The question of how to open an ISO most often arises among novice computer users who, for example, have downloaded some game, program, or Windows image from the Internet and cannot open the ISO file using standard Windows tools. Let's take a closer look at what to do with such files.
What is an ISO file?
In general terms, an .ISO file is an image of a CD or DVD disc. Although not necessarily these media. Thus, this file contains all the information about the contents of the CD, no matter what information it carries, including music, bootable distributions of operating systems, games or programs.
How to open ISO image files
First of all, it should be noted that in a sense it depends on what exactly is in this image. If it is a program or a game, then the best way is not to open the file as such, but to mount the ISO image in the operating system - i.e. the .ISO file opens in a special program that makes it so that a new virtual CD appears in Explorer, with which you can carry out all the necessary operations - install games and so on. Mounting the ISO is the most common option and usually the best one. Below will be discussed how to mount a disk image in the system.
Another possible case is if the .ISO file contains an operating system distribution. In this case, in order, for example, to install Windows on a computer, you need to burn this image to a disk or USB flash drive, after which the computer boots from this media and Windows is installed. How to use an ISO image to create a bootable disk or flash drive is described in detail in these instructions:
And the last possible option is to open the ISO file in an archiver, the expediency of which and how to do it will be discussed at the end of the article.
How to mount an .ISO image
The most commonly used method for opening an ISO image file is the free Daemon Tools Lite program. You can download Daemon Tools from the official website http://www.daemon-tools.cc/eng/downloads . I note that you need to download exactly Daemon Tools Lite - only this option is free for private use, all other options are paid. If after you click the "Download" button, you do not see where the download link is, then a hint: above the square banner on the right, in small blue letters, the link "Download". After you install Daemon Tools, you will have a new virtual CD drive in your system.
By launching Daemon Tools, you can open any .ISO file through this program, and then mount it in a virtual drive. You then use this ISO like a normal CD inserted into a DVD-ROM.
In Windows 8, you do not need any additional programs to open the .ISO file: you just need to double-click on this file (or right-click and select "Connect") after which the disk is mounted in the system and you can use it .
How to open an ISO file with an archiver and why you might need it
Any disk image file with the .ISO extension can be opened by almost any modern archiver - WinRAR, 7zip and others. How to do it? First of all, you can run the archiver separately, then select the file in the archiver menu - open and specify the path to the ISO file. Another way is to right-click on the ISO file and select "Open with", then find the archiver in the list of programs.
As a result, you will see a list of all the files contained in this disk image, and you can extract them all or individually to any location on your computer.
Frankly, I don’t see the use of this feature - it’s usually easier and faster to mount an image than open an ISO in an archiver, and after that you can extract any files from the mounted disk in the same way. The only option that seems justified to me is the absence of programs for mounting ISO images, like Daemon Tools, the lack of need for such programs and the reluctance to install them, but at the same time the need to access the files in the ISO image at a one-time.
UPD: how to open ISO on android
Considering that it is not uncommon to use a torrent on Android phones and tablets, you may need to open the Android ISO image. To do this, you can use the free ISO Extractor program, which can be downloaded from Google Play https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=se.qzx.isoextractorPerhaps these methods for opening images are quite enough, I hope that the article was useful to you.
The file with the ISO extension is usually confusing for beginners. What kind of format is this? How to open it? What to do with the ISO file?
No panic. Opening ISO files is quite easy. And all that is needed is to install a program that reads ISO files. After that, you can easily open any of them with a double click.
An ISO file is a virtual disk image created using special software. In other words, something like an archive. Anything can be stored in it: music, movies, etc.
How to open ISO format? There are many programs for unpacking ISO files:
- Alcohol 120%;
- PowerISO;
- winrar;
- Nero etc.
In this case, it is necessary to take into account what is inside the image. And starting from this, choose the right software.
If it is a Windows distribution, then it does not need to be opened or installed. In this case, you can copy the licensed image to a bootable USB flash drive, and then reboot and start the PC (or laptop) through the BIOS. After that, the installation of the operating system will begin.
If this is a book divided into chapters, music (for example, all albums of your favorite artist) or certain documents, then in this case you can open the ISO file in the truest sense of the word.
- free (only Lite version);
- takes up little space;
- simple and clear to use.
How to open ISO file on Windows 7?
First, let's look at how to open an ISO file on Windows 7 (it also works for XP). About Windows 8 and 10 it is written just below.
So, Daemon Tools is a free program for reading and unpacking ISO files. You can download it from developer site (link).
Using this program is very simple. When you install it, all ISO files will automatically open through it. Double-click on it with the left mouse button, after which the autorun window will immediately appear. Select the item "Open folder", and then look at the situation.
If this window does not appear, you may have disabled autorun. In this case, open "My Computer" and manually launch the virtual disk (RMB - Open).
If this is a game, run the setup.exe installation file. If it's a movie, music or something else, then just open them. Or copy to any other folder on your computer (for convenience).
You can also open Daemon Tools and add an image by specifying the path to it. Or just drag the file into the program window. And then double-click on it (or right-click and select "Mount").
After finishing installing the game or watching a movie, you need to delete the ISO file. Or rather, unmount it. You can do this in 2 ways:
After that, the virtual image will be deleted.
There is also another way to unzip an ISO file without Daemon Tools.
How to unzip an ISO file?
Daemon Tools is a specific program that not all users have installed. But everyone probably has WinRAR or 7-Zip. Therefore, if you are too lazy to install another program, you can simply extract the files from the ISO using an archiver.
It's very easy to do this:
Note: if the archiver is not in the list, then click "Select a program" and look for it in the expanded list.
If it is not there either, then click the "Browse" button, find the archiver folder and select the WinRAR.exe installation file.
This is how you can unpack an ISO file without third-party software.
How to open ISO file on Windows 10 and 8?
Which program to open an ISO file on Windows 8 or 10? In this case, you don't have to install anything. After all, you can run it without extraneous software. All you need to do is select the file and double-click on it with the left mouse button. After that, the image will be mounted and the autorun window will start. At the end, don't forget to unmount it. To do this, open "My Computer", select the virtual drive, right-click and select "Eject".
That's all. Now you know how to run an ISO file on Windows 7, 8 and 10. And if you download movies or games with this extension again, you can easily open them.
Currently, you can successfully replace any CD or DVD disc with its virtual image. However, for some inexperienced users, working with disk images can cause some difficulty. In fact, there is nothing complicated in using images, it is enough to resort to the help of a special program. To open a disk image on a computer, you will need:
– Computer (Order from us);
- One of the following programs: Ultra Iso, Alcohol 120% or Daemon Tools;
- Disk image.
Instruction
- Ultra ISO
The most common disk imaging software is UltraIso. First of all, this program has earned its popularity due to its wide capabilities. It is able not only to run disk images, but also to make certain changes to them. To simply run the image through this program, you need to follow these steps:
After these steps, the disk image will be launched on the computer.
- Alcohol 120%
Currently, there are a lot of similar programs, the second place among applications for working with images is occupied by the Alcohol 120% application - this is a paid program, but it has a free trial period. Install this application on your hard drive and open it. Click on one of the available virtual drives, they are located at the bottom of the program, and click the "Mount image" command, specify the location of the disk image and confirm its use. The disk will be available in standard form.
- Daemon Tools
The third well-known program for such tasks is DaemonTools. Download the DaemonTools installation file and install the application. Reboot your operating system. The DaemonTools utility will start automatically when you start Windows and will be minimized to tray. Hover over the utility's tray icon and right-click, click "Virtual CD/DVD ROM" and click "Mount Image". Specify the location of the disk image and complete the procedure by clicking on the appropriate button. The image will be opened.
- The Windows operating system can recognize files in the iso format as archive files. Never try to unpack such files, they are not archives, and the unpacking process may damage the structure of the file, and it may stop working.
Video: How to open a disk image
Yesterday it was necessary to urgently extract several files from the iso image, but there was no time to install any programs, so I wondered how to open the ISO file quickly and without unnecessary movements.
A huge amount of software and operating systems are distributed in the form of ISO images, so you just need to know how to work with this format.
There are several ways to open an iso file, but not everyone knew that it can be opened even with such a program that is installed on everyone's computer. What kind of program is this and what are the alternative methods, we read in this article.
What is an ISO image?
And so, what is an ISO file and what is it eaten with? In simple words, an ISO image is an electronic version of an optical disc, which is a file with its own file system and, in fact, the contents of the disc.
Having a disk image, it can be connected in the operating system like a regular optical disk. There are a lot of options for using disk images! Starting from installing games and programs, ending with the operation of special programs that work exclusively from an optical disc. Also, beta versions of operating systems are laid out in the image format, for example, in an ISO image, you can
How to open an ISO file with UltraISO
The first, and sometimes the most convenient way for me to open ISO files, is with the UltraISO program. I will not give a link to the program, on the official website you can buy a paid version, and in open sources there are versions for which you do not need to pay;).
To open an ISO file, you need to run the UltraISO program, select the item “ Open”
and specify the path to your ISO image. After that, in the program window you will see the contents of the disk image
In order to extract a file from the image, right-click on the desired file and select the menu item “ Extract to…”
How to open ISO file with DAEMON Tools
A very cool program for mounting optical disc images. Not the most convenient way if you just need to extract a file from a disk image, but I’ll describe it as an option.
For us, the version of the program is enough DAEMON Tools Lite. You can download it from the official website for free.
After downloading the program, install it and run it. An image catalog window will open, add your image
Now you only need to select the added image and click the “ mount“,
after which a drive will appear in your system (in my case, drive D)
Working with a mounted disc is no different from working with ordinary optical discs inserted into a DVD drive.
How to open an ISO file with 7-Zip
My favorite and, in principle, the most convenient way to open ISO disk images. I learned about it relatively recently, which was pleasantly surprised. After all, today almost every computer has a 7-Zip archiver installed. It's free and easy to use.
You can download it from the official website via a direct link:
After installation, open 7-Zip File Manager, it is a regular explorer with archiver tools
To open an ISO image, you just need to go to the folder in which it is located and double-click on it. It will open like a regular folder
You can extract a file from an ISO image by selecting it and clicking on the “ Extract“.
Suppose you have downloaded a movie, game or video from the Internet. Everything went well, the download process is completed and you are trying to open the file in anticipation of the upcoming vacation. But it does not open and, in addition, it does not have the usual .exe or video .avi format for games, but instead has the .iso extension, which is not clear how to open it.
So, how do you open iso files, otherwise known as virtual disk images?
An .iso file is a digital image of an optical disc (either a copy of a real CD/DVD or an artificially created disc image).
Given all the amount of software that currently exists in the Internet space, it is quite difficult to choose a simple, convenient and most suitable program for your goals. A similar situation is observed with programs for launching and opening .iso files. We have selected five programs that, in our opinion, will be most suitable for solving the tasks set. Let's look at how to open an iso file using each of these programs.
WinRAR
One of the easiest programs to open iso files is the well-known WinRAR archiver. Almost all versions of the Windows operating system provide for the presence of this program in a standard set of software. We will not describe all the properties of the archiver, we will consider only the property we need - opening files that are disk images.
Using the program is quite simple: right-click on the .iso file. You will see a context menu in which you need to find the "Extract" tab.
The file is automatically opened via WinRAR, which prompts you to select a location to extract all content from the disk image. After that, all that remains is to wait until all the information contained in the .iso file is downloaded to the location you specified.
Daemon Tools
Regarding Daemon Tools, we have - there the procedure for working with this popular program is described in more detail.
Another program that allows you to open and read disk images. It is an emulator that creates virtual drives on a computer, through which virtual disk images with .iso resolution are opened. In other words, the program tricks the computer into recognizing the .iso file as being in a CD/DVD drive.
We will not describe all the subtleties of working with Daemon Tools, we will only consider how to open an iso disk image using this utility:
As the name of the program suggests, it is specifically designed to work with files that are disk images. It is quite easy to work with her. Consider the process of opening and playing an .iso file in a few steps:
Alcohol 120%
A fairly popular and well-known program for opening iso images. With it, you can run or play the contents of .iso files. It should be noted right away that the program is more difficult to use for inexperienced users, and to play files, you need to perform an order of magnitude more actions than in previous programs. In addition, the program is paid, and for permanent use you need to buy a licensed version.
Consider how to use Alkohol 120% to open disc images:
Power ISO
Power ISO is a small and easy-to-use emulator for playing disc images. It is an extended version of the Ultra ISO program that allows you to play not only .iso files, but also other image files that have .bin, .mdf, .mdl, .md2-5, etc. permissions. The principle of the program is exactly the same as that of Ultra ISO, so we will not re-examine the steps necessary to open the desired file. We just repeat the same steps and in the same order as in the Ultra ISO program.
Other programs to open .iso files
In addition to the above programs, you can use others. As a rule, other programs are not so convenient for inexperienced users, or there is no Russian version of the program, or the free version is only available for a certain time. However, if there is no Internet access, but the software allows you to choose several options for opening .iso files, you can use programs such as ISOBuster, Roxio Easy Media Studio, WinISO, or Gilles Vollant WinImage.
