I actually was curious about some thing I indeed found possible: installing Windows 7 on a USB flash drive. I don't mean from, I mean using the OS, going online, and playing games on the flash drive. I have an 8 GB HP flash USB drive (Amazon.com: HP 8 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive P-FD8GB-HPV100W-FS: Electronics). That should be sufficient for a whole Windows 7 OS install (about 3 GB maximum) and extra drivers, updates, a few programs, docs, and maybe 1 installed game. I want to do this, because like us weird computer people, we like to do crazy stuff that makes no sense! (JK) Basically, I want to be able to switch the USB from computer to another, so I can always have MY computer with me, so I can do my Flash animating and my own games and programs even on the other side of the country, as long as the computer supports the drive and the OS. My dad's Mac has an Intel processor, so if I can get this to work, I could boot from the USB drive on his Macbook and use Windows 7! Haha, amazing!

This really almost seems like the future of computers: no more built in hard drives; all are removable, and compatible with any computer, PC or Mac. Compatibility and ease of use=the future. No more log me in; it is all about having your computer with you at all times, not over the internet. To expand the matter, 16 GB mini sd cards are releasing, meaning you could literally boot Windows, install games, programs, and create docs on a piece of plastic about the weight and size a third of a penny, which you could insert into any computer that exists and use your computer on another. Now that is the future. Wait until 100 GB+ Sd cards, and we are really talking.

I found some articles and stumbled upon this post: Install Windows 7 From USB Drive/Pen Drive

Now, first of all, this article is explaining how to install Windows ON a USB drive, not from and onto a computer hard drive, correct? If so, should I even follow these instructions, or would some one here give me better advice?

hello gravity
well yes you could put an operating system onto a flash drive and make the compuer boot from it but it would be localised just to that computer it wouldnt be transferable to other computers ,because during the installation of the operating system it installs all the relevant components of that individual computer ,so once it sees and installs all the parts for that computer ,should you transfer it to any another computer it would get very confused as it wouldnt find the parts it expects to find, and then you would also more importantly have the issue of copywrite and legalities of using an operating system on multiple computers

Hi

There was some discussion over that issue as well on PCHF some time back.

A major concern is the reduced life expectancy of the USB stick.

As a USB Flash drive can be read/writen only a certain number of times, and you can have a few hundreds (at least) such operations normaly per second, a drive may die within a month.

I have seen a drive (Kingston 1 GB with WinXP) die in 5 weeks here at work when I was testing that method (plus, it is unclear-and so legaly suspect-whether or not a licence is required for the Operating System you use on the USB stick...)

If you want information about installing WinXP from a USB drive, have a look here http://www.pchelpforum.com/hardware-...usb-stick.html.

So basically you guys are saying the drive will not be compatible with other systems and will fail because of over writing and reading. Well, my Dad's hard drive from a Pentium 3 build almost worked on my computer. It did not freak out, and for my situation I do not intend to use the OS like normal, only when I need to or am away (which wont be happening in a while). Also, I have a 2 GB USB drive which I use for normal things, so all that will be on the 8 GB HP drive will be Windows and the various programs. I just want to do it, because I really want to. I won't stop (or will try very hard) until I can use the OS on different computers. That is my goal.

Certainly, you can go and do it, and no one suggested you shouldn't.
Also, I do not see any reason for it to be incompatible with other operating systems if that is what you want:

Install windows FROM a usb drive.

We would have been remiss, tough, not to have pointed out the effect it will have on the thumbdrive itself.

If what you seek, though is to create a USB drive that Windows runs FROM it:
Windows PE provides information on the legal background of this, as by your statement you will not run the USB Windows installation on a single system:
"My dad's Mac has an Intel processor, so if I can get this to work, I could boot from the USB drive on his Macbook and use Windows 7! Haha, amazing!"

The technical aspects of what you attempting are intriguing, however, it is illegal and further assistance is not allowed.

I'm not arguing with anyone here. I don't think any of us are lawyers - I'm certainly not, but on the issue of copywrite and legalities of using an operating system on multiple computers technically it is only being used on one system at a time so there is no copywrite issue.

It would be no different to scrapping your old PC and installing your existing OS on your new build. So I do not think it would be illegal. Installing on more than one PC at a time is a completely different issue.

But as George and Fixit pointed out, with the USB drive technology as it stands today, your drive will be burned out in a very short time.

Solid state hard drives, however, are on the market now which may have fixed the read/write issue.

Heck, go for it. The world only moves forward by people thinking outside the box.

If one has a Retail verion of Windows, one is entitled to install it on one system at a time as you correctly have stated..

Before we advise a person to "go for it", we have to provide that individual with the information we have.

What if a person comes on the forum, sees your comment and "goes for it" on an OEM Version, then is accused of using software in a manner violationg the Licence Agreement?