Ubuntu Live USB Creator, often known as Startup Disk Creator, is the official graphical utility provided to make bootable USB flash drives from Ubuntu ISO images. It simplifies producing a Live USB — a portable environment that can boot and run Ubuntu without installing it to a hard drive — and is available from Ubuntu's software repositories, first appearing around the time of Ubuntu 8.10.

What it does

The tool writes an ISO image to a removable drive in a way that makes the stick bootable on most computers. It offers a simple interface to select a source ISO and a target USB device, and can optionally create a persistent file so user settings, installed programs and documents survive across reboots. Under the hood the created live system uses Ubuntu's live infrastructure (casper) to load the system from the USB.

Typical workflow

  • Download an Ubuntu ISO image you want to use (desktop or other flavor).
  • Insert a USB flash drive of adequate size and back up any data on it.
  • Launch Startup Disk Creator from the system menu or application launcher.
  • Choose the ISO and the USB target, set a persistence size if desired, then start the process.

Advantages and limitations

Because it is integrated into Ubuntu, the tool is convenient for new users and supports persistent storage for live sessions. It verifies inputs and handles typical formatting tasks automatically. However, behavior varies with firmware: older versions focused on legacy BIOS booting while modern images may need proper UEFI and Secure Boot support. Some non-Ubuntu ISOs or unusually structured images may not work as expected; in such cases alternatives like dd, Rufus (Windows) or UNetbootin can be considered.

Troubleshooting and tips

  • If a created USB will not boot, check BIOS/UEFI boot order and Secure Boot settings.
  • Ensure the ISO download is intact (compare checksums if available) and the USB has enough free space for persistence.
  • When persistence is set, data is typically stored in a casper persistence file; very large persistence demands may be better served by a full installed USB.

For official background and downloads see the project's pointers to creating Live USBs and information on Ubuntu. The Startup Disk Creator remains a convenient first choice for producing Ubuntu live media and for testing or installing the distribution on other machines.