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Every time I use Rufus to try to build a bootable USB stick, it says OK until I hit start, no matter what I try.

I tried changing USB sticks and finagling with permissions. Many of the "how to fix this problem" posts online are from older versions of Windows, that don't match the current choices.

Then I immediately get this error:

Error: Access to the device is denied
Olivia Stork
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eSurfsnake
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    can you access it from another application? or is it only rufus – totalynotanoob Aug 31 '20 at 13:59
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    Highly relevant: https://superuser.com/a/1538785. Some Windows applications block Rufus fro accessing the USB stick. – user535733 Aug 31 '20 at 14:00
  • Which version of 1. Windows, 2. Rufus and 3. Ubuntu iso file are you trying to use? And which brand names and models of USB drive did you try? – sudodus Aug 31 '20 at 14:00
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    If you previously used flash drive in hybrid DVD/flash mode created by dd or many tools then it may need start of drive erased. Reset USB flash that was dd'd to make it usable again, reuse https://askubuntu.com/questions/939230/formatting-a-usb-stick-unable-to-operate-usb/939266#939266 & https://help.ubuntu.com/community/mkusb#Re-use_the_pendrive – oldfred Aug 31 '20 at 14:01
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    Here's a common mistake some users make that results in the error. – user535733 Aug 31 '20 at 14:04
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    you could try balena etcher – Abhay Patil Aug 31 '20 at 14:19

1 Answers1

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Look for an error in your Rufus error message that says:

ABORTED: Cannot use an image that is located on the target drive!

The iso you are trying to use resides on the same drive as the one you are trying

to format. You are trying to saw the branch you're sitting on - what you are trying

to do was never going to work in the first place!


Please move your iso to a different drive than your USB, and be mindful that ALL

data on your USB drive will be erased.

If you got this error message do what the error message says and move the .iso file to anywhere in your home directory.

karel
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