woeusb(1)

✨ woeusb(1) ✨

okay bestie, buckle up 💖 this is the woeusb(1) page from the WoeUSB User Manual, and it's literally about turning a Windows install DVD or ISO into a bootable USB. no cap, it's iconic. 🎀

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🌸 NAME 🌸

woeusb — Bootable Windows installation/PE USB storage creator 💅

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🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

woeusb [OPTIONS] --device|--partition source_media target_media

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✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so woeusb is a command-line utility that lets you create your very own bootable Windows installation USB storage device from an existing Windows Installation DVD or its ISO image. main character energy fr fr. 👑

basically what it does: it extracts all files from source_media to target_media, then installs GNU GRUB bootloader and a small configuration into it so it can support chainloading Windows BOOTMGR. 🫶

it also supports the UEFI bootstrap scheme — but in that case, the Windows UEFI bootloader is used instead. ✨

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💅 COMMAND-LINE OPTIONS 💅

🔥 CREATION METHOD 🔥

• --device / -d source_media target_device — drops target_device's partition table (if there's any), creates a new PC/Legacy/MBR partition table, creates a FAT32/NTFS partition spanning (almost) the entire disk, then sets up bootable Windows on it.

⚠️ WARNING: ALL PREVIOUS DATA ON target_device WILL BE DROPPED! like, gone gone. 💀

• --partition / -p source_media target_partition — mounts target_partition's file system, extracts all files from source_media into it, then makes it bootable.

⚠️ WARNING: ALL FILES EXISTING ON target_partition WITH THE SAME FILENAME IN source_media WILL BE OVERWRITTEN! 🙈

🎀 MISCELLANEOUS 🎀

• --help / -h — print application help message
• --version / -V — print application version
• --about / -ab — print info about this application
• --verbose / -v — be more verbose (yes, more talking, we love that)
• --debug — enable script debugging
• --no-color — disable message coloring 🌈➡️⬜
• --label / -l filesystem_label — specify label for the newly created file system in --device creation method

note that the label is not verified for validity and may be illegal for the filesystem 😭 so maybe don't go feral with it

• --workaround-bios-boot-flag — apply workaround for buggy BIOSes that doesn't consider a device bootable if none of its partition's boot flag is toggled. lowkey a lifesaver for cursed hardware 🧚
• --debugging-internal-function-call function_name (function_parameters...) — development option for developers to test certain function without running the entire build 👩‍💻
• --target-filesystem / --tgt-fs filesystem_name — specify the filesystem to use as the target partition's filesystem. Currently supported: FAT (default)/NTFS ⭐

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🍓 EXAMPLES 🍓

we love examples! literally obsessed. 😭💖

Completely DESTROY all previous data on a USB storage device, recreate the partition table and the target partition, copy the Windows files, and make it bootable

# woeusb --device win7_amd64.iso /dev/sdX
# woeusb --device /dev/sr0 /dev/sdX

Copy Windows files to an existing FAT partition of a USB storage device and make it bootable

# woeusb --partition win7_amd64.iso /dev/sdX1
# woeusb --partition /dev/sr0 /dev/sdX1

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⭐ EXIT STATUS ⭐

• 0 when success 🎉
• 1 (and non-zero if there's any) when failure 💀

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💀 BUGS 💀

refer to our issue tracker for any known issues 🔍

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👑 SEE ALSO 👑

woeusbgui(1)

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💜 AUTHORS 💜

• Colin GILLE / congelli501 <colingille@hotmail.com>
• 林博仁(Buo-ren, Lin) <Buo.Ren.Lin@gmail.com>

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okay that's the whole page bestie, you're SO ready to make a bootable Windows USB now 🫶✨ this was WoeUSB 5.2.4 giving woeusb(1) real main character energy — go forth and slay 💅🌈🎀