Installing Windows Without a Optical Drive

[Tlarson789]

Hey guys, I am building my first pc and I have only had Macs before. The case that I got does not have an optical drive to install Windows 8.1 from and I can't make a bootable USB drive because I am running Mac OS X on the rest of my computers. Should I get an external optical drive? I heard it is hard to install with an external optical drive. Or I could get a regular optical drive for the pc and install it outside the case and just remove it after installation since I won't be using one again. It would be like a external optical drive but without the extra steps. Again I don't even know how hard it is to install from a external optical drive.

Thanks in advance!

[Satlen]

Literally all you do is extract the iso to the root of a usb, and plug it in then boot from it.

[techguru]

Literally all you do is extract the iso to the root of a usb, and plug it in then boot from it.

not really

you have to burn the iso to usb

otherwise it won't boot

[techguru]

Hey guys, I am building my first pc and I have only had Macs before. The case that I got does not have an optical drive to install Windows 8.1 from and I can't make a bootable USB drive because I am running Mac OS X on the rest of my computers. Should I get an external optical drive? I heard it is hard to install with an external optical drive. Or I could get a regular optical drive for the pc and install it outside the case and just remove it after installation since I won't be using one again. It would be like a external optical drive but without the extra steps. Again I don't even know how hard it is to install from a external optical drive.

Thanks in advance!

there is programs on mac that can burn a iso to a usb stick

I think in theory you could even use disc utility

[ybriK]

Not sure if this will work. Also is there no pre-installed utility with macs that can install .iso to USB?

http://unetbootin.github.io/

[MoonlightSylv]

Rufus has been best with Windows isos so far https://rufus.akeo.ie/

[Satlen]

not really

you have to burn the iso to usb

otherwise it won't boot

 

completely false, I have done it many times and never had an issue

[techguru]

completely false, I have done it many times and never had an issue

then you didn't format the usb before hand

and still have the boot sector on the usb from another time

[Tlarson789]

Has anybody actually tried using any Mac programs to download the iso?

[Tlarson789]

And will a external optical drive work?