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I need a method of creating a Full install USB that boots both BIOS and UEFI.

Full install USB's have advantages over Persistent USB's as shown here: Running live usb on 2 different PC's

I want to be able to carry my customized Ubuntu 20.04 OS around with me and boot it off any x86-64 computer that meets Ubuntu minimum spec's.

I have seen a few methods of creating a Full install USB, but they are either not simple or do not boot BIOS and UEFI. The use of an image file seems like the best method.

C.S.Cameron
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1 Answers1

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Install Ubuntu from a Pre-built Image File.

This is another version of sudodus answer in step by step format.

If working in Windows:

The USB drive should boot on almost any modern X86-64 computer.

enter image description here

Thanks to sudodus for the image file.

In Windows it may be necessary to install 7Zip before proceeding. Rufus and Etcher will use it when working with the .xz image: https://www.7-zip.org/a/7z1900-x64.exe

If working in Ubuntu: you can use mkusb, Disks or Etcher to flash the USB drive. If using mkusb, select option "c" Cloning iso file... for flashing the image to disk. P7zip may be needed to extract the .xz image with Disks or Etcher.

C.S.Cameron
  • 19,519
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    Hi Appreciate the info. However, it's not an option for many people to blindly trust files hosted on someone's website.

    What would be great, is if you can describe a process to allow one to create it for themselves.

     – eugenevd Dec 16 '22 at 08:39
  • @eugenevd: Sudodus, the same person who created mkusb, created this image. The process to create a similar image from scratch can be found here: https://askubuntu.com/questions/1300540/how-to-duplicate-a-ubuntu-system-for-distribution. Some hints for creating the source image, such as BIOS/UEFI boot, can be found here: https://askubuntu.com/q/1403792/43926 – C.S.Cameron Dec 16 '22 at 11:58
  • @C.S.Cameron still... eugenevd is right.... anyone can inject viruses into them... no matter what they had created. – Rishon_JR Jan 02 '23 at 07:23
  • @Rishon JR: Please explain how to inject a virus into Ubuntu or any other Linux OS? The MD5SUM given above insures that the image file has not been tampered with. Mkusb is a popular USB creation tool trusted and used by many people. – C.S.Cameron Jan 02 '23 at 08:28
  • @C.S.Cameron I'm exactly sure but it could run some malicious scripts after install... – Rishon_JR Jan 02 '23 at 09:14
  • @Rishon If some malicious scripts are added to the .img file it will not pass the MD5SUM check. If some malicious scripts are added after any installation of Linux there will be problems – C.S.Cameron Jan 02 '23 at 11:26
  • @C.S.Cameron If I understand correctly they are suggesting that the creator of the image could have added a malicious script in which case the md5summ does not help. – bakcsa83 Jan 04 '23 at 14:07
  • @bakcsa83: As I said above, Sudodus, the creator of mkusb is also the creator of this IMG file. Mkusb is the only tool I know of for creating Persistent USB's in Linux. There are thousands of people using mkusb. I have not seen one person complain about mkusb. See: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/mkusb If you prefer you can build a similar USB by hand, see: https://askubuntu.com/a/1403793/43926 – C.S.Cameron Jan 04 '23 at 14:42