Here is How! - Implant a boot image to a non-bootable ISO - free solution + you can use it as a free ISO editor, No limits..... External links Options

[canilio]

Well, some of you may remember me asking if there was a way to add bootable code to the boot sector of a simple non-bootable ISO. I just managed to do this with ImgBurn - it works like a charm!

Guess what! This can also be used as a free ISO editor. You don't need commercial software to edit ISOs.


Step 1. Extract an ISO image using 7-zip or your favorite extractor. Let's assume we have W7PE.ISO on C:\W7PE.ISO and we just used 7-Zip to extract it to C:\W7PE.

Step 2. Launch ImgBurn and select "Create image file from files/folders

Step 3. Click on the little folder icon on the left. Its description is "Browse for a folder". Simply hover with your mouse over the icons until you see the text

Step 4. Select the C:\W7PE as the folder. The empty list box on the left will add the path C:\W7PE in the list. Don't worry. This will be used as the root of the ISO.

Step 5. In the "Advanced" tab on the right select "Bootable Disc"

Step 6. From the same tab on the bottom select "Extract Boot Image" and select your D: drive where D: is the drive letter of your DVD drive. Click on the little save icon and save the boot image. It will then ask you if you want to use the image (the one you just saved) to make your new ISO "bootable". You say yes. It will autofill some of the fields such as Emulation Type, Boot Image etc.

Step 7. Click on the big Play button. It will ask you if you want to use the folder you just added before (C:\W7PE) as the root of the ISO. You say yes! Proceed.....

Step 8. When it asks you for a volume label accept the default one if you want to use the original otherwise use your own.

That's it. You just re-created the W7PE ISO manually. Your new ISO is now bootable because you extracted the boot image of the W7PE CD and you used it for your new ISO.

I also said you can use this as a free ISO editor too? Well, modify the contents of the extracted ISO (C:\W7PE) and use ImgBurn to re-create it. All you have to do is extract the boot image of the CD and implant it/re-use it on your new ISO

P.S. You will need to select the right file system from the ImgBurn settings if you want to use files with more than 8-chars properly.

Attached File(s)

 Step1.png ( 164.17K ) Number of downloads: 36
 Step2.png ( 174.04K ) Number of downloads: 49

 

[TheHive]

Very good info and Tutorial. Thanks!
Would be better put in Tutorials Section also.

[canilio]

Thanks, well the moderators are more than welcome to move/copy this thread if they believe it's tutorial worthy

[was_jaclaz]

Unfortunately, some of the "base assumptions" are false.

No offence intended , mind you, and as long as it works, it's nice , but what is described here is NOT "editing" a .iso, it is "recreating a new .iso with the contents of a pre-existing one, optionally making some more changes".

Typically:

• the boot sector is changed
• the volid, editor, name, and god only knows how many more data is changed to "random"
• original CD LBA addresses (or sort order of files) is changed to "random"
• the status of "important settings, like Rock Ridge extensions, isolevel, joliet and what not is changed to "random"

As long as the "source" image has NOT "crytical" settings, it will work.
As soon as it has one, the newly created image won't work anymore properly.

BTW, you can usually extract a boot image with 7-zip allright.

jaclaz

[canilio]

No offense taken

I guess if one doesn't have a full working version of UltraISO or WinImage or similar, this work-around is worth trying.

[Icecube]

When you extract a bootable iso with 7zip, a folder called "[BOOT]" is created. This directory contains a file with the boot sector of the ISO. If you recreate the iso, you can delete this directory because it isn't on the original ISO. You can use the file inside it as boot sector too (Step 5 - 6).

[was_jaclaz]

When you extract a bootable iso with 7zip, a folder called "[BOOT]" is created. This directory contains a file with the boot sector of the ISO. If you recreate the iso, you can delete this directory because it isn't on the original ISO. You can use the file inside it as boot sector too (Step 5 - 6).

BTW, you can usually extract a boot image with 7-zip allright.

However, nice explanation.


jaclaz

[Icecube]

BTW, you can usually extract a boot image with 7-zip allright.

I thought you did mean that you can extract a bootable iso with 7zip (and I assumed that canilio changed "Step 1").

[canilio]

Ok I realised, 7-zip does indeed extract the image in a [BOOT] folder but for some reason I can't make it boot while the one that ImgBurn extracts boots fine. I tried recreating the ISO with ImgBurn and using the Bootable_NoEmulation.img as created by 7-zip as a bootable image and I also tried via mkisofs and specifying Bootable_NoEmulation.img (just renamed to w7.img) to the -b parameter and this one didn't boot either. However the version that ImgBurn extracts works perfect, it makes my ISO bootable.

Any ideas what's going on?

[agni]

Is there any tool which can display technical information/properties of an iso file?
So when we are re creating the iso file we can use the correct data to create iso.

Unfortunately, some of the "base assumptions" are false.

No offence intended , mind you, and as long as it works, it's nice , but what is described here is NOT "editing" a .iso, it is "recreating a new .iso with the contents of a pre-existing one, optionally making some more changes".

Typically:

• the boot sector is changed
• the volid, editor, name, and god only knows how many more data is changed to "random"
• original CD LBA addresses (or sort order of files) is changed to "random"
• the status of "important settings, like Rock Ridge extensions, isolevel, joliet and what not is changed to "random"

As long as the "source" image has NOT "crytical" settings, it will work.
As soon as it has one, the newly created image won't work anymore properly.

BTW, you can usually extract a boot image with 7-zip allright.

jaclaz