How to Convert IMG Files to ISO 2021.
IMG and ISO files are two common file formats for disc image files. They are often used to store, distribute, or back up the content and file system of optical discs (CD, DVD, and Blu-ray) to another disc or device.
Despite many common and practical uses, ISO is widely accepted as the standard / format for disc images. ISO files are compatible with almost all operating systems (OS) as well as disc burning software. Many devices and OS have built-in tools that can extract and read files in ISO format discs.
IMG files, on the other hand, are usually compressed and therefore cannot be read by some devices and imaging software. Due to this mismatch in acceptance and compatibility, many users prefer to have ISO format disc images / files.
If you need to convert a disk image file from .img to .iso format, the conversion tools and methods described in this post will come in handy. They are relevant for both Windows and Mac devices.
1. Rename the File Extension
IMG and ISO disc image files have the same data structure, except for the fact that the former can be compressed while the latter cannot. If the IMG file is not compressed, you can easily convert it to ISO by renaming the file extension. The content of the image file will work correctly and will remain unchanged.
Right-click the IMG file and choose Rename from the context menu. Change the format (after the dot symbol) from .img to .iso and press Enter on your keyboard.
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Open the renamed file and check if your computer can mount the ISO file. If you receive the error message “The disk image file is corrupted,” the IMG file is most likely compressed. Change the file extension back to .img and use the other methods below to convert to ISO.
Advice. If you can’t change the file extension because the IMG file doesn’t have the .img extension suffix attached to its name, here’s how to get Windows to display the file extension.
Launch File Explorer and go to the View tab. Then select “Options” on the Quick Access Toolbar.
In the Folder Options window, go to the View tab and uncheck the Hide extensions for known file types check box. Select Apply and then OK. The IMG file you want to convert should now contain the .img suffix in the filename.
2. Use Third-Party Software
There are many file management tools that offer file conversion services and do it brilliantly. We’ve tested some of these programs and these are our favorites.
1. PowerISO
This tool allows you to convert about 30 different image file formats to ISO. Although the conversion speed varies with the file size, PowerISO quickly converted our sample IMG file to ISO.
It’s important to note that PowerISO operates on a freemium model. The free version gets the job done as fast as the paid / registered version, but with some limitations. First, you cannot create, edit, or convert files larger than 300MB as a free user. Second, there is a 5-second popup (asking you to pay for the app) that you have to watch every time you launch the app.
Download PowerISO from the developer website and install it on your computer. Select “Tools” from the menu bar and select “Convert File Format”.
Click the folder icon next to the Source File dialog box to select the IMG file, check the Enable password protection checkbox if you want to password protect the resulting ISO file, and click OK to start converting.
2. MagicISO
This is another great tool for converting IMG files to ISO. It can convert up to 10GB of files (to ISO format) in one operation, but the free version has a 300MB limit. Unlike PowerISO, you don’t get annoying pop-ups when launching an application or at any time during use.
Install and run the application on your PC, then go to Tools in the menu bar and select Convert.
Click the folder icon next to the Select Source File box and select the IMG file you want to convert. Make sure the standard ISO image file (.ISO) is selected as the output format and click Convert.
Convert IMG to ISO on Mac
The above applications are only compatible with Windows PC. If you are using a MacBook or iMac, there is an easy way to convert IMG to ISO without installing any third-party software. All you need is the Terminal app.
1. Go to Applications> Utilities and launch the Terminal application.
2. Type or paste hdiutil convert and leave a blank.
3. Drag the IMG file you want to convert to the terminal console. Press the space bar to leave a space and go to the next step.
4. Type or paste -format UDTO -o into the console and press the spacebar.
5. Drag the IMG file you want to convert to Terminal again, but this time rename the file extension from .img to .iso. You should have a command line similar to the one below.
hdiutil convert /Users/name/folder/File.img -format UDTO -o /Users/name/folder/File.iso
6. Finally, press Return to execute the command.
Terminal will create a fresh copy of the CDR file (i.e. .iso.cdr) in the same path as the original IMG file.
CDR is a variant of the ISO disc image file for Mac. Rename the created file (remove the .cdr extension from the file name) and press Enter.
In the confirmation window, select “Use .iso”.
That’s all; you have successfully converted the IMG file to ISO. You can also use this trick to convert DMG files to ISO.
IMG to ISO in a Twinkling
These are methods and utilities that you can use to reliably convert IMG to ISO files. If you’re a Windows user, third-party software is best. You can also transfer the IMG file to an external storage device and convert it on Mac for free without any size limit. Leave a comment if you get stuck, need more help, or have other equally effective methods.
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How to Convert IMG Files to ISO 2021
How to Convert IMG Files to ISO 2021