to try Ventoy for themselves and share their experiences with others.