In earlier iterations of Windows, opening the disc format in Windows 10 required having to burn the file to a CD, or using third party disc burners or archivers to access the contents of the file. With Windows 10, however, this feature was baked into the operating system.
A Brief About The IMG And ISO File Formats
The disk file formats like IMG and ISO usually contain the installation files of various applications. You have to burn this file formats want to a disc in order to transfer and install them across devices. Windows 10 now has built-in support to Mount IMG and ISO file formats without burning them onto a disc.
Earlier, Mac OS devices used the IMG file format 2 install and run their applications. This file format was used as default to Mount or unmount file systems as well. However, Apple now uses the dmg file format instead of the traditional IMG file format.
How To Mount IMG File In Windows 10?
As mentioned before, Windows 10 allows you to directly open IMG file formats in File Explorer without having to install start party archivers or having to burn the file onto a disc. Simply, follow these steps:
- Open File Explorer using the shortcut Win + E.
- Navigate to the folder which has the ISO or IMG file stored in it.
- Right-click on this file and select Mount from the context menu.
- The contents of the IMG file should open in the File Explorer window. However, if it does not open the file contents, simply go back to This PC where you will find the disk image listed under disc drives.
Note: You can only mount ISO and IMG files stored on your disk drive that is formatted using the NTFS file system, or devices connected to your PC. You cannot mount the disc image files stored on other file formats, or any other location (like network drives).
Mount Image Windows 10 Using Powershell
Powershell is the default command line interpreter in Windows 10. You can use this interpreter if you’re wondering how to open an IMG file with a single command. Follow these steps for the same:
- Open PowerShell (admin) from the Winx menu or Windows Search if you haven’t replaced PowerShell with cmd.
- Type the following command and press Enter to mount the disk image format:
Mount-diskimage -imagepath <ISO_path_name>
How To Unmount IMG File In Windows 10?
Windows treats the mounted IMG file as a separate disk drive. Thus, do unmount the IMG file you will have to detach the virtual disc drive from your computer. This can be done by selecting the eject option from the context menu that appears when you right-click on the disc drive.
In PowerShell, type the following command and press Enter to eject the disk image:
Dismount-diskimage -imagepath <Full path to your ISO file>
Remove App Association For IMG And ISO Files
Sometimes the ISO mount in Windows 10 is done via third-party archivers like 7zip or PeaZip if you have them installed on your computer. These applications will take over and open the IMG or ISO file. If this is the case for you as well, and you want to Mount IMG file in Windows 10 using the File Explorer you will have to change the default app binding for the same.
Follow these steps:
- Open the Windows Settings app using the keyboard shortcut Win + I.
- Go to the Apps
- From the left pane, select Default apps.
- In the right pane, scroll down and select the following option:
Choose default apps by file type - In the List of file formats, change the association for .IMG and .ISO to File Explorer.
There have been some cases, where users cannot change the default app used to open disc image files. In such scenarios, you can use the Explorer context menu for the same. Follow these steps instead:
- Navigate to the disk image file in File Explorer.
- Right-click on the image file and hover over Open with > to reveal an additional menu.
- Select Windows Explorer from the context menu.
Wrapping Up
So there you have it idiot now you know how to Mount IMG file Windows 10 using the information provided above. Comment below if you found this useful and to discuss further the same.