Small footprint 64 bit ISO reader

Question

In the good old days of Windows XP we had the Microsoft Virtual CD-ROM Control Panel for mounting ISO's.

Since Vista I have struggled to find a driver level shell extension that works on a 64 bit Windows.

I have tried Virtual Clone Drive and have no real complaints but what I really want is software that behaves just like MVCDControlPanel ie:

• I don't want a permanent drive waiting to mount an ISO sitting in my drive list.
• I really liked the tiny footprint and minimal resource usage of MVCDControlPanel so something that doesn't use much CPU (when it isn't reading ISO's).
• Preferably with a right-click shell extension to mount an ISO or simply open it as you would a zip file.
• It only needs to provide read-only access to the ISO
• I always prefer software that doesn't stick its branding and silly logos or icons all over the place or on the temporary drive in explorer

I'm happy to pay for it. What are my options?

Solution 1

By far the best free ISO mounting tool out there is Pismo file mount.

Some highlights:

• Works great on Windows Vista/7 x64 (not natively x64 but completely compatible)
• Drives only exist when an ISO is mounted and are removed when there is no ISO mounted
• Small memory footprint
• Has simple minimalist right click shell integration
• Unattended installation
• No Branding or silly logos to speak of (very clean professional feeling program)
• Fully featured command line control that is automatically working right after unattended install
• Plus all the normal features you would expect from an ISO mounting tool
• Free for corporate use

Some things you will want to pay attention to though is that by default it will not mount the ISO to a drive letter but instead mount it to a UNC path which can cause some software installers to fail when installing from the mounted path. Just make sure you specify that you want Pismo to mount to a drive letter when you are doing the mount and it will work fine.

Here is the unattended install of SQL to demonstrate my real world use of Pismo.

SET MSDNIsoPath=\\itapp\ISO Library\MSDN
SET ScriptPath=%~dp0
SET ScriptPath=%ScriptPath:~0,-1%
SET MountPath=m:
SET pfmMount=pfm mount -m %MountPath%
SET pfmUnMount=pfm unmount

echo -Installing Pismo File Mount
"%ResourcePath%\pfmap-051.exe" /q

echo.
echo Install and configure Microsoft SQL Server 2005 
echo -Installing Standard Edition
%pfmMount% "%MSDNIsoPath%\en_sql_2005_std_x86_dvd.iso"
%MountPath%\Servers\setup.exe /settings "%ScriptPath%\Configuration\Microsoft SQL Server 2005.ini" /qb /norestart
%pfmUnMount%

Solution 2

For 64-Bit there is only two that I use. The first is Daemon Tools Lite. It's a tray icon application that allows you to mount an ISO by double clicking and fully 64-Bit. Since I have never really minded having a drive letter waiting I am not sure if you can make it create a drive on the fly however.

Since Windows 7 I have been using MagicISO. It's Windows Vista/7 64-Bit compliant, but also keeps a drive letter available at all times. The sole purpose of this application is to mount ISO's and it has a very small footprint.

Solution 3

I like 7zip. Not only does to do most compressed file formats, but it also handles ISOs.

Pros:

• You can "extract" them out like a zip file.
• It integrates with Windows Explorer to allow for "right-click" expansion.
• It's open source, and there are 32 & 64 bit versions.
• Runs on all modern versions of Windows, including Windows 7

Cons:

• It does not do mounting, unlike most of the other programs listed.

Solution 4

I am using Alcohol 52% Free Edition under Windows Vista x64 for mounting ISO files.

Solution 5

I've been a happy (and paying) user of MagiISO for quite some time.

I also have a license for Nero, but when it comes to the "virtual CD", I usually use MagicDisc (it's freeware "mount disc image" product, http://www.vmware.com/products/server/)

It has versions for most OSs, so I'd recommend you give it a spin. The price (free) is just right :)

View more solutions

Comments

[grenade]

That's great. What is it like? Going by the screenshot in that page you linked to it looks bulkier than Virtual Clone Drive. -or am I wrong?

[gbn]

Note: it does not work under windows x64

[grenade]

Cheers, I'm goint to check out MagicISO.

[Wim ten Brink]

@gbn, I have Alcohol running on Vista 64-bits! Why do you say it doesn't work, while it does?

[Alexander]

@grenade: I don't know VCD. But Alcohol intergrates into the exporer context menu, so you can mount and unmount iso files with a single click. @gbn: Alcohol definitly works on Vista x64! I am also running it without any problems.

[Massimo]

I absolutely recommend Daemon Tools Lite. It's small, free, easy to use (you can associate .iso files with it and mount them with a single click) and supports multiple virtual drives. The latest version works greatly on Windows 7, both x86 and x64.

[Michael Stum]

Does Daemon Tools still bundle spyware? That killed it's reputation with me a few years ago. But MagicISO is great.

[Mathieu]

@Michael - The lite version doesn't. As long as you untick everything. But I have stopped using it since it is not Windows 7 compliant.