# Chapter 3
### Chapter 3
### Pre-installing Predator-OS
### Create USB boot device:
By using a bootable predator USB stick**,** you can**:**
1. Install or upgrade Predator**-**OS**:**
2. Try it without installing predator desktop and without touching your PC configuration**.**
3. Use all predator**’**s tools installed by default on the USB stick to repair or fix a broken configuration**.**
### Create a bootable USB stick with Rufus on Windows
This tutorial will show you how to create a bootable USB stick on Microsoft
Windows using[ Rufus](https://rufus.ie/)[**.**](https://kaisenlinux.org/documentation/install.html)
### Requirements
**You will need:**
| | A 4GB or larger USB stick**/**flash drive |
| - | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| | Microsoft Windows |
| | [Rufus**,**](https://rufus.ie/) a free and open source USB stick writing tool |
| | A Debian stable ISO file**.** See[ Get Debian stable ](https://www.ubuntu.com/download)for download links |
1**.** Download Predator**-**OS ISO file**.**
Go to the main page**:**
[https**://**Predator**-**OS**.**ir**/**](https://predator-os.com/)
Take note of where your browser saves downloads**:** this is normally a directory called **‘**Downloads**’** on your Windows PC**.** If using Windows XP or Vista**,** download Rufus**.**
### USB selection
Perform the following to configure your USB device in Rufus**:**
1. Launch Rufus
2. Insert your USB stick
3. Rufus will update to set the device within the Device field
4. If the Device selected is incorrect **(**perhaps you have multiple USB storage devices**),** select the correct one from the device field**’**s drop**-**down menu
You can avoid the hassle of selecting from a list of USB devices by ensuring no other devices are connected**.**
Select the predator-os stable ISO file
To select the Debian stable ISO file**,** you downloaded previously**,** click the SELECT to the right of **“**Boot selection**”.** If this is the only ISO file present in the Downloads folder, you will only see one file listed**.**
Select the appropriate ISO file and click on Open**.**
Write the ISO
The Volume label will be updated to reflect the ISO selected**.** Leave all other parameters with their default values and click START to initiate the write process**.**
Additional downloads
You may be alerted that Rufus requires additional files to complete writing the ISO**.** If this dialog box appears**,** select Yes to continue**.**
Write warnings
You will then be alerted that Rufus has detected that the Debian stable ISO is an ISOHybrid image**.** This means the same image file can be used as the source for both a DVD and a USB stick without requiring conversion**.**
Keep Write in ISO Image mode selected and click on OK to continue**.**
Rufus will also warn you that all data on your selected USB device is about to be destroyed**.** This is a good moment to double check you**’**ve selected the correct device before clicking OK when you**’**re confident you have**.**
If your USB stick contains multiple partitions, Rufus will warn you in a separate pane that these will also be destroyed**.**
Writing the ISO
The ISO will now be written to your USB stick**,** and the progress bar in Rufus will give you some indication of where you are in the process**.** With a reasonably modern machine**,** this should take around 10 minutes**.** Total elapsed time is shown in the lower right corner of the Rufus window**.**
#### Installation complete
When Rufus has finished writing the USB device**,** the Status bar will be filled green and the word READY will appear in the center**.** Select CLOSE to complete the write process**.**
Congratulations**!** You now have Debian stable on a USB stick**,** bootable and ready to go**.**
To use it you need to insert the stick into your target PC or laptop and reboot the device**.** It should recognise the installation media automatically during startup but you may need to hold down a specific key **(**usually F12**)** to bring up the boot menu and choose to boot from USB**.**
### Create a Bootable USB stick by using Balena etcher
To install Predator**-**OS Linux**,** you need to write your downloaded ISO to a USB stick to create the installation media**.** This is not the same as copying the ISO**,** and requires some bespoke software**.** For this tutorial**,** we will use[ balenaEtcher**,**](https://www.balena.io/etcher/) as it runs on Linux**,** Windows and Mac OS**.** Choose the version that corresponds to your current operating system**,** download and install the tool**.**
[https**://**www**.**balena**.**io**/**etcher**/**](https://www.balena.io/etcher/)
If you prefer to use a different tool to create your USB**,** we also have tutorials for[ Rufus ](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/create-a-usb-stick-on-windows#1-overview)on Windows**,**[ Etcher ](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/create-a-usb-stick-on-macos#4-install-and-run-etcher)on Mac OS and[ Startup Disk Creator ](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/create-a-usb-stick-on-ubuntu#1-overview)on Debian stable**.**
Select your downloaded ISO**,** choose your USB flash drive**,** and then click Flash**!** to install your image**.**
### Create a Bootable USB stick by using Disk Creator
**Launch Startup Disk Creator**
We**’**re going to use an application called **‘**Startup Disk Creator**’** to write the ISO image to your USB stick**.** This is installed by default on Debian stable**,** and can be launched as follows**:**
1. Insert your USB stick **(**select **‘**Do nothing**’** if prompted by Debian stable**)**
2. On Debian stable 18**.**04 and later**,** use the bottom left icon to open **‘**Show Applications**’**
3. In older versions of Debian stable**,** use the top left icon to open the dash
4. Use the search field to look for Startup Disk Creator
5. Select Startup Disk Creator from the results to launch the application
#### ISO and USB selection
When launched**,** Startup Disk Creator will look for the ISO files in your Downloads folder**,** as well as any attached USB storage it can write to**.**
It**’**s likely that both your Predator**-**OS ISO and the correct USB device will have been detected and set as **‘**Source disc image**’** and **‘**Disk to use**’** in the application window**.** If not**,** use the **‘**Other**’** button to locate your ISO file and select the exact USB device you want to use from the list of devices**.**
Click Make Startup Disk to start the process**.**
Confirm USB device
Before making any permanent changes**,** you will be asked to confirm the USB device you**’**ve chosen is correct**.** This is important because any data currently stored on this device will be destroyed**.**
After confirming**,** the write process will start and a progress bar appears**.**
Installation complete
That**’**s it**!** You now have Debian stable on a USB stick**,** bootable and ready to go**.** If you want to install Debian stable**,** take a look at our[ install Debian stable desktop tutorial**.**](https://tutorials.ubuntu.com/tutorial/tutorial-install-ubuntu-desktop)
### Create a bootable USB device on Linux using dd command
Step 1 – Download Predator**-**OS **.**iso image
Step 2 – Find your usb device name on Linux
Insert your USB stick and type the following df command to see if it is mounted automatically on a Debian or any other Linux desktop system**:**
**$** df
Step 4 – Create a bootable USB stick on Linux Another example**:**
$ sudo dd if= Predator-OS-3.1-LTS.iso f=/dev/sdd bs=1M status=progres