🔌 ISO downloader & USB boot stick
Download Windows or Linux verified and build a USB stick from it that the computer can start from.
What it does for you
- You can reinstall Windows or Linux when the computer won't cooperate any more.
- You have a rescue stick to get data off a broken computer.
- You try out Linux without changing anything on the computer.
Who it is for: Everyone who wants to set up a computer again, rescue it or try Linux.
What you need: An empty USB stick (at least 8 GB – it will be erased completely). Included in your account.
The computer doesn't start any more, or it is so cluttered that only reinstalling helps. In the past there was a DVD in the drawer for this. Today you need a USB stick – and the right contents for it, from a safe source.
Two terms briefly explained
- An ISO file is the complete contents of an installation DVD, packed into a single file. Vendors like Microsoft or Ubuntu offer their system for download this way.
- A boot stick is a USB stick that a computer can start (“boot”) from instead of its hard disk. With it you reinstall a system, repair it or try one out.
Downloading an ISO
- 🏠 Personal area → 💿 ISO downloader.
- Choose the category at the top: 🐧 Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Mint, Fedora and many more), 🪟 Windows, 😈 BSD, 🛡 Security & privacy (Kali, Parrot, Tails, Qubes), 🖧 Servers & virtualization or 🧰 Tools (GParted, Clonezilla, SystemRescue, Memtest …). Around 70 systems, updated daily.
- ⬇ Download. For Windows, choose the language first; Microsoft's download link is valid for 24 hours.
- After downloading, DasDing compares the file with the vendor's checksum (the file's “fingerprint”). If it says “✓ verified”, it is unchanged and genuine. Only verified ISOs appear under “My ISOs”.
Not sure what you need? For Linux beginners, Linux Mint or Ubuntu is a good choice. For a Windows reinstall, Windows 11. To test whether the memory is broken, Memtest.
TIP
For Windows you need your own licence to activate it. On computers where Windows was activated before, this usually works automatically.
Creating a stick
- 🔌 USB boot stick → 1 · Choose ISO.
- 2 · Choose USB stick. Internal hard disks are never shown – so you can't erase your computer by mistake.
- 3 · Method: “Write image 1:1” for Linux and tools; “Ventoy” for Windows ISOs or if several ISOs should go on one stick. (Ventoy is a small boot program on the stick that shows a menu with all ISOs on it at start-up.)
- 🔌 Write to the stick. The warning “⚠ All data will be erased” follows – back up everything on the stick first.
Starting from the stick
Plug in the stick, restart the computer and right after switching on press the key for the boot menu – depending on the manufacturer F12, F11, F8, Esc or F2 (shown briefly on the screen). Choose the USB stick there.
The computer still starts from the hard disk.
On newer computers Secure Boot (a protection against modified boot programs) sometimes prevents the start. With Ventoy, choose “Enroll key” on the first start and confirm. Otherwise change the boot order in the BIOS/UEFI menu.
This guide is also available in the program under 📖 Guides – with jump links to the other guides.