YUMI – Multiboot USB Creator

YUMI Basic Essentials

NOTE: YUMI exFAT works with exFAT formatted USB drives. For the legacy variant, your USB drive must be Fat32/NTFS formatted, otherwise Syslinux will fail and as a result, your drive will NOT Boot. NTFS may not work with every distribution but is required for storing files over 4GB. The UEFI variant must use Fat32 format.

The Installer will format your select USB drive, but be aware that all partitions on the select disk will also be deleted. Ensure that you have made a backup of any information you want to keep before using YUMI on any drive.

Basic Essentials to create a Multi System Bootable USB Drive

Recommended: You will have the best experience when using a Fast SSD Flash Drive. Here is a list of recommended Fast Flash Drives.

• 2GB+ Formatted Flash Drive (128-256GB recommended).
• Computer that can boot from USB.
• Windows 11, 10, 8, 7 Operating Environment.
• YUMI (to create a Multiboot Bootable USB).
• Your favorite ISO Files.

Please inform me of unlisted “FREE” Live Linux distributions or version revisions, and I will attempt to update the USB Multiboot Tool to support them. Additionally, developers who wish to have their Live Linux distribution added, can direct me to a copy to try.

YUMI exFAT Changelog

• 12 Mar 2023 Version 1.0.1.4a: Update Phoenix OS Lite + Windows X-Lite website and build links.
• 09 Mar 2023 Version 1.0.1.4: Implement upstream bootloader changes from ventoy 1.0.89. Improve and add control parameters to json file.
• 28 Feb 2023 Version 1.0.1.3: Added Proxmox ISO support.
• 04 Feb 2023 Version 1.0.1.2: Repair broken PhoenixLite OS entry.
• 04 Feb 2023 Version 1.0.1.1: Update to support newer Memtest86 and Memtest86+ versions.
• 26 Jan 2023 Version 1.0.1.0: Update to support ClearLinux Desktop and Server ISOs. Implement upstream changes from ventoy 1.0.88. Include YUMI theme on first partition.
• 05 Dec 2022 Version 1.0.0.9: Fixed option to run Ventoy2Disk.exe from within YUMI.
• 29 Nov 2022 Version 1.0.0.8: Added support for Elementary OS, Ubuntu Mate, and Parrot OS.
• 07 Aug 2022 Version 1.0.0.7: Run a full Ubuntu and CentOS Install from a RAW Image .VDI file on USB (VDisk).
• 05 July 2022 Version 1.0.0.6: Included several more supported Linux distributions and download links.
• 05 July 2022 Version 1.0.0.5: Add option to set VHDx size via slider and select Windows install image number when using the option to Run Windows 11 from USB. Update Mke2fs to later version supporting ext4 persistent file creation. Remove persistent file size limit.
• 15 June 2022 Version 1.0.0.4: Fix to check for Ventoy folder when used with VHDboot.img.
• 08 June 2022 Version 1.0.0.3: Add ability to Fully Run Windows from USB via VHDx image of PhoenixOS Lite.
• 06 June 2022 Version 1.0.0.2: Added support for Linux Lite and MX Linux with persistence.
• 17 May 2022 Version 1.0.0.1: Update to work on multiple Windows builds. Added Persistence support for Fedora, ArchLinux, and Kaspersky.

YUMI UEFI Changelog

• 03 Jul 2022 Version 0.0.4.6: Detect if running natively or from WINE.
• 05 Mar 2022 Version 0.0.4.5: Detect if Windows install.swm file exists before using DSIM. Don’t display Unlisted ISO menu entries if no files exist in the directory.
• 29 Jan 2022 Version 0.0.4.4: Added support for newer Redo Rescue Backup and Recovery versions.
• 25 Nov 2021 Version 0.0.4.3: Quick Fix to allow spaces in Windows user profile.
• 18 Oct 2021 Version 0.0.4.2: Updated to support writable persistence for Lubuntu, Xubuntu, Kubuntu 20.04+.
• 28 Aug 2021 Version 0.0.4.1: Updated to support newer Archbang and Archlinux.
• 22 Aug 2021 Version 0.0.4.0: Fixed error “YUMI will not attempt to install on (disk 0). Did you select a drive?” after uninstalling a distribution and then proceeding to install another. Allow previously selected disk number to persist on subsequent installs.
• 04 May 2021 Version 0.0.3.9: Allow running from earlier; I.E Windows 7 versions. Moved checkpoint to prevent format and wipe option from appearing if OS is not at least Windows 8.
• 26 Apr 2021 Version 0.0.3.8: Re-enabled option to display drives detected by Windows as Local Drives (fixed) disks in addition to (removable media). Added secondary confirmation message before proceeding to Wipe and Format a drive. Added a checkpoint to prevent the installer from running if the operating environment is not at least Windows 8.
• 21 Apr 2021 Version 0.0.3.7: Fixed Windows 10 Installer to work with newer Windows 10 ISOs with an Install.wim larger than 4GB. Also added support for LinuxCNC.
• 16 Apr 2021 Version 0.0.3.6: Fixed broken System Rescue option. Also set to show (removable media) only. Devices listed as local (fixed) disks are not displayed.
• 19 Mar 2021 Version 0.0.3.5: Updated to support memtest 86+ 5.3.1. Also removed some distros that are no longer in development. Fixed some broken links.
• 19 Jan 2021 Version 0.0.3.4: Added Try Unlisted ISO option. Switched to use diskpart to wipe and create a single partition, then use fat32 format.
• 11 Jan 2021 Version 0.0.3.3: Updated to use Grub2 MBR instead of chain loading from Syslinux. Also added additional drive checkpoints.

Legacy YUMI Changelog

• 29 Jan 2022 Version 2.0.9.4: Updated to support newer versions of Redo Rescue Backup and Recovery.
• 25 Nov 2021 Version 2.0.9.3: Quick Fix to allow spaces in Windows user profile.
• 18 Oct 2021 Version 2.0.9.2: Updated to support writable persistence for Lubuntu, Xubuntu, Kubuntu 20.04+.
• 29 Sept 2021 Version 2.0.9.1: Bug Fixed – distributions were not being removed from the boot menu after using the remove installed distros option.
• 04 Aug 2021 Version 2.0.9.0: Updated to extract and run AmogOS with persistence from a directory.
• 23 Jul 2021 Version 2.0.8.9: Updated to support AmogOS.
• 04 May 2021 Version 2.0.8.8: Allow running from earlier; I.E Windows 7 versions. Moved checkpoint to prevent NTFS format and Wipe options from displaying if OS is not at least Windows 8.
• 19 Apr 2021 Version 2.0.8.7: Set to show Local Drives in addition to flashdrives. Include an additional confirmation prompt before proceeding to Wipe and or Format. implemented a checkpoint to prevent the tool from running if not at least Windows 8.
• 19 Apr 2021 Version 2.0.8.6: Updated to support Linux CNC. Also corrected Super Grub2 Disk entry.
• 16 Apr 2021 Version 2.0.8.5: Set to show removable media only. As a result, devices listed as local (fixed) disks are no longer displayed.
• 19 Mar 2021 Version 2.0.8.4: Removed some distros that are no longer in development. Also fixed several broken links.
• 11 Jan 2021 Version 2.0.8.3: Moved persistent file creation back to local drive when using NTFS format (You do still need to make sure you have enough empty space to store the persistent file locally while it is being created). Also created additional checkpoints for drive selection.

How to Create a MultiBoot USB Flash Drive (Windows)

1. Run* YUMI following the onscreen instructions.
2. Then, Run the tool again to Add More ISOs/Distributions to your Drive.
3. Restart your PC. But be sure to set your Boot Menu to boot from the USB device.
4. Select a distribution to launch. Then, boot and enjoy!

That’s really all there is to it. If all went well, then you should be booting your favorite distributions from your custom Multi-Boot USB device!

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Creating a MultiBoot Bootable USB Flash Drive (Linux)

The following instructions were performed from an Ubuntu host environment.

NOTE: The following method is currently broken and will be updated at a later point.

I. Format your USB Flash Drive to use a Single Partition:

1. Open a terminal and type sudo su
2. Type fdisk -l (and note which device is your USB Drive)
3. Type fdisk /dev/sdx (replacing x with your actual usb device)
4. Type d (to delete the existing partition)
5. Type n (to create a new partition)
6. Type p (for primary partition)
7. Type 1 (to create the first partition)
8. Press Enter (to use the first cylinder)
9. Press Enter again (to use the default value as the last cylinder)
10. Type a (for active)
11. Type 1 (to mark the first partition active “bootable”)
12. Type t (for partition type)
13. Type c (to use fat32 partition)
14. Type w (to write the changes and close fdisk)

II. Create a Fat32 Filesystem on the USB Flash Drive:

1. Type umount /dev/sdx1 (to unmount the mounted partition).
2. Type mkfs.vfat -F 32 -n MULTIBOOT /dev/sdx1 (to format the partition as fat32).
3. Remove and reinsert your USB flash drive, or remount it.

III. Install WINE:

1. 1. To install WINE from within an Ubuntu operating environment, first open a terminal and type sudo apt install wine, then press enter. Once WINE is installed, launch the installer as you normally would by simply clicking the YUMI-2.0.9.4.exe

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How a YUMI Multisystem Bootable USB Works

YUMI (Your Universal Multiboot Installer) enables each user to create their own custom Multiboot UFD containing only the distributions they want. Presented in the order by which they are installed. A new distribution can also be added to the bootable device each time the tool is run.

If you run YUMI from the same location you store ISO files, then they should be auto detected (*See Known Issues Below), eliminating the need to browse for each ISO.

Other Notes: If MultibootISOs was previously used, you must reformat the drive, and start over. The Legacy variant uses Syslinux directly, and chain loads to grub only if necessary, so it is not compatible with the older Multiboot ISO tool.

USB Bootable ISO files

Here are some Bootable Live Linux Distros, Portable Operating Systems, Windows Installers, and tools that YUMI supports installing and booting from. Do note that these do vary between the exFAT, UEFI Boot, and Legacy BIOS variants. This list is somewhat comprehensive but not all inclusive.

USB Debian Live

• Debian Live
• * Debian Installer

USB Fedora

• Fedora

Bootable USB Linux Mint (with persistence)

• Linux Mint
• * Linux Mint Debian Edition

USB OpenSUSE

• OpenSUSE 32bit
• * OpenSUSE 64bit

USB Puppy Linux

• DPup Exprimo
• Fatdog64
• Lucid Puppy Linux
• Precise Puppy Linux
• Racy Puppy Linux
• Slacko Puppy
• Wary Puppy Linux

Bootable USB Ubuntu (with persistence)

• Ubuntu
• *Ubuntu Gnome
• ** Ubuntu Server Installer
• *** Ubuntu Secure Remix
• **** Ubuntu Studio
• Edubuntu
• Kubuntu
• Lubuntu
• Xubuntu
• Backbox

Other Distros Alphabetical

• Android-x86
• Antergos
• AntiX
• Archlinux
• Bodhi
• Bunsenlabs/Crunchbang
• CAELinux (Computer Aided Engineering)
• CentOS Live
• ChaletOS
• Damn Small Linux (DSL)
• Fuduntu
• gpxe (Net Bootable Distros)
• KNOPPIX
• KXStudio
• Mandriva
• Netrunner
• OSGeo Live
• PCLinuxOS
• Peppermint
• Peach OSI Linux
• Pear Linux
• Pinguy OS
• Porteus
• PureOS
• SalineOS
• Scientific Linux CERN
• Semplice Linux
• SLAX (Tiny Slackware Based Distro)
• Slitaz (Another Tiny Distro)
• Sparky Linux
• SolydX
• Sugar on a Stick
• System Rescue CD
• Tails (Anonymous Browsing)
• Liberte (Anonymous Browsing)
• Terralinux
• TinyCore (A Tiny Linux Distribution)
• Ultimate Edition 3
• XBMCbuntu
• Zorin OS Core

USB NetBook Distributions

• EasyPeasy (NetBook Distro)
• Jolicloud (NetBook Distro)
• Ubuntu Netbook Remix
• xPUD (Netbook Distro)

USB Bootable Virtual Machines

• ProxMox (Virtual Machine Environment) VME

USB Antivirus Tools

• Acronis Antimalware CD
• AOSS (Malware Scanner) system\stage1
• AVG Rescue CD (Antivirus Scanner)
• AVIRA AntiVir Rescue CD (Virus Scanner) ; does install to root of drive
• Bitdefender Rescue Disk (Antivirus Scanner)
• Comodo Rescue Disk (Antivirus Scanner)
• Dr.Web Live CD ; does install to root
• F-Secure Rescue CD
• GDATA Rescue CD
• Kaspersky Rescue Disk (Antivirus Scanner)
• Panda SafeCD
• Windows Defender Offline

USB System Tools

• Acronis True Image
• BackBox (Penetration Testing)
• BackTrack5 (Penetration Testing)
• Boot Repair Disk
• Clonezilla (Backup + Clone Tool)
• DBAN (Hard Drive Nuker)
• Deft (Forensics)
• DRBL (Diskless Remote Boot in Linux)
• EASEUS Disk Copy (Disk Cloning Tool)
• FreeDOS (Balder img)
• GParted (Partition Tools)
• GRML (system rescue)
• HDT (Hardware Detection Tool)
• Kali (Penetration Testing)
• Memtest86+ (Memory Testing Tool)
• Matriux (Penetration Testing)
• Offline NT Password & Registry Editor
• Ophcrack (Password Finder)
• Parted Magic (Partition Tools)
• PING (Partimg Is Not Ghost)
• Partition Wizard (Partition Tools)
• Rescatux
• Redo Backup And Recovery (Recovery Tools)
• Rip Linux (Recovery Distro)
• Trinity Rescue Kit ; does install to root of drive
• Ultimate Boot CD (Diagnostics Tools)
• Web Converger (Web Kiosk)
• WifiSlax

Bootable USB Windows 10 8 7 XP and Other OS/Tools

• Linux Live Tools for OCZ
• Linux CNC
• Hiren’s Boot CD ; does install to root of drive
• Falcon 4 Boot CD ; does install to root of drive
• Hiren’s Boot PE
• Sergei strelec WinPE
• Other WinPE
• Kon-Boot Floppy Image
• Windows 10 8 7 Installer
• Windows XP Installer
• Windows To Go

Run Windows 11 from VHD on USB

The Install, boot, and run Windows from VHDx on USB option is available via the exFAT variant.

• Phoenix LiteOS – Put Windows 10 or 11 on USB

Unlisted USB Bootable ISOs

• Try an Unlisted ISO (SYSLINUX)
• * Try an Unlisted ISO (GRUB)
• ** Try an Unlisted ISO (GRUB Run from RAM)

Troubleshooting, Known Issues, Bugs

The Persistence feature is currently broken with Newer Debian based distributions due to changes upstream. Debian now requires the persistent block file and label to be named persistence instead of live-rw, and it must hold a persistence.conf file containing / Union.

With the Legacy variant, if you encounter a message stating

An error (1) occurred while executing syslinux. Your USB drive won't be bootable.

Make sure your drive is formatted using a Fat32 or NTFS partition with an MBR (Master Boot Record). An exFAT formatted Partition will not work. GPT (GUID Partition Table) Fat32 or NTFS Partitions are also not currently supported.

If you encounter a message stating

Insane primary (MBR) partition. Can’t find myself on the drive I booted from

First, replace your chain.c32 file located at multiboot/chain.c32 with (you’ll need to unzip the file) -> This zipped chain c32 File

If replacing the chain.c32 file does not fix the problem, your Bootable USB drive may be improperly formatted, contains more than one partition or MBR, or your BIOS is not properly detecting the USB drive as USB-HDD, and/or its firmware needs to be updated. You can try these methods to Format and Restore your USB Drive

Windows to Go/Installers – Options Explained

YUMI Legacy Variant:
The Windows to Go option creates a VHD file that is 20GB in size. As such, it requires the drive to be formatted NTFS. Fat32 cannot support a file more than 4GB in size. Many flash drives you might find at local department stores won’t be fast enough. You’ll need a Very Fast Flash Drive. When Windows boots from the USB for the first time, it will go through the setup process and then reboot. You’ll need to boot using your Windows to Go menu option a second time to finalize the setup process and finally boot into your full Portable Windows.

The Single Windows Installer/PE options are most likely to work for both stock and modified ISO files. When using it, you are limited to storing one Windows Installer per USB drive (I.E. one Win XP and one Win Vista 7 or 10). The Multiple Windows Installer/PE options allow for storing more than one stock Windows Installer per drive. Generally, only unmodified Windows ISO files will work with this option.

-wimboot option stores the extracted Multi Windows Installers in their own directory. -bootmgr option moves the bootmgr and bcd files to root of drive. (note: -bootmgr option does require a Windows Vista or later host to run bcdedit).

The Legacy variant does not natively include files to make it UEFI Boot from USB. However, it is still possible to boot and run your Windows Installers from UEFI. To switch between added Windows versions, navigate to the multiboot/win-directory (replacing win-directory with the Windows version you want to boot) on your USB. Once there, move the bootmgr, bootmgr.efi, and entire boot folder to the root of your USB drive. Then reboot, booting your computer from the UEFI compatible USB. If all went well, it should boot straight into your chosen Windows Installer.

Try Unlisted ISO – Options Explained

Legacy Boot Variant:

1. Try Unlisted ISO (Grub Partition 4) – This boot option will attempt to boot the ISO file using Grub. It adds a 4th partition table to the USB device and uses this as a placeholder for the ISO. This method should successfully boot most Linux based distributions.
2. Try Unlisted ISO (Grub) – Same as boot option 1, but attempts to boot the ISO without using a 4th partition as a placeholder for the ISO.
3. Try Unlisted ISO (Grub From RAM) – Same as boot option 2, but attempts to store the ISO in system memory and boot it from there. Useful for cases where the ISO is small, and you’d like to boot the OS and then move the USB to different machines and subsequently boot the OS from them as well.
4. Try Unlisted ISO (via Syslinux) – The original default supported boot option. Syslinux works to boot many distributions, but not all.

UEFI Boot Variant:

• Try Unlisted ISO – This boot option will attempt to boot the ISO file using Grub Partnew. It works by creating a 4th partition table on the USB device (a 4th partition must not already exist) to use as a placeholder for the ISO. Then, either the configuration file or Linux and Initrd files are located and Boot is attempted. The “Try Unlisted ISO” option found in the UEFI variant supports the ability to drag and drop new ISO files to try into the /multiboot/ISOS folder. They will be autodetected and added to the menu.

Multiboot folder and volume name.

Most added distributions are stored within the multiboot folder. This is also the root directory set for syslinux. In some cases, the Volume Label of your USB drive must be MULTIBOOT in order for OpenSUSE, CentOS and several other distributions to boot. YUMI will attempt to automatically create this Volume Label, however it can sometimes fail. So please ensure that the Volume Label of your USB remains MULTIBOOT if you expect your distributions to boot.

When booting Linux distributions from some laptops such as the Lenovo Yoga with a touchscreen, the acpi=off boot parameter might be necessary in order to successfully boot.

My PC wont Boot from my Flash Drive, but BIOS supports USB boot!

Some Flash Drives ship formatted (without a partition), but all variants require the drive to contain a partition with a MBR (Master Boot Record). To ensure compatibility, the installer will format your device.

How to force a rebuild of the Syslinux MBR:

This is very useful if your drive is somehow no longer bootable.

Legacy only:
From the multiboot folder on your flash drive, delete the hidden file ldlinux.sys and then rename the libcom32.c32 file to _libcom32.c32. Then use YUMI to install any menu item. The installer will notice that the file is missing and will then attempt to reinstall syslinux and repair the master boot record. Once finished, rename _libcom32.c32 back to libcom32.c32.

Other Known Issues:

TAILS – If your Multiboot Bootable USB is detected as a “fixed” hard drive and not a “removable” disk, (a few Sandisk drives have the removable bit flipped this way), you will need to remove occurrences of the boot parameter “live-media=removable” from the Live64.cfg file found at “\multiboot\tails-amd64-3.3\EFI\BOOT\” or consequently TAILS will fail to find the live filesystem.

The files for Flacon 4, Hiren’s Boot CD, Trinity Rescue Kit, Backtrack, Avira Antivir, and Dr.Web Live are stored outside of the multiboot folder. Most other distribution files remain contained within the multiboot folder. Feel free to inform me of a simple working solution!

The older variants support Windows XP Install from USB via ISO. In order for the Windows XP installation to succeed, you must perform the following steps;
1.) To begin an install, select (Stage 1)
2.) Upon first reboot, you must select (Stage 2)
3.) Finally, after (Stage 2) is complete – upon the second reboot, select (Stage 3) to boot the drive where you installed Windows XP. If this option fails, simply remove the flashdrive and reboot!

* The Legacy variant does support NTFS, however not all distributions will boot from an NTFS formatted device. Though Windows to Go and distributions containing files over 4GB require using NTFS with the Legacy variant.

Troubleshooting 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

This generally happens on the persistence file, when using YUMI Legacy with NTFS format. You may have to do this after adding an Ubuntu based distro with persistence on an NTFS drive. Though still possible, Fat32 filesystems don’t encounter this issue as often.

You will need to defragment your ISO or persistence file:

Defraggler <— recommended (free version works fine).

Defragmenting an ISO File

Additional Notes:

When using the “Try an Unlisted ISO (GRUB)” options in YUMI Legacy, broken or non-bootable menu entries can be fixed by editing its corresponding entry found in \multiboot\menu\menu.lst

If you don’t have a floppy drive and get fd0 errors while booting, simply add floppy.allowed_drive_mask=0 to the append line for the troubled entry. Although the best fix is to simply disable floppy in BIOS.

Persistently Saving Changes: YUMI uses the casper-rw persistence feature for some (but not all) Ubuntu based distributions. Yes, you can also have multiple persistent distributions, as each distro utilizes its own casper-rw file. * Persistence will not always work on NTFS formatted USB drives. Additionally, some distributions will not boot via NTFS.

Ophcrack Tables. In order to load Ophcrack tables, the tables folder needs to exist at the root directory of the USB device; (example F:\tables\vista_free). You can Get Ophcrack Tables from the Official Ophcrack site. Once downloaded, simply unzip them to the root of your USB. Because you’re using this method, you can have your Windows XP and Vista/7/10 tables all working together on the same device.

YUMI on Linux: Some versions of YUMI can be run from WINE.