Windows 10 is coming, & Microsoft is going to be pushing it, A Lot. Though Microsoft hasn't released the details yet, it's expected to be a free update for most people, with rumors saying it may be a free upgrade for some to get them legal, and more recent rumors speculating that Microsoft might reward those people who try the preview.
http://www.neowin.net/news/windows-insiders-to-be-upgraded-to-windows-10-rtm-regardless-of-license-validity
Of course there's stuff to like & stuff to dislike about 10. For the most part it seems like win8.1 with a start menu, & one that doesn't seem to work as well as the 3rd party menus folks have been adding to 8/8.1. There's new stuff under the hood, & there will be improvements you can more easily see, but it's clearly not finished yet, so harder to compare. The complete feature list won't be available till closer to final release -- stuff that doesn't get finished gets held over for the next version in 2016.
Installing Windows 10 can take a while -- upgrading can take even longer, because software & registry entries have to be migrated & still work. And the Windows 10 update process, designed to happen in the background while you're using Windows, can seem maddeningly slow if/when you're waiting on it. At the same time the options you're given when you run the setup ISO or disc are limited.
What I'm going to write about, as briefly as I can, is a way to take a good portion of the time it takes for installation, & perform that task ahead of time, in the background while you're using Windows. Once done, it can save time for every later install [of that version]. And it seems it's the easiest, maybe the only way to get Windows 10 running on a USB stick or drive [&/or eSATA drive] -- it *may* be the best way to get it running on a VHD [Virtual Hard Drive] -- and it also works for regular installations on your hard drive or for a VM.
Now a quick word if I may about running Windows from a USB stick or drive... Booting to something besides Windows installed to your hard drive can be a nightmare nowadays -- something I talk about in another post on Backing Up. Win10 on a USB device is a complete, separate install of Windows that you can use instead of, or to repair, or to backup/restore etc. the main copy installed on your internal hard drive. It can work as a backup, & it can be transferred to another internal or external drive very easily -- just restore a backup image with that copy pretty much anywhere.
And of course it's a great way to see if Windows 10 will indeed work for you &/or on your hardware. What makes it so nice in that respect is that whatever you've got on your internal drives is untouched, so if it fails or you decide you don't like it, just get rid of the files/folders on that external drive.
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OK, to get started you need the setup files for the win10 preview. Microsoft is releasing ISOs for download with preview builds in the so-called slow ring -- for other builds you have to upgrade to get those files. A site like Neowin.net may be the easiest way to get the ISOs -- same links & sources as you'd get on microsoft.com, but IMHO easier to find & get to. When you upgrade win10 builds the setup files are in the Windows\ SoftwareDistribution\ Download folder during install, & afterward stored in the C:\ RecoveryImage folder. [Note that that may change as win10 builds progress towards a final release].
For years now Microsoft has been using a disk image format called .wim -- the easiest way to think about it is as their own proprietary backup image format. Unlike most backup image formats however it works with files & folders, & takes a long time to put files in & get them out of a .wim. With this method you find the install.wim file in the sources folder of the ISO, or in the RecoveryImage folder, or perhaps as an .esd file [an encrypted .wim] you might have to convert with a tool like WinReducerWimConverter.
Inside that install.wim file are all the files/folders you'd find in a fresh win10 install before Windows setup starts tailoring Windows for your hardware. To get those files/folders out of that .wim you use a Microsoft tool called DISM. You can find it on-line, it's part of Microsoft's AIK, & it's included in Windows from 8 onwards I think. Unfortunately it's a command line tool. You'll find all sorts of info on it using Google or Bing -- if you do search for info you'll come across a beta GUI someone has developed, though I haven't tried it. What you do is use DISM to put the files/folders in the .wim on a drive/partition, however that's connected to your PC/laptop.
TO use Dism you need to get to a Command Line Window Running as Administrator -- exactly how you get that depends on the version of Windows you're in, but generally you search for cmd, right clicking the result to select Run As Administrator. Here's an example from Microsoft:
"Dism /apply-image /imagefile:N:\Images\my-windows-partition.wim /index:1 /ApplyDir:C:\"
See: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh824910.aspx
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh825258.aspx
Once it's there, say on a USB stick, you can back it up with your choice of backup image software, which is what I recommend -- it takes too long for Dism to get the files out of that .wim to treat them as if they were easily replaced. It takes a long time for Windows setup to get those files out of the .wim too, & that's what you're avoiding by using Dism -- you can at least be doing something else in Windows rather than staring at a frozen screen. And once you back up the result, it takes only a couple of minutes to restore those files wherever whenever.
Now comes the [hopefully minor] gotcha of making the drive, where you want to put those files, work with your hardware -- you may have to try more than once, using more than one drive or device [e.g. USB stick]. I get into more detail in the post on backing up -- here what you need to know are 2 things... 1) whatever you read about UEFI bios, GPT drives, & related Windows requirements, feel free to ignore it. Basically you have people talking about absolute specs, that hardware manufacturers implement in different ways & may themselves ignore. 2) you need your drive or device to boot, so you try different setups until you're successful. That Really sounds worse than it is -- it took me about 4 minutes each to set up a couple of USB drives, & another 3 or 4 minutes to re-boot to see if one or the other worked. If you're in 8.1 you can also try creating a recovery USB stick, replacing the files on that once you confirm it boots on your hardware or device [e.g. tablet].
The main variables I think is whether you need the device/drive to be in the GPT or MBR format, & if you need to set it up the way Microsoft says to or not. The way Microsoft says to set it up is more complicated, with a separate, normally hidden partition storing the boot files. I'm running a current Z97 motherboard from Asus, & that way won't work At All. It **may** be because I re-used Windows installs on MBR disks [because I had been running XP Pro along with 7 & 8.1] , & that's the *mode* this m/board runs in to accommodate that -- it **may** be that this m/board requires MBR. Microsoft & a lot of Microsoft tech people say to use the command line tool, DiskPart -- I found Windows apps from Paragon, EaseUS, & AOMEI worked fine, but your mileage may vary.
[Note: In win7 I couldn't get the DiskPart script sample from Microsoft to work properly -- I had to do the commands one by one.]
Going the MBR route with a single partition, which is what I wound up with, is easiest -- I restored the backup I talked about, with the files Dism got out of the .wim, then added the boot files to the same partition. To go with GPT you need to make sure the drive is GPT -- if it's MBR delete the partition, convert to GPT, then add your partition(s). If you go for multiple partitions, you can follow Microsoft's guidelines for their size, or follow their recommendations more completely -- you can have 2 partitions on a MBR or GPT drive, with one only a couple of hundred MB to hold the boot files & such, or go full tilt with GPT because MBR has limits on how many partitions you can have. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh825686.aspx
TO add the boot files you again use the command line running as admin -- you could probably use EasyBCD but it's based on win7's boot files for greater compatibility, & win10 might have issues with that. The command is "bcdboot C:\Windows /s S:". The path to the Windows folder should match the mounted or attached [USB or eSATA] drive with the win10 files on it, e.g. if the drive letter is G:, then bcdboot G:\Windows. The drive letter following the /s is where you want the boot files to go -- on my single partition MBR drive I used the same letter as the drive, e.g. bcdboot G:\Windows /s G:. You Do Not want to omit the /s or you'll write the new boot files to your system! https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd744347%28v=ws.10%29.aspx
Two notes... 1) the reference I've linked shows /f ALL appended to the command line to enable UEFI bios & not -- it wouldn't work. The bcdboot command takes the boot files from the Windows folder [why the path to win10 is used], and those files for a more universal boot are likely missing. 2) [and this *may* depend on the Windows version you're running] if you use bcdboot on an internal drive, as in a normal install, it can add to the secure boot database stored in the bios. I could see that **maybe** making a difference on **some** hardware -- I haven't experienced it, but implementations of UEFI bios can be flaky, & if that database isn't set up the way it should be, *may be* needed.
At any rate that's it -- you're done! Research your hardware to find out how to boot to an alternate drive -- you may have to change a setting in the bios, but many [most?] motherboards in PCs/laptops have a hotkey that'll bring up a boot device menu. Boot to the drive & win10 will start finishing its setup -- it really doesn't take long. Once you're in win10 it'll proceed to add any updates & maybe a few more drivers -- if the process stalls try restarting the Update Service in Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services.
Note: Win10 will ask for a Microsoft account e-mail & password -- it can help to have one handy. It can also help to use an e-mail address you can access via a web page -- I set up a sign-in PIN, which required me to verify the e-mail address by entering a code Microsoft sent me using that e-mail address.
Note: With a win10 upgrade, including upgrading builds, there's loads & loads of garbage left over -- 20-30GB usually. With this method that did not happen.
Note: While win10 is setting up it may reboot or restart a couple few times -- if you used a boot device menu like I did, then you have to be there to select the device every time it re-boots, or else your system will boot to the default OS.
Note: Win10's setup does a LOT of file writing. It can save a lot of time if you setup win10 on a faster drive rather than a slower USB stick -- backup & restore to that USB stick afterward if you want.
Note: I used Dism in a VBox VM, extracting files from the .wim on an attached ISO to an attached USB 3.0 stick plugged into a USB 2.0 socket or plug. It did not come close to maxing out available CPU or RAM or data transfer. Why USB 2.0? I've had issues with USB 3.0 & VBox, but USB 3.0 helped creating a backup image of that stick happen faster.
Note: Running setup in win7 from the ISO, the only option was a win7 -> win10 upgrade. Booting to a DVD burned from that ISO, there was an option to install fresh or new, but no USB or eSATA drives were listed as potential targets.
Note: Just in case -- This Is Not a portable Windows install. While the setup files should work pretty much anywhere [providing you use 32 bit on 32 bit hardware], the drivers & such that are added are specific to the hardware where they are run. There is no real difference between this and win10 installed to your internal drive normally. In fact, restoring a backup image to another drive or device may be a good way to back up a fresh normal install, or going from an external drive to an internal drive, avoiding a 2nd installation. The only thing effected might be activation, which at this point, since it's a preview, is not an issue.
