Installing OS

• Conclusions from rufus boot management - https://github.com/pbatard/rufus/wiki/FAQ
  • Don't multiboot
  • Selected is the optimal configuration
  • Think about Target System (firmware). Recommended BIOS or UEFI for maximum compatibility. With Alt+E in rufus you can enable it.
    • BIOS - old systems
    • UEFI-CSM - new systems that behave like having BIOS (UEFI Compatibility Support Module)
    • UEFI (non CSM) - new systems incompatible with BIOS
    • BIOS or UEFI - both of them supported
  • Partition Structure comes from Target System:
    • MBR - Master Boot Record - old, BIOS way of partitioning file system. Needed for BIOS, UEFI-CSM, BIOS or UEFI
    • GPT - Needed for UEFI
  • File System
    • FAT32
    • NTFS - Needed for windows and made compatible by rufus with UEFI & GPT.
  • Plug the usb stick with the UEFI in a 2.0 USB port if you get an error like "A media driver your computer needs is missing. This could be a DVD, USB, or Hard disk driver. If you have a CD, DVD, or USB flash drive with the driver on it, please insert it now." - https://www.drivereasy.com/knowledge/a-media-driver-your-computer-needs-is-missing-fixed/

From Windows

Use some of these:

• rufus
  • reliable with lots of features: MBR/GPT, FAT32/NTFS, Bios/UEFI
    • UEFI & NTFS - see https://github.com/pbatard/uefi-ntfs
  • http://rufus.ie/
• windows media creator
  • https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10
  • create iso and then write it with rufus - for more control on how is written
• others
  • etcher - https://github.com/resin-io/etcher
  • macrium
  • easy2boot - www.easy2boot.com/
  • YUMI
    • doesn't know how to properly write UEFI
    • https://www.pendrivelinux.com/yumi-multiboot-usb-creator/
  • UUI
    • https://www.pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3/

Firmware: BIOS & UEFI

Use BIOS (or BIOS legacy mode for UEFI firmware) not UEFI. Best is to use UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) but is still having quircks. BIOS is old but stable. More about it and recommendations at the end at https://www.happyassassin.net/2014/01/25/uefi-boot-how-does-that-actually-work-then/ (!) Advices:

• Prepare firmware
  • enable legacy BIOS (disable UEFI)
    • You'll need to disable secure boot
• UEFI/BIOS must be configured before a OS is installed
• Booting from SDCARD slots doesn't work so you must use a card reader plugged via USB port if you want to use sdcards.
• You cannot have multi UEFI boot since UEFI expects the partition to be exploded. "However, E2B can 'switch in' partitions so that the USB drive will then contain a completely different partition such as a FAT32 partition containing EFI boot files. In this way, a single E2B USB drive can contain dozens of partition image files (.imgPTN files) which can each contain UEFI payloads and can be booted via UEFI (or MBR booted). See my blog article here for a more detailed explanation.
  • http://www.easy2boot.com/add-payload-files/adding-uefi-images"

BIOS Booting

• Use yumi

UEFI Booting

• The bootable disk
  • Type USB: USB Stick or SDCARD+CARD READER
    • a partition style
      • master boot record (MBR)
      • not GUID partition table (GPT)
      • MBR Partition scheme for BIOS and UEFI
    • File system must be FAT32 (that means FAT32 LBA - 0x0C)
    • Rufus created MBR + ESP partition type (0xEF) with no free space available. (
  • UEFI disk has a GPT - (GUID Partition table)
    • rufus - to properly format & make bootable flash drive - http://rufus.akeo.ie/
    • how to use rufus - https://www.itprotoday.com/management-mobility/easily-create-uefi-windows-10-usb-bootable-sticks
    • how to make it GPT(UEFI) bootable - manually - https://www.itprotoday.com/windows-8/q-how-do-i-create-bootable-usb-stick-can-install-uefi-system
  • The UEFI disks should be presented in UEFI firmware prefixed with "UEFI: ..." otherwise they probably are detected the usual legacy BIOS way.
• https://askubuntu.com/questions/737779/how-to-create-a-dual-boot-mode-pen-drive-which-can-support-both-uefi-mode-and-le