Create a Windows 10 Bootable USB Flash Drive on a Mac

Are you having trouble booting into Windows 10 on your Mac? One solution is to create a bootable USB flash drive that will allow you to troubleshoot and diagnose issues with your Windows installation. In this article, we'll walk you through the steps to create a Windows 10 bootable USB flash drive on a Mac.

Step 1: Prepare Your Mac

Before you start, make sure your Mac is booted up and running normally. You will also need an 8GB or larger flash drive that is formatted as exFAT.

Step 2: Download the Necessary Files

Download the Windows Support Software from Microsoft's website and save it to your desktop or another location. You can also download the AutoUnattend.xml file, which provides the location of the $WinPEDriver$ folder to load the drivers during boot.

Step 3: Create a Bootable USB Flash Drive

Insert your flash drive into a USB port on your Mac and open Disk Utility. Format the flash drive as exFAT. Next, download the Windows Install Media from Microsoft's website and save it to your desktop or another location.

Step 4: Add the Necessary Files to Your Flash Drive

Drag the contents of the Windows Support Software to your flash drive. You will also need to drag all the files and folders from the mounted ISO to your flash drive. To mount the ISO, simply double-click on the ISO in Finder.

Step 5: Boot into Windows 10

Insert your bootable USB flash drive into a USB port on your Mac and restart your computer. Hold down the Option (⌥) key while powering on your Mac to bring up the Boot Manager. Select the USB flash drive as your startup device and press Enter.

Troubleshooting Tips

If you encounter any issues during the boot process, you can troubleshoot using the command line tools in Windows. Make sure that the drivers are valid and restart the installation if necessary.

Creating a bootable USB flash drive for Windows 10 on a Mac is relatively straightforward. By following these steps, you should be able to create a working bootable USB flash drive that will allow you to troubleshoot and diagnose issues with your Windows installation.

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