Prepare the Flash Drive

• 1). Insert the USB flash drive into a port on your computer.
  
  
• 2). Click "Start," "My Computer," right-click on the flash drive and select the "Format" option in the menu.
  
  
• 3). Select the "FAT" format and click the "Start" button to format the drive. All data on the drive will be erased.
  
  

Create a Widows Install

• 1). Copy the BOOT.INI, NTLDR, and NTDETECT files from the root level of your C: drive onto the flash drive. This makes the USB drive bootable.
  
  These are hidden and protected Windows files. You will need to make hidden system files visible in the "Folder Options" controls under the "Tools" menu.
  
  
• 2). Insert your Windows XP Service Pack 2 install disc into your computer's CD drive. Exit out of the Windows installer when it starts.
  
  
• 3). Download and run the PE Builder utility (see Resources).
  
  
• 4). Instruct PE Builder where the Windows XP disc drive is located.
  
  
• 5). Press the "Build" button. This will take a few minutes to complete. PE Builder creates a slimmed-down version of Windows.
  
  

Copy Windows Onto the Flash Drive

• 1). Run the PEINST.CMD script by double-clicking on the icon. It is located inside the "BartPE\Program\peinst" folder within the PE Builder folder.
  
  
• 2). Select "Option #1" and tell the script the location of the BartPE folder inside the PE Builder directory where you generated an install copy of Windows. The name of the PE Builder directory must be exact with the version numbers--for example, C:\pebuilder3110a\BartPE.
  
  
• 3). Select "Option #1" and instruct the script of the drive letter of the flash drive you want to install Windows onto--for example, E:
  
  
• 4). Check that the settings are correct. Press "Option #5" to install Windows XP onto the flash drive. This will take a few minutes.
  
  
• 5). Select "Q" when the script is done. Windows is now installed on the flash memory key.
  
  

Reboot From the USB Key

• 1). Reboot your PC from the "Shutdown" option in the "Start" menu.
  
  
• 2). Enter your PC's BIOS settings by holding down the "F2" key while the computer is booting. Consult the manual for your specific computer if the BIOS key is different.
  
  
• 3). Set your BIOS to boot from a USB drive first. Consult you computer's instruction manual for the process of how to do this.
  
  
• 4). Exit the BIOS. Your computer will now reboot from the Windows XP installation on the USB flash drive.