2. USB stick and BIOS

2.1. Download the image

1. ISO: https://archlinux.org/download/ — pick any mirror in your country.
2. Verify the checksum: sha256sum archlinux-*.iso against sha256sums.txt from the download page.

2.2. Write the USB stick

From Windows — Rufus

Rufus settings:

Field	Value
Device	your USB stick (double-check the size!)
Boot selection	Disk or ISO image → pick archlinux-*.iso
Partition scheme	GPT
Target system	UEFI (non CSM)
File system	FAT32 (default)

START → when asked about the hybrid image, choose "Write in DD Image mode".

After a DD write, Windows will show the stick as a small "unreadable" drive and offer to format it — say no, that's expected.

Alternative: Ventoy — install it on the stick once, then just copy ISOs onto it.

From Linux

lsblk                                   # find the stick, e.g. sdb — NOT your system disk!
sudo dd if=archlinux-*.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync

2.3. BIOS / UEFI

• Secure Boot — off.

• Boot mode — UEFI (no Legacy/CSM).

• Dual-booting Windows? Do this in Windows before you boot the stick:

  • Turn off fast startup (Control Panel → Power Options → Choose what the power buttons do → Turn on fast startup).

  • Free space for Arch: Disk Management → right-click C: → Shrink Volume, at least 60 GB. Leave the space unallocated; archinstall partitions it in 3.3.

  • If BitLocker or device encryption is on (Settings → Privacy & security → Device encryption), save the recovery key from account.microsoft.com/devices/recoverykey. A new bootloader can make Windows ask for it once.

  • Make Windows keep the hardware clock in UTC, as Linux does, or the time jumps by your time zone every time you switch systems. In a terminal opened as administrator:

    reg add "HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\TimeZoneInformation" /v RealTimeIsUniversal /d 1 /t REG_DWORD /f

• Arch already installed and Windows goes in second? See Dual boot with Windows.

• Boot from the stick: usually F12, F8 or Esc at power-on.

2.4. USB boot menu

Pick the first entry — Arch Linux install medium (x86_64, UEFI).

Entry	What it is
install medium	✅ the regular installer
…with speech	installer with a screen reader (for blind users)
Memtest86+	memory test
UEFI Shell / Firmware Setup	UEFI console / enter the BIOS

---

Next: 3. Installing Arch →