How to Install and Run a Bloatware-Free Windows 10 With Tiny10
Microsoft planned to stop releasing a new operating system when it launched Windows 10. But that fantasy was short-lived, and it ended up launching Windows 11 in 2021. Along with the new operating system release came the news that Windows 10’s support will retire in October 2025.
Developer NTDEV published its final build of Tiny10 which is a super lightweight version of Windows 10. Its system requirements are so low that you don’t need a powerful rig. If you’re curious about this lightweight version of Windows 10, let’s explore its features and limitations.
What Is Tiny10?
Tiny10 is a customized version of the Windows 10 operating system. Its main aim is to remove all the bloatware Microsoft ships with the operating system and reduce resource consumption and storage. While a regular Windows 10 ISO file is more than 4 GB, the Tiny10 is merely 2.5 GB. The 32-bit version is even smaller and is 2.1 GB.
But the size isn’t the only exciting factor about Tiny10. It removes all the bloatware from the ISO file before installation. So, you don’t need to do a manual cleaning, remove system apps or alter policies. All of that is already done.
Should You Install Tiny10?
Yes, you can try out Tiny10 on a spare PC to revive it. But there are some concerns as well.
Firstly, you won’t get any system updates with the Tiny10. You can try to manually install updates but whether it will work or not is another question.
Tiny10 doesn’t come with the Microsoft Store or Windows Security. So, you must also install third-party antivirus software to protect your computer. Even the Windows Package Manager is missing from the picture. But you can download it from GitHub and manage apps on your system using a terminal window.
All these issues make it hard to recommend using a modded Windows version as a daily driver. However, the bloatware is something that Microsoft needs to fix with Windows 10 and new versions. It is helping nobody and even deterring users from using Windows OS.
Can You Run Tiny10 on Any System?
The official hardware requirements for Windows 10 include a 1-core processor and 2 GB RAM for the 64-bit version. It also requires 20 GB of space for installation.
However, Tiny10 reduces these system requirements to a commendable extent. You can run Tiny10 with just 1-2 GB RAM and just 10 GB of storage space.
Since there is no TPM or Secure Boot requirement in Windows 10, you don’t need to perform any registry tweaking while installing it. So, any old system with an entry-level to a mid-level processor and 2-4 GB RAM is perfect for installing Tiny10.
1. Downloading the Required Files
Firstly, head over to theofficial Tiny10 pageon the Internet Archive. You can either choose the direct download option or the torrent download option. The latter offers slightly better download speeds, so go for that if you have a torrent client installed on your computer.
There are three Tiny10 ISO options to choose from versions1809,2209, and2303. We would suggest you avoid the 1809 build as it is very old. Go for the 22H2 build or the 2303 LTSC build. The LTSC build is available in 32-bit only, so avoid that if you want to run a 64-bit version of modded Windows 10 on your system.
After downloading the appropriate Tiny10 ISO file, you need a program tocreate a bootable USB drive. There are abundant options out there, but we will recommend Rufus. You can easily create a Windows 10 bootable media using it and then use it for installation. You can also burn a DVD, but that is for prehistoric systems only.
2. Installing Tiny10
Repeat the following steps to install Tiny10 on your system:
Wait for the installation to complete. Your computer will restart multiple times during this process.
Tiny10: Is It Really That Much Different From Regular Windows 10?
When Tiny10 boots up for the first time, it is hard to distinguish that it is a toned-down version of Windows 10. But as soon as you press the Windows key, you notice that all clutter is missing from the Start menu. There are only a few folders, each with inbuilt Windows utilities but no unnecessary apps. It doesn’t even contain Microsoft Store. Thankfully, it includes the Edge browser which would otherwise be very difficult to download and install anything from the web.
The system resource consumption isn’t too bad either. On an idle load, the operating system consumes nearly one GB of RAM. If you start a browser, the memory usage shoots up. While it is perfectly capable to run on 2 GB RAM, the overall experience will be much better if you use a 2-4 core processor and 4 GB RAM.
Tiny10 vs Tiny11: Which Should You Pick?
Both these modded operating systems run well on low-spec systems. The only difference is that the Tiny11 will need more power to offer a smooth experience. NTDEV shared that this would be the last Windows 10 build and no more will arrive in the future. This is primarily due to the slow shift towards Windows 11 and Microsoft’s announcement of ending Windows 10 support by 2025.
So, it makes no sense for the developer to continue launching Windows 10 builds when most of the users want to try Windows 11. Tiny10 and Tiny11 are free-to-use customized ISO files. You don’t need to pay for anything.
Although, manually removing the bloatware is possible to some extent using PowerShell. You can also useWingetto add or remove the installed applications from a normal Windows 10 ISO file.
Revive an Old PC With Tiny10
Windows ships with a lot of bloatware and tracking elements. Tiny10 resolves this issue to some extent and is extremely frugal with the hardware resources. However, it’s possible to create a custom version of Windows using Tiny11 or NTLite.
Why install parts of Windows 11 if you’re just going to disable them right after? Here’s how to customize Windows 11 before installation with NTLite.
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