Is this possible, and what are the pitfalls, if any?

Ok, at present (most of you know), I have two identical 500 GB 2.5" SSDs. One is running Windows 10 Home, the other... Windows 11 Home. On both, my Windows partitions are 200 GB.
When I want to switch between them, I just physically move the cables from one to the other.

While reading another topic... I had an idea. Oh noes!

I also have a blank 256 GB USB 3.1 stick. I have current backups of both my Win 10 and Win 11 installs.

Would it be possible to "restore" my Windows 11 backup, to the 256 GB USB stick, then be able to boot to that USB stick?

Is this possible, and what if any changes would I have to make to the USB stick or my boot record, to make this workable?

@hsehestedt

P.S. The USB stick I have is "almost" as fast as my internal 2.5" SSDs.

Mike,

I have not seen exactly what you want but ...

Take a look at
How to Run Windows 11 on a USB Drive - Toms Hardware
How to create a Windows to Go version of Windows 11 - TWC
both of which involve use of
Rufus

I think @glasskuter knows about this subject.

My concerns were:
- I don't know how you'd cope with non-compliant host computers.
- I don't know how activation will behave.
- There is a recurring need to verify your identity every time you connect to a different computer and hence, if I have understood it correctly, a need to have an internet connection during startup.
- There is / might be a constraint about updating to new Versions - this confusingly-worded warning is only given in the TWC article [under the sub-heading Can you still use Windows To Go?] & I might have completely misunderstood it. But I suppose rebuilding the USB every year or so is not a massive problem anyway, just massively boring.

Do post back about your adventures.
I considered setting up a Windows 11 USB but those constraints / uncertainties rather put me off.
I was interested because a USB installation would allow me to use Windows 11 when I felt like it without permanently tying up a whole computer.


Best of luck,
Denis

I decided to just try it out.


So I just plugged in the USB stick, made it GPT and am restoring my Win 11 install to the USB stick.

Ok, time to see if I can boot from it.

Mike,

You might also want to take a look at hsehestedt's contributions to
Booting from External HDD - ElevenForum
Ah, you're there already.

Denis

Well it didn't work.
I tried from the boot menu, both the boot manager version of the stick and just the stick itself.
I even tried Macrium's fix boot.

It "tried" to boot Win 11 from the stick. Made it to the spinning ring and before it got to the login screen, it errored.
I'm too tired for this right now. LOL

It "almost" worked. It was so close.
Normally, booting Win 11 from the internal SSD, it takes 8 spins then goes to the login screen.
This took approx. 20 spins... then errored. I assume it took more spins, just because it was USB stick running thru USB port.

The USB stick is a bit slower, not much...

Booting Windows from an external device is called Windows to Go.
But this is only possible with the Pro and upwards.

The wikipedia text don't say something about Pro but it works with Pro.
I tried it out with external Sata USB3 drive

syntoh

It is harder than it looks to setup WTG drives with an existing OS. It is easier to set one up as a clean install using one of various tools e.g. wintousb, rufus etc

Why do you switch cables in first paragraph of post?

Do you only have room for 1 SSD?

If so, you could create a vhdx file on 1st SSD, restore Reflect image of 2nd SSD to vhdx file, and create a dual boot entry. That assumes you have enough space on first SSD.

I was reading this...

syntoh said:

Booting Windows from an external device is called Windows to Go.
But this is only possible with the Pro and upwards.

Windows To Go - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The wikipedia text don't say something about Pro but it works with Pro.
I tried it out with external Sata USB3 drive

syntoh

Click to expand...

It is no longer available. You have to use 3rd party tools, or manually set it up. It works in Home as well

Try setting the Windows to boot into safe mode before imaging/cloning it. I've always created "Windows to Go" by applying an image to the USB device with dism and then manually creating the boot files in a separate system partitoin.

I'm not messing with it anymore tonight.
This is just my latest "what if" project.

It may have also been a setting in the BIOS. I didn't even look in there.

As you cloned the SSD into the USB, the EFI partition is pointing to a partition ID on the SSD
As the USB is GPT, recreate the EFI partition.
diskpart
list disk (take note of the USB drive number)
select disk n (replace n with USB drive number)
list part (take note of the EFI partition number)
select part m (replace m with the EFI partition number)
format fs=fat32 quick label=EFI
set id=c12a7328-f81f-11d2-ba4b-00a0c93ec93b
assign letter=W
exit
bcdboot G:\Windows /s W: /f UEFI (replace G with the USB Windows partition letter)
diskpart
select vol W
remove letter=W
exit
exit

Edit: correct mistyped

Ghot said:

Ok, at present (most of you know), I have two identical 500 GB 2.5" SSDs. One is running Windows 10 Home, the other... Windows 11 Home. On both, my Windows partitions are 200 GB.
When I want to switch between them, I just physically move the cables from one to the other.

While reading another topic... I had an idea. Oh noes!

I also have a blank 256 GB USB 3.1 stick. I have current backups of both my Win 10 and Win 11 installs.

Would it be possible to "restore" my Windows 11 backup, to the 256 GB USB stick, then be able to boot to that USB stick?

Is this possible, and what if any changes would I have to make to the USB stick or my boot record, to make this workable?

@hsehestedt

P.S. The USB stick I have is "almost" as fast as my internal 2.5" SSDs.

Click to expand...

Suggestion
Create a single EFI file on the USB stick plus a vdisk (vhdx) file on it.

then with disk part attach the vdisk -- clone your W11 system to the attached vdisk, Then nstall the bootloader (easybcd or bcdboot -- your choice) to the efi partition - now you are in business - just boot from the uSB. No need for rufus etc.

If there's enough space on the usb stick create a 2nd vhdx file -- clone your W10- to it, add the boot loader and then at boot from the USB device you should see a choice of W10 or W11 to boot.

"Seemples...."!.

Cheers
jimbo

jimbo45 said:

Suggestion
Create a single EFI file on the USB stick plus a vdisk (vhdx) file on it.

then with disk part attach the vdisk -- clone your W11 system to the attached vdisk, Then nstall the bootloader (easybcd or bcdboot -- your choice) to the efi partition - now you are in business - just boot from the uSB. No need for rufus etc.

If there's enough space on the usb stick create a 2nd vhdx file -- clone your W10- to it, add the boot loader and then at boot from the USB device you should see a choice of W10 or W11 to boot.

"Seemples...."!.

Cheers
jimbo

Click to expand...

I know you think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, but I don't do anything "V".
Thanks for the response though.

Ghot said:

I know you think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, but I don't do anything "V".
Thanks for the response though.

Click to expand...

These are PHYSICAL vhdx files -- nothing Virtual required as per VM's etc. Windows booted from these runs on REAL hardware -- no HYPER-V or other VM stuff needed. This is "Bog standard" Windows which has been around since Windows 7 days.

(And actually I HATE sliced Bread !!! -- Real baguettes or I make my own these days !!!!! nothing worse than a hideous Supermarket sliced loaf whether it's white, wholemeal or whatever --= full of chemicals that even people in a Chemi Lab might have to use "Space suits" before touching the strong forms of the additives).

Cheers
jimbo

@Megahertz

When I get back to this... I'll keep this in mind.
Thanks.

Maybe this could be easier to clone? Not tried it myself.

Ghot said:

When I get back to this... I'll keep this in mind.
Thanks.

Click to expand...

Correct mistyped.

Megahertz said:

Correct mistyped.

Click to expand...

Noted.

I had the feeling it wasn't gonna be as easy as just restoring my Win 11 image to the USB strick. LOL