Image

ISO Support and Image Edits

NTLite supports ISO, WIM, ESD, and SWM formats. You can convert between formats, create bootable ISOs, and edit images across any host-guest combination.

Mounted Images

For an image to be editable, it first needs to be mounted. This is done automatically on loading the image. It consists of temporary virtual extraction of the image in the temporary folder. This will not take space on the disk as normal files, these are just links. Only after changing or integrating something to the image does this take more space accordingly.

To unmount the image and clean the temporary folder, either Apply changes, or right-click the mounted image and choose Unload. The Unload dialog then offers the saving modes described under Image Options below.

Live Install

The tool can also edit the already installed Windows (C:\Windows). Same applies as with images - read the popup warnings carefully, as this applies directly to your currently installed operating system.

Extra Info

The two image sizes to the right of images, for example 12000 | 8000, show the NTFS hard-linked size on the left and disk/real size on the right.

Saving Mode

When unloading a mounted image, or on the Apply page before processing, choose how the changes are written:

• Save the image - commits the changes to the loaded edition and keeps the other editions.
• Save the image and trim editions - commits the changes and deletes the other editions on the image. This can save a lot of space when you only need one edition. Unavailable when the image has a single edition.
• Stop before saving the image - applies the changes to the mount directory only. They are not written back to the actual image until you unload with saving enabled, or reapply in another session. Useful across multiple sessions to avoid waiting for saving and remounting each time - the mount stays live.
• Discarding changes - offered when unloading; drops the in-memory changes and unmounts the image without saving anything.

Format

When saving or exporting, pick the container format:

• WIM (Standard, editable) - standard image format, ready for mounting and editing.
• ESD (High compression, read-only) - high-compression read-only format. Not supported on Windows 7 or on boot/WinRE images.
• SWM (Spanned, split) - image splitting format. Used to bypass the FAT32 single-file 4 GB limitation, or to span the image across multiple media. You set the split part size.

Remove Editions

Multi-edition images list every edition with a checkbox - tick the ones to drop, and the rest are kept. The loaded or mounted edition and any essential editions stay locked. You can also remove editions directly in the list by right-clicking an edition and choosing Delete.

Export

Export writes the selected edition, or the whole WIM, to a file without altering the loaded session. Pick the format above, then a destination:

• Overwrite source - rewrites the source file in place. When the chosen format matches the source it acts as a recompress; choosing a different format converts it (for example WIM to ESD for distribution, or ESD to WIM for editing).
• Other - pick a separate destination file. If a file already exists at that path, choose Overwrite to replace it or Append to add the image into the existing container.

Tick Create ISO to additionally produce a bootable ISO at the end of the export.

Create ISO

Builds a bootable ISO from an image folder or edition. You choose the destination ISO file and an ISO label- the disc volume name, up to 32 characters. A “Prompt for any key before booting” option controls whether the ISO waits for a keypress on boot or proceeds with the boot directly.

Load Modes

Load-Overwrite sets all the page choices to what is found on the loaded preset.

Load-Append loads one on top of another, without resetting to image defaults before loading.

Multiple presets can also be loaded by selecting more than one preset at once using CTRL+click, then clicking Load. This is useful when combining multiple sessions at once.

Extract Current Image State

Located in Preset toolbar → Save suboption, captures a preset of a loaded image with detected removed components, configured settings and features, ignoring current UI selection for those.

Short guide:

1. Load source image
2. Go to Components → Compatibilities → disable those not needed → OK
3. Go to Images → Preset → Save → Extract current image state → OK
4. Image → New session
5. Load destination image
6. Load the saved preset and apply changes

Download Updates

Download Windows updates directly from Microsoft servers with automatic detection and selection. Keep your offline images up-to-date effortlessly with local caching.

Install Updates

This wizard helps you quickly install updates to your current installation. It uses the Updates page described in the Integrate section.

Host Refresh

This wizard helps you prepare and execute the Windows refresh feature - a migration to either the same or a different version of Windows. It is useful for reinstalling Windows or feature upgrades without needing to reinstall all your apps and reconfigure settings.

In the wizard, provide the full, unedited ISO content of the targeted Windows version. Optionally select your previous preset for auto-loading. Once you press OK it will auto-load the selected image for editing. The Process button on the Apply page will be replaced with the Continue button - use that when ready to process and migrate.

Remove Reinstalls

Due to Windows 10 1903 changes, installing cumulative updates returns updated parts of removed components. This wizard automates cleanup of those reinstalled component parts. Works only if the original component was removed by build 6962 or newer.

Works with the free version as well. Cleanup can be started from the UI, or by using the tool parameter:

ntlite.exe /cleancu