It was difficult to get the proper installation disc to reinstall Windows 8.1. But Microsoft is making it easier with the release of Media Creation Tool.
May 05, 2014 KB2919442 is a prerequisite for Windows 8.1 Update and should be installed before attempting to install KB2919355 Additional Information Other critical security updates are available: To find the latest security updates for you, visit Windows Update and click Express Install.
If Windows 8.1 comes pre-installed on a computer you recently purchased, it was difficult to get the proper installation disc to reinstall the OS. But Microsoft is making it easier with the release of its Media Creation Tool that helps you create Windows 8.1 installation media the easy way.
Using this tool you can easily create media to reinstall or do a clean installation of either the 32 or 64-bit version.
Media Creation Tool for Windows 8.1
To create the installation media you will need either a blank DVD or USB drive with at least 4 GB of space.
You can get the creation tool from this page and click the Create Media button to download it.
Launch the Media Creation Tool and select your language and version of Windows 8.1.
Next, select the type of media you want to create it on – either DVD or USB flash drive.
If you do use a USB flash drive, make sure to use one you can dedicate to the Windows 8.1 installation. Back up any important data on it and delete everything, as the tool will format the drive and delete everything on it anyway.
The nice thing about this utility is you don’t need to find and download an ISO image of Windows 8.1 first as I covered in this article.
Now, wait while the tool downloads the Windows 8.1 installation file. The amount of time it takes will vary depending on your internet speed.
When it’s finished, you’ll see the following screen.
Click on your flash drive which is listed on the message, or click finish and browse to your flash drive and double-click Setup.exe and start the install process.
If you need to get a copy of Windows 8.1 to install on one computer, I recommend using the Media Creation Tool because it’s so easy to use. In fact, it’s easier to use than this method which we previously covered on updating Window 8 to Windows 8.1 with just a product key.
If you want to create other several, you can download the 8.1 ISO and create installation media on USB flash drives using these other tools we’ve covered like the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool or the free utility Rufus, which I used to create a Windows 10 USB bootable flash drive.
Of course, if you’re troubleshooting your unstable computer running Windows 8.x, you might want to try a PC Refresh first, and then PC Reset if the refresh doesn’t work.