How to Install Windows on New SSD Without USB | Step-by-step Guide with Video

When installing Windows on an SSD without a USB, the most recommended way on Google searches is to do a clean install. Do you know how to install Windows on a new SSD without USB? And how to install Windows 10 on a new hard drive without a disk or USB? This tutorial from EaseUS shows you 2 ways to install Windows without USB, with detailed steps inside.

• For those who want to avoid reinstalling everything, choose clone. Cloning can let you transfer everything, including data and OS, to another drive without losing data or reinstalling Windows with less time and effort. Clone Windows to Another Drive Without USB
• For those who want to have a fresh Windows environment, choose a clean installation using the ISO file, but it requires reinstalling necessary files and drivers with more time and effort. Clean Install Windows Without USB by Using ISO

Can You Install Windows Without a USB

When Windows 11, Windows 10, Windows 8, or Windows 7 are loading and running slowly on a hard disk drive (HDD), installing Windows on a new solid-state drive (SSD) is an effective way to give your Windows computer a fresh start. It is widely known that an SSD can be a better boot disk than an HDD because, compared with an HDD, an SSD has less noise, quicker access time, lower latency, etc.

How do I Install Windows without USB/CD
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Therefore, many computer users prefer to upgrade the old system disk to SSD or install the operating system (OS) on a new SSD to make the computer boot up faster and run smoothly even if multiple programs are in the background, but how can I install windows without a USB if I do not have a USB or CD handy? Can I install Windows without using a USB?

The answer is yes. You can install Windows 10 without CD or USB or install Windows 11 without USB. Installing Windows on a new SSD without a USB can be difficult, but there are a few ways out. Here, I will share 2 ways to install Windows on SSD. They are cloning Windows to SSD using professional disk cloning software and reinstalling Windows on SSD by using ISO. Let's see how they work:

If you find the post practical, please share it with your friends and fans to help them install Windows on a new SSD without a USB drive.

Clone Windows to Another Drive Without USB

Installing Windows OS on a new SSD without USB, the easiest way is to migrate Windows 11/10/8/7 from the hard disk to the new SSD and boot from it. Here, I will introduce an easy-to-use disk clone software - EaseUS Disk Copy, to help you clone Windows system to a new SSD without a USB.

EaseUS Disk Copy is a simple yet powerful cloning software for Windows 11/10/8/7. It allows you to transfer OS to a new hard drive and clone a hard drive or system. It can help you directly transfer your Windows from one hard drive to another without reinstalling Windows and transfer data from one SSD to another without losing data.

EaseUS Disk Copy can help you directly clone C drive to a new SSD or migrate Windows to another disk. Get this powerful cloning software to migrate Windows to another disk without any external media.

The following is a step-by-step guide on how to install Windows without USB via cloning:

Step 1. To clone OS from one hard drive to another, choose the target disk in "System Mode" and click "Next".

Step 2. Adjust the disk layout of the target disks. You can manage the disk layout of the destination disk by selecting "Autofit the disk", "Copy as the source" or "Edit disk layout". Then, click Proceed.

• "Autofit the disk" makes some changes by default on the destination disk layout so that it can work at its best status.
• "Copy as the source"does not change anything on destination disk and the layout is the same as source disk.
• "Edit disk layout" allows you to manually resize/move partition layout on this destination disk.

Tick the "Check the option if the target is SSD" option to put your SSD in its best performance.

Step 3. A message now appears, warning you that data on the target disk will be lost. Please confirm this message by clicking "Continue".

Step 4. Wait for the cloning process to complete.

Troubleshooting: SSD won't boot

Besides, if you want to install Windows on a dissimilar computer using an SSD instead of a USB, you can use EaseUS Todo Backup as universal restore software to help you install Windows on dissimilar hardware.

Video Tutorial on how to install Windows without USB:

 

Clean Install Windows Without USB by Using ISO

In most cases, you can choose the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool to perform an in-place upgrade or create a bootable USB flash drive to do a clean installation of Windows. Still, it is also possible to load the ISO file using the Windows image mounting feature to start the Windows 11 setup and carry out the installation.

Another way to install Windows on a new SSD without a USB is to use a Windows ISO file. By using ISO, you do not need a bootable USB drive or Media Creation Tool to install Windows 11 on a computer running Windows 10. You can mount the ISO file in File Explorer and run the upgrade setup.

The following is the instructions on how to install OS on new SSD without USB:

Step 1. Download the Windows 11 ISO file.

Step 2. Right-click on the ISO file, choose the Open with sub-menu, and then select the Windows Explorer option.

Step 3. Click on the SSD drive already connected to the computer from the left navigation pane.

Step 4. Double-click on the Setup file to start the Windows 11 upgrade process.

Step 5. You can decide whether to select the Change how Windows Setup downloads updates option.

Step 6. Choose the Not right now option, and click on Next.

Step 7. Click on Accept to agree to the terms and click on Install to upgrade while keeping your files and apps.

Note: If you want to install Windows 11 completely from scratch, select the Nothing option under Change what to keep, click the Next button, and then click the Install button.

After completing these instructions, the computer will restart multiple times as the updating process starts. After installation, you might need to complete Windows 11 configuration by going through the out-of-box experience (OOBE).

If you find the post practical, please share it with your friends and fans to help them install Windows on a new SSD without a USB drive.

The Bottom Line

This is all about how to install Windows on new SSD without USB. You can select any method this article offers as you like. But considering time, reliability, flexibility, and operability, we suggest you use EaseUS Disk Copy to install your Windows on a new SSD without a USB. EaseUS Disk Copy is an easy-to-use and practical cloning software that can help you clone a hard drive or migrate Windows to another drive without reinstalling everything or losing data. Download EaseUS Disk Copy to get started on installing Windows without a USB drive!

FAQs on How to Install Windows Without USB

Below are some frequently asked questions about How to install Windows on another drive without USB:

1. Is there a way to reinstall Windows 10 to an SSD without cloning?

You can perform a clean installation instead of cloning if you do not want to clone Windows 10. A clean installation will wipe everything on the hard disk before installing a fresh copy of Windows.

2. What software helps install Windows without USB?

EaseUS Disk Copy can help you install Windows without a USB flash drive or CD. Its system clone feature can let you directly migrate your Windows and saved data to another drive. All you need is to use an adapter or hard drive enclosure to connect the new drive to your computer and then run disk cloning software. After cloning, you can replace the old disk with the new one and boot from it.

3. Can I install Windows without USB or CD?

Yes, installing Windows without a USB or CD is possible. You can use disk clone software like EaseUS Disk copy to help you migrate OS to SSD without USB or clone Windows to SSD without USB drive. Using a Windows ISO file is an additional method for installing Windows on a new SSD without USB.

4. Why won't Windows install on my SSD?

This is typically in the prompt informing you that Windows cannot install on your disk because the hardware cannot support booting to the disk. It might also ask you to enable the disk controller in the BIOS menu.