Writing a build to a USB stick or USB drive

USB sticks and USB drives are handy for smaller builds, for booting a spare PC into a retro build without touching its hard drive, and for carrying a Windows front end between machines. There are two quite different jobs here, so first work out which one you have.

Image or folder? Check first

• A single .img file after extracting: this is a complete system (such as Batocera). You write it to the stick, which wipes the stick. Follow the steps below.
• A folder of files (often with an .exe launcher inside): this is a Windows front end. You copy it to the drive like normal files, and may need a particular drive letter. Skip to “Copying a Windows build” below, and see installing PC builds.

The build’s post always says which kind it is. Not extracted yet? See extracting RAR and 7z files.

Big warning: writing an image wipes everything on the target. Double check you have picked your SD card, SSD or stick, and not your computer’s own drive. If in doubt, unplug every other external drive first.

Choosing a stick

• Size: at least as big as the image, ideally a size up, because sticks of the “same” size vary a little. See the image will not fit.
• Speed: get a USB 3 stick and use a USB 3 port. Cheap USB 2 sticks make games load slowly and writing takes forever.
• Bigger builds: a USB SSD (a proper solid state drive in a small case) is much faster and tougher than a stick. See writing to an SSD or hard drive.

Writing an image with balenaEtcher

1. Install balenaEtcher from etcher.balena.io.
2. Plug in the USB stick.
3. Open Etcher and click Flash from file. Choose your .img.
4. Click Select target and pick the stick. Check the name and size.
5. Click Flash! and wait for flashing and validating to finish.

Writing an image with Rufus (Windows)

1. Download Rufus from rufus.ie. It does not even need installing.
2. Plug in the stick and open Rufus.
3. Under Device, pick your stick. Using a USB SSD or hard drive? Open Show advanced drive properties and tick List USB Hard Drives.
4. Click SELECT and choose your .img. Rufus switches to writing the image as it is, so leave the other settings alone.
5. Click START, confirm the warning that the stick will be wiped, and wait for READY.

Win32 Disk Imager (download page) works too: pick the stick’s drive letter, pick the .img, click Write. On a Mac, use balenaEtcher.

Windows asks to format the stick? Click Cancel

After writing, Windows may say the stick needs formatting, or show several drives it cannot open. Click Cancel. That is normal: the stick now holds a system Windows cannot read. Formatting would wipe the build.

Booting from the stick

1. Plug the stick into the PC you want to play on, while it is switched off.
2. Switch on and immediately tap the boot menu key. It is often F12, F11, F10, F8 or Esc depending on the maker; the start up screen usually shows it.
3. Choose the USB stick from the list. If it is not there, enter the BIOS setup and check USB boot is allowed. Some builds also need Secure Boot turned off; the build’s post will say.
4. Be patient on first boot while the build sets itself up.

Your PC’s own drive is untouched when you boot from USB. Pull the stick out and it starts as normal.

Copying a Windows build to a USB drive

1. Format the drive as NTFS or exFAT if it is empty (FAT32 cannot hold files over 4GB).
2. Copy the extracted build folder onto it, in the place the build’s post says (often the top level of the drive).
3. If the post asks for a drive letter, set it in Windows Disk Management by right clicking the drive and choosing Change Drive Letter and Paths.
4. Run the launcher the post names.

Longer guide: How to Write a Retro Gaming Image to an SD Card, SSD or USB Drive.

Still stuck? See it will not boot or first boot, or ask in our Discord.