clear-linux-documentation/source/get-started/bootable-usb/bootable-usb.rst

.. _bootable-usb:

Create a bootable USB drive
###########################

Follow the instructions applicable to your system to create a bootable |CL-ATTR|
USB drive:

* :ref:`bootable-usb-linux`
* :ref:`bootable-usb-mac`
* :ref:`bootable-usb-windows`

Prerequisites
*************

* Use an **8GB** or larger USB drive.
* Download the |CL| live boot image or interactive installer image from the
  `Downloads`_ page.

.. _bootable-usb-linux:

Create a bootable USB drive on Linux\*
**************************************

Make sure you have have completed all `Prerequisites`_.

Before burning the image onto your USB drive,
:ref:`verify and decompress your image <verify-linux>`.

Burn the |CL| image onto a USB drive
====================================

.. caution::

   |CAUTION-BACKUP-USB|

#. Open a terminal emulator and get root privilege.

   .. code-block:: bash

      sudo -s

#. Go to the directory with the decompressed image.

#. Plug in the USB drive.

#. Identify the USB drive using the :command:`lsblk` command. This shows all
   drives attached to the system, including the primary hard disk. In the
   example output below, there are 4 drives
   (`/dev/sda`, `/dev/sdb`, `/dev/sdc`, and `/dev/sdd`) attached, where
   `/dev/sda` is primary drive. The remaining are three USB drives. The output
   also shows the mounted partitions (under the `MOUNTPOINT` column) for each
   drive.

   .. code-block:: bash

      lsblk

   Example output:

   .. code-block:: console

      NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
      sdd      8:48   1    15G  0 disk
      ├─sdd2   8:50   1     5G  0 part /run/media/user1/960c184f-3bb7-42b7-bcaf-0c1282
      ├─sdd3   8:51   1     8G  0 part /run/media/user1/704f3382-b26d-4f34-af1b-cb9aab
      └─sdd1   8:49   1     2G  0 part
      sdb      8:16   1  14.8G  0 disk
      └─sdb1   8:17   1  14.8G  0 part /run/media/user1/PATRIOT_USB
      sdc      8:32   1   7.3G  0 disk
      └─sdc1   8:33   1   7.3G  0 part /run/media/user1/LINUX MINT
      sda      8:0    0 335.4G  0 disk
      ├─sda4   8:4    0    28G  0 part
      ├─sda2   8:2    0   3.7G  0 part [SWAP]
      ├─sda7   8:7    0     6G  0 part /home
      ├─sda5   8:5    0     1G  0 part /boot
      ├─sda3   8:3    0   954M  0 part /boot/efi
      ├─sda1   8:1    0    28G  0 part
      ├─sda8   8:8    0    30G  0 part /
      └─sda6   8:6    0   7.9G  0 part [SWAP]

#. You must unmount a USB drive before burning an image onto it. Note that
   some Linux distros automatically mount a USB drive when it is plugged in.
   Unmount a USB drive with the :command:`umount` command followed by the device
   identifier/partition. For example:

   .. code-block:: bash

      umount /dev/sdd2
      umount /dev/sdd3

#. Burn the image onto the USB drive. The example below burns an uncompressed
   image onto `<your USB device>`:

   .. code-block:: bash

      dd if=./clear-[version number]-[image type] of=<your USB device> oflag=sync bs=4M status=progress

.. caution::

   |CAUTION-UNMOUNT-USB-PARTITIONS|

.. _bootable-usb-mac:

Create a bootable USB drive on macOS\*
**************************************

Make sure you have have completed all `Prerequisites`_.

Before burning the image onto your USB drive,
:ref:`verify and decompress your image <verify-mac>`.

Burn the |CL| image onto a USB drive
====================================

.. caution::

   |CAUTION-BACKUP-USB|

#. Launch the Terminal app.

#. Go to the directory with the decompressed image.

#. Plug in a USB drive and get its identifier:

   .. code-block:: bash

      diskutil list

   This will list available disks and their partitions, as shown in Figure 1.

   .. figure:: figures/bootable-usb-mac-01.png
      :scale: 100 %
      :alt: Get USB drive identifier

      Figure 1: macOS - Get USB drive identifier

#. Unmount the USB drive identified in the previous step. For example:

   .. code-block:: bash

      diskutil umountDisk /dev/disk2

#. Burn the image onto the drive using the :command:`dd` command.
   The example below burns an uncompressed image onto `<your USB device>`:

   .. code-block:: bash

      sudo dd if=./clear-[version number]-[image type] of=<your USB device> bs=4m

   To speed up the imaging process, add an ‘r’ in front of the disk identifier.
   For example `/dev/rdisk2`.

   Press :kbd:`<CTL>-T` to check imaging progress.

#. Eject the USB drive.

   .. code-block:: bash

      diskutil eject /dev/disk2

.. _bootable-usb-windows:

Create a bootable USB drive on Windows\*
****************************************

Make sure you have have completed all `Prerequisites`_.

Before burning the image onto your USB drive,
:ref:`verify and decompress your image <verify-windows>`.

Burn the |CL| image onto a USB drive
====================================

.. caution::

   |CAUTION-BACKUP-USB|

#. Download the `Rufus`_ utility to burn the image onto a USB drive.
   We use Rufus 3.5 here. **Only use the latest version of Rufus**.

#. Plug in the USB drive and open Rufus.

#. Under `Boot selection`, click the :guilabel:`SELECT` button.

#. Find and select the previously extracted |CL| image file.

#. Click the :guilabel:`START` button. See Figure 2.

   .. figure:: figures/bootable-usb-windows-02.png
      :scale: 80 %
      :alt: Rufus utility

      Figure 2: Rufus utility

#. When the dialogue appears, select
   :guilabel:`Write in ISO image mode (Recommended)`. See Figure 3.

   .. figure:: figures/bootable-usb-windows-03.png
      :scale: 80 %
      :alt: ISOHybrid image detected

      Figure 3: ISOHybrid image detected

#. Select the Windows taskbar menu for USB and select eject.

.. _Rufus: https://rufus.ie/
.. _Downloads: https://clearlinux.org/downloads