Creating QEMU virtual W10 machine W/O a .ISO file

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I’m running Debian Trixie as my primary system. I want to create a virtual machine running some reasonably recent version of Windows - pretty much anything between XP and W10 (I won’t touch W11 for any reason…)

I’m trying to get started w/ QEMU, and am running into a problem in that I don’t have a .ISO file to start the install with. (Grabbing the latest ‘official download’ gets one that want’s to use Cortana :face_vomiting: and tries to force you to create an MS account…) I have a full W10 that can be pasted into a machine w/ pretty much any MS OS installed, which will give me a working bootleg W10 LTS…

What I want to end up with is a Windows machine that will NEVER touch the Internet but can use a USB port to allow running the programming software for my power chair, and the software for my smart-charger, both of which are “Windows only” and have no Linux software options…

I’ve been trying to follow the steps described in Install Windows 10 from local .iso using Qemu - #4 by nevj , Making a start with qemu , the How to set up a KVM / QEMU Windows 10 VM | by Raphael | Medium tutorial and a few other things.

I have gotten Virtual Machine Manager and I think all the other suggested software installed, and can create a virtual machine sort of, but can’t seem to make one that will let me get a working setup I can actually use…

So how do I do this w/o having an ISO?

Thanks,

ex-Gooserider

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I found this

" To get ISO files for older Windows versions like Windows 7, Vista, XP, or even older builds of Windows 10/11, you can use third-party websites like UUP dump or Internet Archive to download files directly from Microsoft servers or archives. For more recent versions (Windows 8.1/10/11), you can use the official Microsoft website.

Using UUP Dump (for Windows 10/11)

This method downloads official Microsoft update files and creates a custom ISO, which is a legitimate way to get older builds.

  1. Go to the UUP Dump website: (e.g., uupdump.net).
  • Search for your desired Windows version: (e.g., “Windows 11 22H2”).
  • Select the architecture: (e.g., AMD64) and then choose your preferred language and Windows edition (Home, Pro, etc.).
  • Choose a download method, with the recommended option being the one that automatically converts the downloaded files into a bootable ISO image.
  • Create the download package: and download the resulting zip file.
  • Extract the zip file: and run the uup_download_windows.cmd script as an administrator.
  • Initiate the download: by typing “R” and pressing enter. This process may take time.
  • The final ISO file will be in the same folder.

Using Internet Archive (for very old versions)

For older, less supported versions like XP, Vista, or even Windows 3.x, the Internet Archive is a reliable source for ISOs.

  1. Visit the Internet Archive website: (e.g., archive.org).
  2. Search for the specific version of Windows: you are looking for.
  3. Download the ISO file: directly from the archive.

Important Considerations

  • Official vs. Unofficial:

While UUP Dump downloads from Microsoft servers, it’s still a third-party tool. For official downloads of Windows 8.1/10/11, you can visit Microsoft’s official website."

There seem to be plenty of options there.

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It is also possible to run Windows inside a docker container

We tested this. It works. You can also run MacOS in a container.

Learn about docker before trying this. A container is different to VM… it has no kernel… it uses the hosts kernel.

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You can still grab Windows 10 iso:

As for Win11, there’s a trick to bypass MS account requirement.

There’s the tiny 11 builder

So possibly you can create a debloated installer.
But I guess these things are better to be explained by @Daniel_Phillips.

Edit: personally I’d try to strip down as much as possible any Windows intended to run in a VM.

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Stay away from this!!!

Yes, It is called Flyby!!, but you must have a activated W10!!! Not sure if this will even work after W10 becomes unsupported after October!!!

https://getintopc.com/ I use this to get older ISO,s for Windows!!!

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Why?

I actually did install w11 into a VM for my wife without previously having any installed OS in that VM. It was an absolutely clean install of w11 from scratch and using the trick I did not gave to create an MS account.
So I can surely report, that this bypass works.

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Why what!!!

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Wzy stay away?

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I guess you are referring to Tiny11, if so, it crashed my PC!!!

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That must have been a hard install. It would be quite difficult for any OS to crash a computer from inside a VM. It would have to manipulate the host’s kernel.

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Yes it was!!!

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How did that happen?
You ran the script, and it crashed your PC, and it never booted again?
Or you created a “debloated” installer, used that to install, and that instance was defunct?

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Cannot make sense of your logic, W11 is the most recent version of Windows!!! Everything else or soon will be unsupported!!!

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I totally understand the logic behind it - at least I believe so…
That could be something similar to my old Win10 instance, which I created in Virtualbox around 2019. I made it to be there in the drawer “just in case”. I have all my Windows based paid applications there installed and activated. I could count on my fingers how many times I booted it up since 2019…
So whether it is supported or not, is “sheißegal”, as it doesn’t have an internet connection, not even a network device (neither a virtual one :wink: ).
It’s just there.
I suspect something similar behind the question.

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W10 might can be used for a little while longer, but after this October, it will go downhill fast!! That is why I have jumped on the free upgrade to W11, with some of my unsupported machines, the ? remains, if MS will continue this support!!! I think not, and at that time, I will save my data, and or take the machine, out of service, or switch to Linux!!

I still have two old XP machines, one for the shop and one inside the house, that I can boot and play my old XP games!!! Just have no use for a Windows VM!!!

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Windows 11 is full of spyware - Cortana that feeds all your work to the AI world. Recall that records all your confidential information like banking ID’s, Credit Card #’s and so on, and stores it on OTHER PEOPLE’s servers, with very poor security… Not to mention the MANDATED registration w/ Microsoft, and all the other privacy invasive junk… It doesn’t run ANYTHING that I have a use for… I wouldn’t let it near my systems for any reason. If I was forced to run it for some reason, it would only be on a totally airgapped machine with no direct access to any of my useful hardware…

I have TWO (possibly three) programs that I need to run on a Microsoft OS, and both would actually run fine on XP….

BTW, Windows 10 support only ends in October for us peons, W10 Corporate LTSC has guaranteed support until at least 2032…. (it is possible to get a bootleg copy…)

ex-Gooserider

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I do the same, only mine is Win7 in virt-manager.
I have never actually needed it.

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Can someone explain what Cortana is please?

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Can someone explain what Cortana is please?

It’s Microsoft’s version of Alexa / Siri, or perhaps just an upgraded version of “Clippy” that acts as an Artificial Idiot ‘assistant’…

ex-Gooserider

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A few questions as I’m going through yet another effort to create a VM

  1. There is an entry for a graphics tablet - I don’t have one, can I remove it?
  2. I don’t want to the VM to connect to the Internet, EVER… I’m assuming that if I uncheck the “Link State: active” box, it won’t connect, but would it be easier / better if I just removed the entire device?
  3. I definitely need the VM to use the USB ports, do I need to add anything beyond the “Controller USB” device, or set that to anything special? (The real machine has both USB-2 and USB-3 ports)
  4. How do I get the machine to be able to access at least some of the real machine file system, and / or how do I get files into and out of the VM? There is an option for “File System” in the Add Hardware menu, is this what I need? If so what do I set the “target directory” to?
  5. In my latest effort, the VM window grabbed my mouse cursor and wouldn’t let me get back to the rest of the machine - how do I get it to give me my mouse (and presumably keyboard) back?

ex-Gooserider

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