Boot Multiple ISO from USB (MultiBoot USB)

How to Boot Multiple ISO from USB and create a Multiboot USB. This is a followup of our previous tutorial Boot ISO from USB. We had many requests come in asking How to Boot various ISO files from USB and I thought we should provide a few more examples. Please note that you will need a large USB device to be able to support every bootable ISO in the menu. I will  update and add more bootable ISO files to the list as I find the time to test them. You can also contact us to submit working Bootable ISO entries for inclusion.

MultiBoot USB Menu (You simply select an ISO to boot from USB)

Syslinux loads GRUB4DOS and the following Boot menu is presented.

Basic Essentials to create a Multi ISO Boot USB Flash Drive

• "Fat32 Formatted" 1GB-16GB USB Flash Drive (depending on how many ISO's you use)
  
• PC that can boot from USB
• Windows host to create the Bootable USB
  
• MultiBootISOs.exe
• Your select ISO Files
  

This process will currently enable you to do the following:

Boot Linux Mint 8 ISO from USB
Boot Ubuntu 9.10 ISO from USB
Boot Xubuntu 9.10 ISO from USB
Boot Kubuntu 9.10 ISO from USB
Boot Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Remix from USB
Boot Ubuntu 9.10 Rescue Remix from USB
Boot Ubuntu 9.10 Server Install ISO from USB
Boot Parted Magic 4.5 ISO from USB
Boot DSL 4.4.10 initrd ISO from USB
Boot Ultimate Boot 4.11 CD (UBCD) ISO from USB
Boot SliTaz Linux 2.0 ISO from USB
Boot OphCrack XP ISO from USB
Boot OphCrack Vista ISO from USB
Boot RIPLinux 9.3 ISO from USB
Boot boot.kernel.org (BKO) gpxe.lkrn from USB

How to Boot Multiple ISO Files from USB

1. Download and run MultiBootISOs.exe and follow the onscreen instructions
2. Grab the ISO files you want to boot (links provided below) and copy the ISO files to the root of your USB Flash Drive
3. Restart your PC booting from the USB device
4. Select the ISO you want to Boot from the Menu and enjoy!

That's all there is to it. You should now be booting your favorite ISO files from your Multi-Boot USB device!

The ISO Download Links

These are the ISO files that correspond to each item listed in the Menu.  Simply download the ISO(s) you want to run and copy them to the root of your USB Flash Drive.

Linux Mint 8 Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Ubuntu 9.10 Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Xubuntu 9.10 Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Kubuntu 9.10 Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Remix Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Ubuntu 9.10 Rescue Remix ISO
Ubuntu 9.10 Server Install Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Parted Magic Zip/ISO (unzip to obtain the ISO)
DSL 4.4.10 Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
Ultimate Boot CD Torrent (use a Torrent client to get the ISO)
SliTaz Linux 2.0 ISO
RIPLinux 9.3 ISO
OphCrack XP 2.31 ISO
OphCrack Vista 2.31 ISO
boot.kernel.org gpxe.lkrn (used to fetch and run other Linux distributions from the Net)

Notes: You can boot Ubuntu and remixes with persistence by using our Casper-RW Creator script to create a Casper-RW file on your USB device.

To make Ophcrack load tables when booted in this fashion, the Tables folder needs to exist at the root of the USB device. We have created a tool that can do this for you.

• Download and run Table Extractor For Ophcrack and follow the onscreen instructions

Boot Errors: While trying to run an ISO from USB, If you get a Boot error saying:

Error 60: File for drive emulation must be in one contiguous disk area

You'll need to defragment your ISO using one of the following tools:

contig -  Command line tool to defragment ISO files.

wincontig – GUI tool to defragment ISO files.

For information on how to try other ISO's, see the "CDROM emulation (virtualization) section" in the GRUB4DOS Readme file. Additionally, HERE is a good guide that explains how things work.

If you successfully boot from an ISO that isn't listed yet, let us know and I will add it to the list.

Please don't contact us asking how to boot X distribution. If the item isn't listed, I have not had the chance to try it.

Posted under: Flash drive installs using Windows