WIM Installer

WIM Installer

WIM Installer is a small freeware utility by Erik Pistelli, the author of the NTCore tools such as CFF Explorer, released in April 2007. It provides a simple graphical interface for installing setups based on WIM images, regardless of whether they have been released by Microsoft or created by someone else, so you do not need to work with command-line imaging tools to apply an image.

WIM Installer lets you install a WIM-based setup by picking an image and a target path, without using command-line tools.

Features

• WIM image support: WIM (Windows Imaging Format) is the file-based image format that Microsoft introduced with Windows Vista for deploying Windows. WIM Installer opens such a file and applies its contents to a target location, which is the way Windows setups based on WIM images are installed.

• Image list: after you pick a WIM file with the Browse button, the program lists the images stored in it with their index, name and description. A single WIM file can hold several images, for example different editions of Windows, and you simply select the one you want to install.

• Choosing the target: the Installation Path field sets the drive or folder where the selected image is extracted. By default it points to the root of drive C:, and you can type another path before starting, for example a freshly formatted partition.

• One-click installation: the Install button applies the selected image to the chosen path, and the Exit button closes the program. There are no wizards, extra pages or confusing options to go through, so the whole process happens in a single window.

• Lightweight: the program is a single small executable of about 272 KB that you run directly. It is easy to keep on a USB drive or in a folder together with the WIM images you work with.

• Works with any WIM-based setup: the author notes that the tool handles setups based on WIM images whether they come from Microsoft or from other sources, as long as they use the standard WIM format.

• Freeware: WIM Installer is free to download and use from the NTCore website. It was released as a first version (file version 1.0.0.1) and has not been updated since 2007.

Conclusion

WIM Installer is a simple, free tool for applying WIM images through a graphical interface instead of the command line. It is best suited for users who deploy Windows or other WIM-based setups and want to pick an image and a target path in one window. As an old utility that is no longer developed, it offers only this basic function, so tasks such as capturing, mounting or editing images need other tools like DISM.