Microsoft Windows allows users to carry out different tasks very easily without having to worry about getting engaged in extensive methods. If you have the Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 running on your computer, then you will not need the help of any other 3rd party ISO software for mounting because they come with the capability to mount the ISO software files easily and effectively burn into a DVD or CD.
Step 2: Open your ISO file and mount it as a virtual drive. This is done automatically when you click on File Open Disk Image in the top menu. Step 3: When you see your ISO file in the left panel, that means it was mounted properly. You can now insert an USB and click on the Burn option to burn the target ISO file to the USB drive. Then right-click the ISO file and select Burn disc image. If you want to install Windows 10 directly from the ISO file without using a DVD or flash drive, you can do so by mounting the ISO file. This will perform an upgrade of your current operating system to Windows 10. To mount the ISO file.
An ISO file is also called an ISO image which consists of a single file but which has the capability to hold the data of an entire CD or DVD. The entire content of a disk can be very easily stored in the form of an ISO file. In order to use the data, you will need to build the ISO file and access it into your system. The file is of no good unless the content inside is extracted and build upon using the right product.
When Are ISO Files Used?
Since ISO files can store a large amount of data within them, it becomes relatively easier for the people to transfer big files over the internet. All of the data that you want can neatly be arranged and compressed into an ISO file. The ISO is only a single ISO image file which makes it very much easier to download and burn it to a disc or other device so that the content can be used conveniently. You can open the ISO file in different ways by using a different application depending on the content that is inside it.
Included with so many important files, the ISO files should be kept safely with backups. In case the worst situation appears and all the files are lost, you should rescue the ISO files with file recovery software as soon as possible.
13 Best Software that Can Be Used to Mount ISO Files
The following applications come with different features and allow you to carry out different functions easily in Windows 7. Even when you are using a Windows 8 or 10 computer, they will offer some advanced functions, or serve as an alternative when the system feature fails to work.
1. Microsoft Virtual CD-ROM Control Panel
Microsoft Virtual CD-ROM Control Panel was released in 2013 which was made available for Windows XP, Windows 7, and Windows Vista so that users can mount the ISO disk image and use them as a virtual CD drive. The application can be really useful for burning disk, reading and also recover the backup files as well.
Since Windows 8 and higher versions support ISO files natively, this ISO mounting software needs to be used only in Windows 7 and earlier OSs. It does not have too many advanced features to offer to the users, but it does provide reliable service of mounting the ISO files as virtual CD or DVD.
2. DAEMON Tools Lite
DAEMON Tools is one of the most popular software that people use to mount their ISO files. For many years this tool has been used to mount and restore millions of .iso files by thousands of customers.
This ISO mounting software is free for home and non-commercial users, but it also provides advanced features, which can be purchased separately. Interestingly, Daemon tools supports Windows 7/8/8.1/10.
3. Power ISO
When it comes to ISO mounting, Power ISO is the first choice for many users. The versatile nature and brilliant features of the application clearly make it one of the best ISO mounters. With the assist of Power ISO, you can mount and burn files of almost every format – BIN, ISO, NRG, CDI, and DAA.
A very useful feature of this file when your system is running on Windows 7 is the aptitude to create USB bootable flash drives. The versatility of the application is revealed when it comes to knowing that apart from mounting ISO files it can also very easily rip MP3, APE, WMA, BIN, or FLAC files.
4. WinCDEmu
WinCDEmu is an open-source ISO mounting software that can be integrated into the Windows Explorer once installed, so you will be able to utilize this app from right-click menu. It has simple functionality, and you can mount ISO files with a simple click.
Not only ISO files but also CUE, CCD, NRG, MDS/MDF, and the IMG images are supported by this well-off application. While using this application, you’d also get the ability to create as many virtual drives as you want. Even though it does not provide as many features like Power ISO or Daemon Tools, it is the best solution when you have basic needs on your computer.
5. Virtual CloneDrive
Virtual CloneDrive has made it to our list of top 13 best software to create virtual drives and mount ISO images. This software comes for free for almost all Windows operating systems, and you can download it from the official website.
You can easily mount ISO files and put them on the virtual drives. The only drawback of this application is that you cannot create unlimited virtual drives but only eight. However, if 8 virtual drives will do your task, then it can be one of the best mounting applications for Windows which is easy to use and is not going to cost you any money.
6. ISODisk
ISODisk is a freeware which you can use to create virtual CD/DVD drive up to 20 drivers. You need to mount an ISO disk image which you want to burn. The software will automatically access the files available on the ISO disk and burn it to CD or DVD. It works in the opposite direction as well. You can create an ISO image file from a CD or DVD ROM.
- Features of ISODisk:
- ●There is no requirement of any virtual drive software to use ISODisk.
- ●It enables the user to mount ISO image files to CD or DVD.
- ●It enables the user to create ISO files from CD or DVD-ROM.
- ●It allows the user to mount an ISO image for on LAN.
7. gBurner Virtual Drive
gBurner Virtual Drive is a powerful tool which you can create to manage and customize the CD or DVD drives. It offers a free utility to create CD/DVD by burning the ISO image completely. It is designed with advanced CD/DVD based programs and is technically advanced to access the games, music and software using the virtual drive. So, you can easily create a virtual drive space using gBurner Virtual Drive and use it as a real CD/DVD-ROM. It provides the user with a platform where they can run any program or play games or compute other tasks using the virtual created CD or DVD drive.
- Features of gBurner Virtual Drive:
- ●Easily create virtual data, audio and video discs in various types, including CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, BD-R, BD-RE, etc.
- ●It is helpful in the creation of multisession discs and bootable USB drives.
- ●It gives great support to ISO 9660, Joliet and UDF file systems.
- ●You can easily copy CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs using it.
- ●Audio CD-TEXT, MP3, wma, wav, flac, ape and ogg formats are supported.
- ●It enables the user to easily open, create, modify, extract, compress, convert and burn the disc image file to CD/DVD-ROM.
- ●This tool works automatically to analyze all the disc image files.
- ●You can mount wim, vmdk, vhd, and vdi virtual disk image files.
Download Windows 10 Disc Image (iso File) For Mac
8. Free ISO Burner
Free ISO Burner is a free service to burn the image file and convert it to a CD/DVD-ROM. It supports a wide range of image files and CD/DVD-ROM drives. You can create CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, HD DVD and Blu ray Disc. This tool is capable to write all the data directly to created drives. There is no requirement to mention of virtual drives for the emulation of physical drives.
- Features of Free ISO Burner:
- ●It takes a few simple steps to complete the process.
- ●It allows the user to select the drivers, customize the disk volume, burn speed, burn cache size and abort the burning process.
- ●It gives great support to a bootable CD image file.
- ●You can select the final disc which you want to play using the virtual drive.
9. ISO Workshop
Here comes another application which you can get on your PC for the management of the ISO image and CD/DVD-ROM. It is a well-designed program with complex codes and allows the user to work with the mounting and creating process in an innovative way. You can easily use this site for the conversation of ISO images, extraction of the disc images to convert and burn it to make CD/DVD/Blu-ray disc.
- Features of ISO Workshop:
- ●It is capable to burn an image or any other disc image and convert it to CD/DVD/Blu-ray disc.
- ●It allows the user to create a standard or bootable ISO which is compatible with any file system.
- ●Extraction of disc images is also done using the application.
- ●It enables the user to copy and convert CD/DVD/BD to ISO image.
- ●It is compatible with Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10 (32-bit and 64-bit)
10. OSFMount
OSFMount is used for only mounting of images and disk files. You will not be able to create a disc space using this tool. Get this application downloaded on your device and mount all the local disk image files with a drive letter.
- Features of OSFMount:
- ●It takes the use of mounted volume’s drive letter for the analyzation and read of the disk image file.
- ●It won’t let the mounting process alter the original image files.
- ●It takes the image files for the read-only process.
11. Pismo File Mount
Here comes another application which is available with mount only option. You can easily mount ZIP, ISO, Compact ISO, Compact File Set and Private Folder files and convert them to the various file system as virtual drives. You can customize its services as per your choice an select the usage i.e., personal and professional.
- Features of Pismo File Mount:
- ●It enables the user to mount the zip files in the read-only format. The application accesses its content and converts it into the disk space.
- ●It supports ISO and CISO image formats.
- ●It had an imbuing CD/DVD image file reader and compact file set, reader.
12. TotalMount
TotalMount gives the complete solution to mount CD/DVD and create a virtual drive. It burns the ISO image file without accessing the optical disk. It analyses the system and automatically selects the drive to be burn.
- Features of TotalMount:
- ●It is featured with CD-RW, DVD+RW and CD/DVD-ROM emulator.
- ●It us capable to mount the iStorage Server and another iSCSI target with the help of iSCSI initiator.
- ●It allows the user to mount and create an image file and VHD files.
- ●It renders 8 virtual drives and a simple management tool to set up the virtual drives.
- ●It is compatible with x86 and x64 machines.
- ●It does not out any restriction on disk capacity, RAM or installation of the hard disk.
13. ImDisk Toolkit
It is a simple tool which is used for mounting image files belonging to hard-drive, CD-ROM or Floppy. You can also create one or more RAM disk depending upon the various factors.
- Features of ImDisk Toolkit:
- ●It is powered with various tools like ImDisk Virtual Disk Driver and DiscUtils library.
- ●You can easily customize the number of image files and use other features for mounting.
- ●It has a simple and interactive interface.
Final Verdict
So, now you are aware of these top 13 applications that can be used to mount ISO files and create virtual drives. All of these applications are already being used by millions of people worldwide, and each of them has their own set of features.
With the help of these applications, it is just a piece of cake to mount ISO as well as other image files, like CUE, CCD, MDS/MDF, NRG, and IMG. Therefore, you will need to choose the one which suits your needs the best.
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Most new PCs don't come with DVD drives anymore. So it can be a pain to install Windows on a new computer.
Luckily, Microsoft makes a tool that you can use to install Windows from a USB storage drive (or 'thumbdrive' as they are often called).
But what if you don't have a second PC for setting up that USB storage drive in the first place?
In this tutorial we'll show you how you can set this up from a Mac.
You can download the ISO file straight from Windows. That's right - everything we're going to do here is 100% legal and sanctioned by Microsoft.
If you want an English-language version of the latest update of Windows 10, you can download the ISO here.
If you have a relatively new computer, you probably want the 64-bit version. If you're not sure, go with the 32-bit version to be safe.
If you want a non-English-language version of Windows, or want to get an older update version, download the ISO here instead.
The ISO file is only about 5 gigabytes, but I recommend you use a USB drive with at least 16 gigabytes of space just in case Windows needs more space during the installation process.
I bought a 32 gigabyte USB drive at Walmart for only $3, so this shouldn't be very expensive.
Stick your USB drive into your Mac. Then open your terminal. You can do this using MacOS Spotlight by pressing both the ⌘ and Space bar at the same time, then typing 'terminal' and hitting enter.
Don't be intimidated by the command line interface. I'm going to tell you exactly which commands to enter.
Windows 10 Iso Mac Download
Open Mac Spotlight using the ⌘ + space keyboard shortcut. Then type the word 'terminal' and select Terminal from the dropdown list.
Paste the following command into your terminal and hit enter:
diskutil list
You will see output like this (note - your Mac's terminal may be black text on a white background if you haven't customized it).
Mac Iso File Download
Copy the text I point to here. It will probably be something like
/dev/disk2
.
Next format your USB drive to Windows FAT32 format. This is a format that Windows 10 will recognize.
Note that you should replace the disk2
with the name of the your drive from step 3 if it wasn't disk2
. (It may be disk3
or disk4
).
Run this command using the correct disk number for your USB:
diskutil eraseDisk MS-DOS 'WIN10' GPT /dev/disk2
Then you'll see terminal output like this.
This will probably only take about 20 seconds on a newer computer, but may take longer on an older computer.
Note that for some hardware, you may instead need to run this command, which uses the MBR format for partitioning instead of GPT. Come back and try this command if step 7 fails, then redo steps 5, 6, and 7:
Now we're going to prep our downloaded ISO file so we can copy it over to our USB drive.
You will need to check where your downloaded Windows 10 ISO file is and use that. But your file is probably located in your ~/Downloads
folder with a name of Win10_1903_V1_English_x64.iso
.
hdiutil mount ~/Downloads/Win10_1903_V1_English_x64.iso
Update April 2020: One of the files in the Windows 10 ISO – install.wim – is now too large to copy over to a FAT-32 formatted USB drive. So I'll show you how to copy it over separately.
Thank you to @alexlubbock for coming up with this workaround.
First run this command to copy over everything but that file:
rsync -vha --exclude=sources/install.wim /Volumes/CCCOMA_X64FRE_EN-US_DV9/* /Volumes/WIN10
Then run this command to install Homebrew (if you don't have it installed on your Mac yet):
/usr/bin/ruby -e '$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)'
Then use Homebrew to install a tool called wimlib with this terminal command:
brew install wimlib
Then go ahead and create the directory that you're going to write the files into:
mkdir /Volumes/WIN10/sources
Then run this command. Note that this process may take several hours, you may see 0% progress until it finishes. Don't abort it. It will use wimlib to split the install.wim file into 2 files less than 4 GB each (I use 3.8 GB in the following command), then copy them over to your USB:
wimlib-imagex split /Volumes/CCCOMA_X64FRE_EN-US_DV9/sources/install.wim /Volumes/WIN10/sources/install.swm 3800
Once that's done, you can eject your USB from your Mac inside Finder.
Congratulations - your computer now should boot directly from your USB drive. If it doesn't, you may need to check your new PC's BIOS and change the boot order to boot from your USB drive.
Windows will pop up a screen and start the installation process.
Enjoy your new PC, and your newly-installed copy of Windows.