Linux is a great open-source operating system that can be installed on any desktop or laptop. What sets Linux apart from Windows and macOS is that it has a number of different versions that suit all your needs, ranging from newcomers to hard-core users. We call these versions distributions. The best part is that you can download all of Linux's distributions for free and install them on multiple machines.

While searching for Rufus, beware of making the choice, as there majority of other platforms which may attract you for the easiest way to create a USB flash drive. But Rufus download is completely dedicated to Mac. Creating a Bootable USB with Rufus. The user needs a Mac computer which has Windows latest versions like XP or later. In today’s guide, we will be helping the mac users to create a bootable macOS Catalina USB drive, which they can install on their Mac devices. MacOS Catalina 10.15.6 beta 3 is the sixteenth and the latest OS released by Apple in June 2020. A macOS Catalina USB install drive is a great tool to have on hand to for quick and easy macOS 10.15 reinstalls. We show you how in this video tutorial. To create a bootable USB flash drive, you'll need a bootable image. Image files usually end with.ISO,.IMG, or.DMG. If you already have an image file you want to turn into a bootable USB drive, you're good to go! Otherwise, see this wikiHow to learn how to create an image from an existing CD/DVD or files on your Mac. Insert your USB drive into your Mac's USB port. Open Finder to find your USB or if your Finder preferences have been set, you can find it on the Desktop. Your USB drive will be completely erased in the following steps.

One of the most popular Linux distributions is Linux Mint. Each distribution serves as a different purpose and there is no exception to Mint. Basically, Linux Mint is specifically designed to produce a modern and elegant operating system which is very easy to use. The coolest part is that a Linux Mint stick can be created from macOS and Windows, meaning that you can boot from Linux without installation.

In this guide, we will show you how to create a Linux Mint bootable USB in Windows 10 and macOS. Before we proceed, there are a couple of things you need to understand about Linux Mint.

Why Linux Mint?

Linux Mint is one of the most used Linux distributions out there, as it is free and reliable. Like other distributions, Linux Mint can be installed on all platforms, including macOS, Windows, Android, and iOS. Linux Mint is widely supported by community and developers. The best thing about Linux Mint is that it is not vulnerable to viruses and malware attacks, which is ideal for testing purposes.

Creating a Linux Mint bootable USB is a no-brainer if you want to use it on a different computer. However, the process may be a little bit confusing to some folks. With that in mind, we are here to help.

Create Linux Mint Bootable USB on Windows PC

Windows is the most popular desktop OS and there are many apps that are capable of creating bootable Linux Mint USB installer. In this section, we pick up the best three one based on our testing.

1. UUByte LiteBoot

There are a lot of Windows users that are planning to give a try on Linux Mint. So at the beginning, we are introduing a couple of methods to create Linux Mint bootable USB on Windows, especially on Windows 10, which is now the most popular desktop operating syste.

Creating Linux Mint Bootable USB on Windows 10 is not hard at all. The first software recommendation is called UUByte LiteBoot. It is a leading program that's designed to handle all your needs for bootable USB thumb drive, including Windows, Linux and macOS. It also includes other modules for Windows ISO download and system backup and restore. Plus, it is buit with a modern UI and has a very pleasant user experience.

Step 1: Once you have UUByte LiteBoot installed on your computer, download Linux Mint onto your Mac (you can download it from here).

Step 2: Insert a USB thumb drive into Windows 10 where UUByte LiteBoot being installed. Make sure your USB device is fully compatible with the hardware, you can empty it and then reformat it using the built-in utility from right-click optionsl.

Step 3: Open UUByte LiteBoot on Windows 10 and then select Linux Boot from the main menu. Now, import the Linux Mint ISO file you downloaded earlier. Before the burning process begins, make sure you have made a copy of all important files on that USB drive.

Step 4: Click Burn button to start burning Linux ISO to the target USB drive. It usually takes about 7 minutes to complete the task. Please be patient and you will see an alear on the screen when it is done.

Step 5: Now, you have a bootable Linux Mint USB. You should insert this drive into the computer and start installing Linux mint on it by changing the first boot device to USB during startup.

In short, if you are in searching for a reliable ISO burner to create bootable Linux Mint USB, then give UUByte LiteBoot a try. It is lightweight, fast, and reliable.

2. ISO to USB

ISO to USB is a free program that lets you burn ISO image file to a USB drive, including USB Pen drive, USB sticks and USB thum drive. It is lightweight and features a simple user interface. However, it lacks some important features, including the ability to create ISO archive from external drives.

First off, you can download ISO to USB from its website and then open it on your Windows 10 machine. When the main menu shows up, click Browse to locate the Linux Mint ISO file you downloaded earlier. Select the USB drive you inserted and then hit the Burn button. The tool will start burning the ISO file to USB drive. ISO to USB has a high success rate, so you won't have any issues here.

3. RMPrepUSB

RMPrepUSB is one of the most powerful software for creating Windows and Linux bootable USB drives. In reality, RMPrepUSB is not just about creating a bootable drive, as it can do a lot more. One such thing lies in the ability to format USB and run USB speed test. And there are much more options for selecting bootloader and file systems.

This program is completely free (no subscription plans), so you don't need to spend some extra cash on its advanced features. However, it is only for advanced users as there are two many advanced settings being involved.

Step 1: Download RMPrepUSB from here and then open it on your Windows 10 computer.

Step 2: Once you are done, insert a blank USB drive into Windows . From the main menu, you can see the USB drive name showing up at the top.

Step 3: Click Prepare Drive to initiate the burning process and click OK from the popup menu. If this the first time you are using RMPrepUSB, the tool will run a test. Once the test is complete, repeat the above steps.

Step 4: After the bootloader information was written to USB, then extract the ISO file of Linux Mint image and copy the folder to USB. Now, it becomes a bootable Linux Mint USB.

To verifiy the burning successful or not, the user can test the result with QEMU emulator that is embeded into the program in default. You can see the option on left sidebar. This is the same as UUByte Boot Pro.

Create Linux Mint Bootable USB on Mac: Terminal App

You can create a bootable USB for Linux Mint from a Mac environment. However, you can not do it on your own as you need a little help from some third-party software out there. If you do some googling, you should find tons of them, but many of them might not work for you. Don't worry, we made a list of the best programs for creating Linux Mint bootable USB.

If you don't want to install some third-party app on your computer, you can use the dd command in macOS Terminal. This is a cool tool that allows you to execute some commands in macOS. In this case, you can rely on Terminal to create a bootable USB for Linux Mint.

Step 1: Insert the USB drive into your Mac and then open Terminal (Applications folder > Utilities).

Step 2: Enter the following command to convert ISO file IMG file:

hdiutil convert -format UDRW -o img_file_output_path linux_mint_iso_file_path

Step 3: Find the USB drive number and unmount the disk, X is the drive number of inserted USB drive:

diskutil list

diskutil unmountDisk /dev/diskX

Step 4: When all preparations are completed, it is the time to write the converted IMG file to USB, which becomes bootable afterwards.

sudo dd if=/img_file_path of=/dev/rdiskN bs=1m

Step 5: Ignore warning message that pops up uppon completion and eject the USB drive. You can now use this bootable USB to install Linux Mint on any computer.

Linux Mint Bootable USB Not Working? Troubleshooting Guide

The success rate of creating bootable Linux Mint USB is pretty high with recommended tools we suggest above. However, some user may experience technical error during boot, such as disk error or no bootable device found. Here are a few useful tips to fix the problem.

Issue 1 : USB drive not detected

Answer: First, make sure the USB drive is installed. On Windows 7 and later version, the dirve will be installed automatically when the USB is plugged in. If failed, you have to download the USB driver and install it manually. On Mac, you can format the drive with Disk Utility app.

Issue 2: Black screen during installation

Answer: If you got a black screen during install, it means the burning process failed. Mostly because the free space is not enough on the drive. At least 4G free storage is required for installation. Also, check the ISO image is valid. If you tried two programs and failed, then it is highly possible that the ISO file is damged. You have to re-download the file again.

Issue 3 : Installation won't start

Answer: This happens frequently on old hardware that does not support UEFI boot. You need to disable secure boot and swithc to legacy Boot in BIOS.

Wrapping Up

Creating Linux Mint bootable USB has been a lot of easier with modern software and applications, especially on Windows. Mac solution is much less due to the lack of apps from third-party developers. Honestly, there are far more options then the software listed above but they are the best among them so you don't take much time to test the candidate one by one.

Dec 16, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions

A Universal Serial Bus or USB Drive, also known as a flash drive is a portable data storage device that includes a memory which includes a USB interface. It is typically removable and much smaller than an optical disc. Any sort of data can be stored in this device. The drives are available in various sizes and as of to date, the 2TB(Tera-Byte) flash drives in terms of storage capacity are the largest ones available in the market.

Today, these drives are one of the most consumed used devices in the world. Thanks to their portable nature, affordability, and compatibility, USB drives are being used to send and receive endless information across a surplus of networks and platforms all around the globe. This small tool has opened the world to a stream of limitless options with respect to storing, transferring, copying data, and much more. One of them includes Booting the Mac from such a device.

Part 1. Reasons for Mac Boot from USB

Booting the Mac from USB in a way gives the power back to the user. The likeliest of the reason for choosing the boot from the USB method is that your Mac won't start which denies the user access to the computer. Using an external source like the USB drive helps the user get around the problem. It provides the user access to the contents of the internal drive, assuming the data is safe and not corrupted. It also helps to repair the Mac disk with Disk Utility and other tools. Here are the top reasons why the user should choose to Boot Mac from USB:

• Allows the user to install a different version of macOS.
• It allows the user to test a new version before you make the decision to upgrade.
• Allows risk-free testing of the Beta version.
• Faster and efficient.
• By installing older versions through USB, it permits certain Apps to run which are not compatible with the latest macOS.

Part 2. Preparations for Booting Mac from USB

To ensure a risk-free procedure certain measure should be taken:

• The user should buy a name-brand flash drive.
• The USB should contain 16-32GB of free space.
• The user should scan the flash drive with some reputable Anti-Virus software.
• The user should check to see what size of ports they have on the Mac. A 12' Mac only contains a single C-Type port.
• Make sure to purchase the C port flash drive to avoid any inconvenience.
• It is advised that the user should go with a USB 3.0 supported drive, with a size of 16GB to ensure a swift transfer of data.
• The USB drive should be formatted with a supported GUID partition.
• It should contain an OS X installer or a usable operating system to work with.

Part 3. How to Create Bootable USB on Mac

There are a few general guidelines that can help get your machine started which are mentioned above, regardless of the OS the user prefers. Here are the methods to create a bootable USB drive on Mac.

Creating a Bootable USB Using Terminal

The terminal is the default gateway to the command line on a Mac. It is just like the Command Prompt feature works for MS Windows. The Terminal feature ensures a hassle-free experience for the Mac user without the conventional pointing and clicking, the user just has to type the commands and the computer does the rest. The user can find Terminal in the Applications > Utility folder or it can be checked in the finder utility.

Using the Terminal feature is the most simple way to create the bootable USB drive. The user just needs to follow one easy step which is renaming the MyVolume portion of the command with the name of the drive. The name of the drive can be changed using the Disk Utility of Mac. Here are the steps required after opening the Terminal feature to create a bootable USB drive.

• Copy and paste the command which is suited for the version of the operating system into the Terminal window.
• The command for MacOS Mojave is as follows:
  sudo/Applications/InstallmacOSMojave.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume/Volumes/MyVolume
• Press the Return key.
• Enter the password.
• Confirm to erase the USB drive by typing Y followed by the Return key.
• The terminal will erase all the data inside the drive and create the bootable USB drive.

If there is a need to install a different version of the operating system then the user just has to replace the above-underlined command with their desired version of OS. For example, if the user wants to install Mac OS Sierra instead of Mojave then they would have to replace 'Mojave.app' with 'Sierra.app' inside the command line.

Part 4. How to Boot Mac from USB Media

After creating a bootable USB drive, the user simply needs to plug the created drive into the open port on the Mac. Here are the steps to boot Mac from the USB flash drive:

• Power on the system.
• Press and hold the Option (Alt) key on the keyboard when the computer starts.
• Select the USB drive as a startup disk when the option appears.
• The system will start the boot process off the USB drive.
• Install the operating system from the macOS utilities.
• Data can be restored by using the Time-Machine backup option.

Video Tutorial on How to Boot Mac into Recovery Mode

Part 5. How to Recover Data from Unbootable Mac

The Mac becomes unbootable when the BIOS which is a firmware that is used to perform hardware initialization during the booting process fails to recognize the startup process. It usually happens when there is a failed system update, system crash, damaged MBR, or when the drive becomes corrupt.

Recoverit Mac Data Recovery software is the most efficient option to recover all the lost data when Mac becomes unbootable. Developed by Wondershare, Recoverit is one of the most preferred recovery tools in the world. The tool provides an instant preview of what is recovered after a detailed scan. It allows us to connect almost every type of portable device and recover data from them. Data can be restored by performing the recovery and repair process. The process involves the installation of the Recoverit software that offers users the chance to get back the important data that they had lost.

Step 1. Create a Bootable Media

Make A Bootable Mac Usb

To recover data from an unbootable Mac, you need to create a bootable media first.

• Installation: Please Install Recoverit by clicking on the icon.
• Select an option: For your crashed Mac, please choose the 'Computer Crash Recovery' option.
• Initiate Recovery Process: Click on 'Start' for the recovery process to launch.

• Create Bootable Drive: Select the 'Create USB bootable drive' option and click on 'Create'.

• A pop-up dialogue will appear that will prompt the user to format the USB drive.
• Format the Drive: Click on 'Format' Now.
• Recoverit will show you the process of formatting the USB drive and creating a bootable drive.

• After a while, the bootable drive will be built up. And please follow the guides which Recoverit shows you.

Step 2. Recover Data from Crashed Mac

Here are the following steps required to recover data from an unbootable computer.

1. Select the Location

When you launch Recoverit, you can select a location to scan. In this case, we will be performing data recovery on Mac's internal hard drive (Macintosh HD) instead of any other connected source.

2. Scan the Location

As soon as you would click on the 'Start' button, Recoverit will take the needed steps for data extraction. If you want positive results, then try not to close the application in between.

3. Preview and Recover

When the data recovery process is completed, the application will display the results on the interface. You can go to any category of your choice from here and preview the retrieved content. Make the needed selection and click on the 'Recover' button to save your files to a secure location.

All hope gets lost when the computer becomes unbootable and the data gets deleted. Recoverit recovery software is the most convenient program when it comes to retrieving lost data from the computer.

Installing the macOS from a USB flash drive gives the user an instant solution when the Mac installer due to some reason refused to work. The method to create a bootable drive is easier than it sounds. Now, you know what to do whenever you want to upgrade your macOS from a bootable external source by following different methods to ensure a safe and hassle-free process. If you lose valuable data when the Mac becomes unbootable then you can easily recover the lost files by using the Recoverit recovery software. Recoverit guarantees data recovery in no time.

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