Using the Rufus download requires Windows 7 or higher, but since Windows 7 is no longer supported by Microsoft, you now should have at least Windows 10, and either the 32-bit or 64-bit version is fine. In addition, it can be run in a variety of Asian languages. It also supports multiple languages including English, Malaysian, German, French Italian, Portuguese and Romanian. Rufus is intended to make the creation of portable USB program installation media easier without the need for a CD or DVD. Regarding ISO Support: Every version since 1.1.0 allows users to create a bootable image from an. keyboards, so it is often used instead of the MS-DOS format. Regarding DOS and FreeDOS support: The Rufus default format selection is FreeDOS, which supports more keyboard layouts than the DOS one. Rufus runs using Windows 10, and users report successful deployment on Windows 11. Besides, the Windows end-of-life date was January 14, 2020. It runs faster than similar programs such as UNetBootin, Universal USB Install, or the Windows 7 USB download tool.

Supports multiple USB drive types: FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT, UDF and ReFS.

Creates and installs DOS or FreeDOS Media.

Works with uncompressed and compressed raw disk image files.

Other applications of Rufus include when you want to create DOS or BIOS firmware or just want to run your device in low-level utility mode.

When you need to restore factory settings on your laptop or desktop computer, a removable USB installation drive created using Rufus will also help you with that.

You will need this utility come time to create a backup of an OS currently installed, and you can use it on a device that does not have an OS installed on it yet. Upon using Rufus after download, you will select your preferred operating system from a drop-down list.

For Windows 11, a 16 GB USB drive is recommended. For Windows 10, for instance, it must have at least 8 GB of space on it. Using a USB device for this process provides you more storage space than a CD or DVD, depending on the capacity of your USB removable media.įor best results, make sure you know how much room you need on your USB device for creating bootable media. It converts a standard USB drive into a bootable installation drive. The Rufus software is available as an open-source download.