Overview
This image exists for hardware that a standard install makes unusable. The store framework, the bundled applications, the assistant, the telemetry stack, the tablet components, the recovery partition and a long list of services that a fixed desktop machine will never call are all removed rather than disabled, and what remains is compressed in place so the installed system occupies a fraction of the usual space. On a machine with a small solid state drive and four gigabytes of memory, the difference is not a few percent, it is the difference between usable and not.
Be clear about the trade before installing it. Removed is removed. The application store is not coming back, some features that depend on the components taken out will not work, and feature upgrades to a newer release will refuse. It is the right image for a machine with a fixed job and the wrong image for a general purpose computer that has to do whatever is asked of it next year.
What has been taken out
The bundled application set goes entirely, along with the store framework that delivers it. The assistant, the search indexing service, the telemetry and diagnostics stack, the tablet and touch components, the games bar, the mixed reality portal and the accessibility narrator are all removed. Print, network, audio and graphics all remain, because a machine that cannot print or connect is not lighter, it is broken.
The compact option applies filesystem level compression to the system files themselves, which costs a small amount of processor time on read and saves several gigabytes on disk. On a solid state drive the cost is invisible. On a very old mechanical drive it is a fair trade in the other direction as well, since less data has to be read.
The recovery environment on the same media
The installer media also carries a preinstallation environment, which is a small bootable system with a file manager, a command prompt, a disk tool and a network stack. That is what you use when the installed system will not boot: recover files off the drive, repair the boot configuration, reset a password, or check the disk before deciding whether to reinstall at all.
It is worth keeping the stick after the install for exactly that reason. A recovery environment on a shelf is far more useful than a recovery partition on the drive that has just failed.
Who should and should not install this
It suits a machine with a defined role: a workshop computer, a machine running one line of business application, an old laptop that has to do documents and a browser, a media playback box. It suits a machine with four gigabytes of memory and a small drive, where the standard image spends most of its resources on itself.
It does not suit a main computer that has to remain flexible, a machine belonging to someone who cannot reinstall it themselves, or anything where the removed components might turn out to be needed. There is no supported way to put them back. If you are unsure, install the standard Professional image and turn things off instead.
What you get
- Bundled applications, store framework, assistant and telemetry stack removed
- Compressed system files, reducing the installed footprint substantially
- Runs on machines with 4 GB of memory and a small system drive
- Preactivated, with no key entry required
- Preinstallation recovery environment on the same installer media
- Print, network, audio and graphics support left fully intact
- Professional edition base with group policy and remote desktop host
- Very fast boot and very low idle memory use
- Suitable for a machine with a fixed, known job
Inside the archive
- Windows 10 Lite ISO, 64-bit
- Preinstallation recovery environment on the same media
- Checksum file for verifying the image
- List of exactly which components have been removed
- Notes on writing the image to a USB stick
System requirements
| Processor | 1 GHz or faster, 64-bit |
|---|---|
| Memory | 2 GB minimum, 4 GB comfortable |
| Storage | 20 GB system drive, which is the point of the image |
| Graphics | DirectX 9 capable with WDDM 1.0 driver |
| Firmware | BIOS or UEFI, secure boot supported |
| Installer media | USB stick of 4 GB or larger |
Installing it
- Read the removed component list before you commit. Removed components cannot be restored.
- Verify the checksum against the file included with the image.
- Write the image to a USB stick. The stick is erased.
- Boot from the stick and choose custom install. Upgrading an existing Windows to this image is not supported.
- Keep the stick afterwards. The recovery environment on it is the repair tool for this machine.
Mirrors
| Route | Region | Note | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct, primary | Europe | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Direct, secondary | North America | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Torrent magnet | Global | Optional at this size | Online |
Release history
- Rebuilt with the current cumulative update integrated
- Print spooler restored to the base image after reports of removal breaking network printers
- Recovery environment updated with current storage drivers
- Compression applied to a wider set of system files
- Fixed audio service dependency broken by a removed component
- First post of this stripped image
Questions about this release
Can I install the store applications later?
No. The framework they depend on is removed rather than disabled, and there is no supported way to put it back. Use the standard image if you need them.
Will it take feature upgrades?
No. A feature upgrade to a newer release will refuse on a stripped image. Cumulative security updates continue to apply normally.
Is it activated?
Yes, in the image, with no key entry required.
Should I put this on my main computer?
Probably not. It is for a machine with a fixed job. A general purpose computer is better served by the standard image with features turned off.
Comments
Read the removal list first, which I recommend. Nothing I needed was gone. Recovery environment on the stick already saved another machine.
Would not put this on a family computer. On my media box it is perfect.
Comments are read before they appear. If a build stops working, say so here and it gets rebuilt rather than quietly left up.
Went on a workshop machine with 4 GB. Idle memory under a gigabyte, boots in about twelve seconds. Exactly the job it is for.