How to Download and Install Hiren's Boot CD with Ghost32 for Free

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Introduction

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Hiren's Boot CD (formerly known as Hirens' BootCD) has been a popular choice among computer users who need an emergency bootable recovery environment on their USB drives or optical media. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process of downloading and installing Hiren's Boot CD with Ghost32, including some valuable tips for those new to this wonderful tool.

What is Ghost32?

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Ghost32 (also spelled as Ghost 32) is a free partitioning utility that comes bundled with various editions of Windows operating systems. It allows users to create an exact copy or image of their hard drive partitions onto another storage device, such as a blank CD/DVD disc, external hard drive, USB flash drives, etc., which can later be used for disaster recovery purposes when the original system becomes inaccessible due to hardware failure.

Download Hiren's BootCD with Ghost32

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To begin our journey towards creating your very own bootable rescue disk containing all the necessary tools including Ghost32:

1. Visit official website:

2. Click on 'Downloads' at top menu bar.

3. Select appropriate architecture (x86 or x64) based upon whether you have 32-bit or 64-bit operating system installed respectively.

Once downloaded, extract the contents of the ZIP file using any compatible archiver like WinRAR/7-Zip to a desired location such as C:\Hiren\BootCD on your local hard drive. Make sure there are no existing folders with similar names in this directory structure else you may encounter conflicts during execution later down road.

Prepare USB Flash Drive or CD/DVD Media

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Before proceeding further, ensure that:

* You have an empty USB flash drive (at least 4GB capacity recommended) or a blank optical media like CD/DVD lying around.

* The target device should be formatted as FAT32 NTFS file system using Disk Management utility within Windows Control Panel.

Create Bootable Media

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1. Launch Command Prompt as administrator by right-clicking on Start menu > All Programs > Accessories > Right-Click 'Command Prompt' and select 'Run As Administrator'.

2. Change into the directory where you extracted Hiren's BootCD files earlier (for example: C:\Hiren\BootCD).

3. Type `bootice.exe -b bootable.iso` followed by Enter key to create a bootable ISO image named 'bootable'. Replace '/boot' path with actual location of Ghost32 executable if different from default.

Burn the ISO Image onto Optical Media

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If you prefer using physical media instead:

1. Insert blank CD/DVD disc into your optical drive.

2. Double-click on 'burniso.exe' within extracted Hiren's BootCD folder to launch burning software like Nero or ImgBurn (depending upon operating system used).

3. Follow instructions displayed in the respective application window until completion.

Create a USB Bootable Drive

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Alternatively, if you prefer working with removable storage:

1. Connect your empty USB flash drive to any available USB port on computer.

2. Open 'Disk Management' by pressing Win + R keys together and typing 'diskmgmt.exe' followed by Enter key in Run dialog box.

3. Right-click on target drive letter (usually E:, F: etc.) > Format with FAT32 NTFS file system option selected.

Note down the USB drive letter before proceeding further as it will be required later during next steps:

4. Open Command Prompt again from Start menu > All Programs > Accessories or type 'cmd' in search bar and press Enter key.

5. Type `diskpart` followed by pressing Enter to enter into Disk Management environment within elevated command prompt window.

6. List all disk devices present using `list disk`, then select the USB flash drive containing our Hiren's BootCD files with corresponding number (e.g., 'Disk 2') and press Enter key:

```

> list disk

Disk Size Status Label Fat32 Hidden Repl Basic Lcn Clus FS

======= ======== ========= =============== ====== ======== ===================== == ==== ======== ========== ======================================================

0 10240 MB Free BIOS Yes Off-Line Ext2 <== Select this if using ext4/NTFS

```

7. Type `select partition 1` (replace '1' with actual partition number containing Hiren's BootCD files) and press Enter key:

8. Once selected, type `active` followed by pressing Enter to mark the chosen partition as active:

```cmd

> list disk

Disk Size Status Label Fat32 Hidden Reclimt FS

======= ======== ========= =============== ====== ===================== == ==== ======================================================

0 10240 MB Free BIOS Yes Off-Line Ext2 <== Select this if using ext4/NTFS

```

9. Finally, type `exit` and press Enter twice to exit Disk Management environment back into Command Prompt:

10. Now that we have prepared our USB flash drive or optical media with the bootable Hiren's BootCD image created earlier (bootable.iso), simply insert it into your target computer's respective port slot/bay and restart while pressing F2, Del, Esc keys in quick succession until BIOS Setup Utility appears on screen.

11. In Advanced Tab under Removable Devices section, move USB flash drive up to topmost position above other devices listed below it (e.g., SATA drives). Save changes & reboot system again:

12. Upon booting into Hiren's BootCD environment from newly created USB stick or optical disc, navigate through various options until you find 'Boot Repair' option under Rescue Tools category and double-click on it to launch the utility.

13. Follow prompts displayed by Ghost32 during partition recovery process (note down all selections made as they cannot be changed later). Once finished successfully without any errors reported, reboot your computer normally using safe mode if required:

14. Upon booting into Windows operating system again after successful restoration from Hiren's BootCD ghost image created earlier today morning when disaster struck last night at 11 PM precisely... Congratulations! Your data has now been fully restored to its previous state prior to hardware failure or software corruption!

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In conclusion, we hope this step-by-step guide on how to download and install Hiren's Boot CD with Ghost32 for free was informative and helpful. Remember that it is always better safe than sorry when dealing with sensitive data recovery situations – so keep a backup of your important files regularly using reputable tools like Acronis True Image or EaseUS Todo Backup (free trial versions available). If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to leave them in the comments section below. Happy computing!

Hiren ghost 32 free