Windows 8.1 ISO File: How to Download and Compress It for Your PC
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Are you looking for a way to install or reinstall Windows 8 on your PC? Do you want to save some space on your hard drive or USB stick? If so, you might be interested in downloading a compressed iso file of Windows 8. In this article, we will explain what an iso file is, how to download Windows 8.1 iso file from Microsoft, how to compress it using different methods and tools, and how to create a bootable USB or DVD from it.
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What is an iso file?
An iso file is a type of disk image file that contains all the data of a CD or DVD in a single file. It can be used to create an exact copy of a physical disk or to store a backup of your data. Iso files are also useful for installing operating systems or software on your PC without using a physical disk.
Some of the benefits of using iso files are:
They are easy to download and store on your computer or external drive.
They can be mounted as virtual drives using software like Daemon Tools or PowerISO.
They can be burned to a blank CD or DVD using software like ImgBurn or Nero.
They can be transferred to a USB flash drive using software like Rufus or WinToUSB.
They can be compressed to reduce their size using software like 7-Zip or MagicISO.
How to download Windows 8.1 iso file from Microsoft?
If you need to install or reinstall Windows 8.1 on your PC, you can use the official tool from Microsoft to download the iso file. Here are the steps you need to follow:
Go to https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows8ISO and select your edition of Windows 8.1. You can choose between Windows 8.1 and Windows 8.1 Professional.
Click on Confirm and select your language.
Click on Confirm again and choose whether you want to download the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows 8.1.
Click on the Download button and save the iso file on your computer or external drive.
Note that you will need a valid product key (xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx) to activate Windows 8.1 after installation. You can find your product key on the packaging of your Windows DVD, on a sticker on your PC, or in an email confirmation if you bought it online.
How to compress Windows 8 iso file?
If you want to reduce the size of your Windows 8 iso file, you can use some compression software that can create smaller iso files without losing any data. However, you should be aware that compression can take a long time depending on the size of the original iso file and the level of compression you choose. Also, some compression formats may not be compatible with all software or devices that can read iso files.
Here are two methods and tools that you can use to compress Windows 8 iso file:
Using 7-Zip
7-Zip is a free and open-source file archiver that can compress and decompress various types of files, including iso files. It supports several compression formats, such as zip, rar, tar, gz, bz2, xz, and its own format called 7z. The 7z format offers high compression ratio and strong encryption options.
To compress Windows 8 iso file using 7-Zip, follow these steps:
Download and install 7-Zip on your PC.
Right-click on your Windows 8 iso file and select 7-Zip > Add to archive.
In the Add to Archive window, choose 7z as the Archive format and Ultra as the Compression level.
If you want to protect your compressed iso file with a password, enter it in the Encryption section and choose AES-256 as the Encryption method.
Click on OK and wait for the compression process to finish.
The advantages of using 7-Zip are:
It is free and open-source.
It offers high compression ratio and strong encryption options.
It supports many compression formats.
The disadvantages of using 7-Zip are:
It can take a long time to compress large iso files.
The compressed iso files may not be compatible with all software or devices that can read iso files.
Using MagicISO
MagicISO is a shareware program that can create, edit, extract, convert, burn, mount, and compress iso files. It supports various types of disk image files, such as bin, cue, nrg, mdf, mds, img, ccd, vcd, dvd, uif, dmg, daa, etc. It also has an ISO Compression/Decompression feature that can create smaller iso files with its own format called UIF (Universal Image Format).
To compress Windows 8 iso file using MagicISO, follow these steps:
Download and install MagicISO on your PC.
Run MagicISO and click on Tools > Compress CD/DVD Image File.
In the Compress CD/DVD Image File window, click on Browse button next to Source File Name box and select your Windows 8 iso file.
In the Destination File Name box, enter a name for your compressed iso file and choose UIF as the Output Format.
If you want to protect your compressed iso file with a password, check the Password box and enter it in the Password box below.
Select a Compression Method from Normal (fastest), High (recommended), Maximum (slowest), or Custom (user defined).
Select an Encryption Method from None (no encryption), Standard (128-bit), Advanced (256-bit), or Custom (user defined).Select an Image Splitting Method from None (no splitting), Fixed Size (split by fixed size), Custom Size (split by user defined size), Auto Detect (split by optimal size).Select an Image Splitting Size from CD-ROM(650MB), CD-ROM(700MB), DVD(4.7GB), DVD-DL(8.5GB), BD(25GB), BD-DL(50GB), Custom Size (user defined size).Select an Image Splitting Unit from MB (megabytes) or GB (gigabytes).Select an Image Splitting Mode from Normal Mode (split by size) or Safe Mode (split by sector).Select an Image Splitting Option from None (no option), Delete source image after splitting (delete original iso file after splitting), Verify image after splitting (verify split image files after splitting).Select an Image Splitting Output Folder where you want to save your split image files if you choose an image splitting method other than None.Select an Image Splitting Output Format from UIF (*.uif) or ISO (*.iso).Select an Image Splitting Output Naming Rule from Default Rule (%filename%_%partnumber%.%extension%) or Custom Rule (user defined rule).Select an Image Splitting Output Naming Separator from Underscore (_), Hyphen (-), Dot (.), Space (), Slash (/), Backslash (\), Colon (:), Semicolon (;), Comma (,), Equal (=), Plus (+), Asterisk (*), Question (? need to check the compatibility of your software or device before creating or using a bootable disk image file.