Tutorial: Move Apps to USB/Thumb Drive/SD Card in Windows OS

Tracy King updated on Feb 26, 2024 to PC Transfer | How-to Articles

Are you trying to find a possible way to move and install your Windows Apps and programs to a USB or an SD card without boot issues? EaseUS Todo PCTrans has made this possible that you can apply its latest feature - transfer local application to move installed programs, Apps and even games to an external storage device like USB, SD or even external hard drive with ease.

  1. Question 1: Can you install an App or a program on a USB flash drive or an SD card?
  2. Answer: YES!
  3.  
  4. Question 2: How do I move applications to my SD card or USB?
  5. Answer: Let best PC Transfer software for help.

Can’t move Apps to USB or SD card in Windows OS? It’s Possible Now!

Usually, Windows systems don’t allow users to install Apps and programs to an external storage device such as external hard drive, USB, thumb drive or SD card.
That is why when you choose a USB or an SD card as the target location for installing a new App, the Windows system will warn you the selected device is not available. 
And if you directly copy an installed App or a program, even with its installation files, to another location or an external storage device, the copied programs or Apps won’t be able to run either.
So do we still have a third choice? Sure!

RECOMMENDED: Transfer and move Apps to USB/SD with the best PC transfer software

EaseUS software allows all Windows users to transfer and move useful Apps and relevant installation files to external storage devices without any problem. It worths a try!

If you want to transfer one or two programs to an SD card or USB device, EaseUS free PC transfer software - Todo PCTrans Free can help.

If you want to transfer several Windows installed Apps and programs to release the drive space on your System disk and optimize the computer performance, the Pro version - EaseUS Todo PCTrans is the best choice for you.

And you can directly access this amazing software now:

Important
1. EaseUS Todo PCTrans fully supports all Windows Operating System:
Windows 10
Windows 8/8.1 32-bit and 64-bit
Windows 7 32-bit and 64-bit
Windows Vista 32-bit and 64-bit
Windows XP 32-bit
2. And you can even apply it to transfer installed programs to another new computer with its PC to PC and Image Transfer features.

Steps to Move Apps to USB/Thumb Drive/SD Card in Windows OS

Before you start:

To ensure you transfer all wanted applications and programs to the target USB or SD card, please double-check whether you’ve adequately prepared for accomplishing this task:
1.Enough space on the target USB, thumb drive or SD card for saving and installing applications.
2. Install EaseUS Todo PCTrans on your PC.
3. Activate it into a full version - the Pro edition (to transfer universal apps, programs, software, and files).
If you haven’t activated it yet, activate it by clicking the page to get more details:

We'll send the activation key to your email right away once you complete the purchase. And you can ask for online assistance whenever you need as a paid user. 

Step-by-step guide:

Step 1. Connect an empty USB drive to your PC and run EaeUS Todo PCTrans

Click "App Migration" on the main screen, and click "Start" to continue.

Step 2. Select applications, programs, and software to transfer

First, select the source partition where you installed apps and tick the programs marked as "Yes" that you'd like to move to your USB drive.

Next, click the triangle icon to choose the USB as your target location to move the selected programs without reinstallation.

Step 3. Transfer and move selected apps, programs, and software to USB

Click "Transfer" to start the transferring process and wait for the process to finish.

Note: 1. After the transferring, restart the PC if necessary. Then you can run the transferred programs on your USB drive without reinstallation. 

2. You can only run and launch transferred programs from the USB on your source PC. It won't work on other computers.

For More Information:

1. The transferred Apps or programs can only work smoothly with the external storage device connected to your source computer.

2. Since there’s no shortcut of the transferred App in the USB or SD card, all you need is to select the right app file (like .exe) to run it on your PC.

3. Most transferred programs won’t ask for verification again after the transferring. But if your transferred program prompts you with a verification window, please do as required and log in with your account.