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I have installed and customized Windows 10 on my desktop computer. I want to create an ISO that captures this installation, including all its settings and installed software.

I plan to load this ISO onto a single-boot USB drive, using Rufus, or onto a multiboot USB drive, using YUMI. I will then boot and run my customized desktop Windows 10 installation from the USB drive, as if I had installed Windows on that drive.

If there is no way to capture a Windows 10 installation directly into an ISO, is there a way to convert the output of some other relevant tool to ISO? For example, there seems to be an option of saving drive C as a VHD and then converting the VHD to ISO. But it appears the latter step requires either a $40 purchase of IsoBuster (if indeed it can produce what I want) or a tricky manual process.

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    There and This absolutely is a way to do what you want and it doesn’t require paid software that like that shovelware ISOBuster. Seriously don’t purchase ISOBuster it cannot be used to accomplish your goals
    – Ramhound
    Commented Jun 10, 2021 at 11:04
  • Forget about the ISO file, ISO files are only needed if you want to write it to a DVD-R[W]. On an USD HDD you don't need an ISO file. I once read about a simple to use tool that does exactly what you want it is called c't-WIMage (capture an existing Windows installation as WIM image and build an Windows installer on an USB HDD that installs this image and new Windows). Unfortunately the project documentation seems to be German only.
    – Robert
    Commented Jun 12, 2021 at 12:37
  • This provides the steps to capture a WIM of the OS, however booting Windows from a USB drive [non-HDD] is a bit tricky since Windows only recognizes the first partition on a USB non-HDD drive (you'll need to house Boot on C:), even if it has additional partitions created via BSD/Linux, and Easy2Boot or WinPESE would be the best bet for this. You can create an ISO via the ADK's ocsdimg
    – JW0914
    Commented Jun 12, 2021 at 13:28
  • I appreciate the suggestions, but don't YUMI and Rufus require ISOs? As for the ADK, I believe it produces a PE. I didn't see how it would ISO my full Win10 installation.
    – Ray Woodcock
    Commented Jun 13, 2021 at 16:33
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    (Please reference users being replied to via @<user>, else it doesn't show in the inbox) The only way to create a bootable ISO of a Windows install is via oscdimg, which is only included within the ADK. Booting a Windows install from an ISO is not recommended because of the time it would take to boot it (the boot.wim would take significant time to decompress and mount on X:). WinPESE creates the look and feel of a full-fledged Windows install within WinPE and is what would be recommended for what you want to do (housing user data somewhere other than within the boot.wim).
    – JW0914
    Commented Jun 14, 2021 at 13:22

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