Make a bootable USB stick

You need: a USB stick of 4 GB or more, the VaeVictis OS ISO from the download page, and its SHA-256 checksum.

1. Check the download

The checksum tells you that the file arrived complete and unchanged. Compare the result with the SHA-256 published on the download page and in the GitHub release: every character must match. VaeVictis also signs its checksums: the download page shows how to check the signature with gpg, which protects you even better.

Windows (PowerShell, in the folder of the ISO)

Get-FileHash .\vaevictis-gnome-1.3.iso -Algorithm SHA256

macOS (Terminal)

shasum -a 256 vaevictis-gnome-1.3.iso

Linux (terminal)

sha256sum vaevictis-gnome-1.3.iso

2. Write the stick on Windows

With Rufus

1. Download Rufus from its official website and start it.
2. Under Device, choose your USB stick. Check the size: it must be the stick, not another disk.
3. Click SELECT and choose the ISO. Leave the other settings as Rufus fills them in.
4. Click START. Rufus asks how to write the image: choose Write in DD Image mode, an exact copy, which is what the VaeVictis ISO expects. Rufus marks the other choice as "Recommended", but a stick written that way may not start.
5. Confirm that the stick will be erased and wait for READY.

With balenaEtcher

balenaEtcher always writes an exact copy, so there are no modes to choose: Flash from file → Select target → Flash! It also checks the stick after writing.

3. Write the stick on macOS

The simplest way is balenaEtcher, exactly as on Windows. If you prefer the Terminal:

1. Find the stick by its size and note its name, for example /dev/disk4:

diskutil list external

2. Unmount it (replace N with the number you found), then write the image to the rdisk device, which is much faster:

diskutil unmountDisk /dev/diskN
sudo dd if=vaevictis-gnome-1.3.iso of=/dev/rdiskN bs=4m
diskutil eject /dev/diskN

Nothing is shown while dd works: press Ctrl+T to see how far it has got. If macOS then says the disk is not readable, choose Ignore or Eject, never Initialize.

4. Write the stick on Linux

With a graphical tool (GNOME Disks)

1. Open Disks and select the USB stick in the list on the left (check the size).
2. Open the menu at the top right (⋮) and choose Restore Disk Image…
3. Choose the ISO, click Start Restoring… and confirm.

balenaEtcher works on Linux too. The VaeVictis repository also has vv-usb, a command-line tool with extra checks before writing: see the repository.

From the terminal (dd)

1. Run this before and after plugging in the stick. The line that appears, with usb in the last column, is your stick (for example sdb):

lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL,TRAN

2. Write the image. Replace sdX with the whole device, for example sdb, not a partition like sdb1:

sudo dd if=vaevictis-gnome-1.3.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress conv=fsync && sync

Wait for the prompt to come back: only then is everything written. If the stick was mounted automatically, unmount it first in your file manager.

5. Start the PC from the stick

1. Plug in the stick and turn the PC on, or restart it.
2. As soon as the screen lights up, tap the boot menu key a few times.
3. In the menu, choose the stick. If it appears twice, choose the entry that starts with UEFI.

The usual keys, which can change between models of the same brand:

From Windows, without any key

On Windows 10 and 11: Settings → System → Recovery → Advanced startup → Restart now, then Use a device and choose the stick. This also works on PCs that start too fast to press a key.

6. Secure Boot and BitLocker

Secure Boot lets the PC start only software signed with keys the PC trusts. VaeVictis OS needs Secure Boot switched off: in the firmware setup look under Security or Boot → Secure Boot → Disabled, then save and exit (usually F10).

7. When it does not work

• The PC starts the old system as usual: the key was pressed too late, or Windows "Fast startup" skipped it. Use the Advanced startup way above, or turn the PC fully off and on again, tapping the key from the first second.
• The stick is not in the boot menu: try another USB port (a rear port on desktops). Write the stick again, in DD mode if you used Rufus. A few cheap sticks simply refuse to boot: try another one.
• "Secure Boot violation" or a red security message: switch Secure Boot off as shown above.
• It starts and then stops with errors: check the checksum again (step 1) and write the stick again; the download or the stick may be damaged.
• Black screen after the menu: some graphics cards need a different start option. Try again, and if it repeats, ask in the discussions with the model of your PC.
• Only "Legacy" or "CSM" entries: the PC is set to the old BIOS mode. In the firmware setup, set the boot mode to UEFI (or disable CSM).

8. Use the stick normally again

After installing, the stick keeps the image until you erase it. To use it for files again:

• Linux: in Disks, select the stick → ⋮ → Format Disk…, then create a new partition with + (choose exFAT to use it on every system).
• Windows: open Disk Management, delete the volumes on the stick, then right-click the free space → New Simple Volume.
• macOS: in Disk Utility choose View → Show All Devices, select the stick itself (not a volume) → Erase → ExFAT, GUID Partition Map.

Next steps

• Try the installer first, risk-free: install simulation.
• Watch the whole installation: video, 9 minutes.
• Read what VaeVictis protects you from, and what not: what happens if…