If you’ve ever installed Windows 11 from scratch, you know it can feel painfully slow and bloated. Between Microsoft’s forced online setup, background telemetry, bundled apps, and AI integrations, a fresh install can take nearly an hour — and still leave you with features you don’t want.
But what if you could install Windows 11 in just six minutes, with zero bloatware, no Microsoft account requirements, and all the telemetry stripped away?
That’s exactly what the Chris Titus WinUtil and its powerful MicroWin feature can do.
In this article, we’ll walk step-by-step through how to use the Chris Titus Win Utility to create your own lightweight Windows 11 ISO, install it on your PC or virtual machine, and customize it for performance and privacy.
Let’s dive right in.
1️⃣ What Is the Chris Titus Win Utility?
Before jumping to MicroWin, let’s understand the base tool.
The Chris Titus Win Utility is an open-source PowerShell-based system optimization toolkit developed by Chris Titus Tech. It allows you to:
- Debloat Windows 10 and 11 with one click
- Disable telemetry and data tracking
- Configure privacy and performance tweaks
- Install or remove Microsoft apps easily
- Build a custom ISO (using MicroWin) for faster clean installs
👉 You can find the official project here:
GitHub Repository: https://github.com/ChrisTitusTech/winutil
The MicroWin module within this tool is what makes it so unique — it lets you create a customized Windows image that skips setup clutter, installs faster, and runs leaner than Microsoft’s default version.
2️⃣ What Is MicroWin and Why It’s a Game Changer
MicroWin is a sub-feature inside the WinUtil toolkit that lets you:
- Download the latest official Windows 11 ISO directly from Microsoft.
- Strip out telemetry, background tracking, and bloatware.
- Skip Microsoft account login during installation.
- Automatically set up a local user account.
- Integrate drivers and tweaks before installation.
- Create a bootable image ready for USB or VM use.
Essentially, it allows you to build your own lightweight Windows, optimized for your exact needs — no CoPilot, no Recall, no Teams chat, and no unnecessary ads.
If you’ve ever used tools like Rufus or NTLite, MicroWin sits somewhere between them — it’s simpler than NTLite but far more customizable than Rufus.
3️⃣ Step 1 – Download and Run Chris Titus WinUtil
Let’s start from the beginning.
- Click on the Start Menu, search for PowerShell, and right-click → Run as Administrator.
- In the PowerShell window, copy and paste the following command:
irm https://christitus.com/win | iex - Press Enter and wait.
Within seconds, the WinUtil interface will download and open. On slower systems, it might take 20–30 seconds, but don’t worry — once loaded, you’ll see the main dashboard with several options, including “Tweaks,” “Install,” “Updates,” and “MicroWin.”
We’ll focus on MicroWin for now.
4️⃣ Step 2 – Open the MicroWin Utility
Once the interface loads:
- Click the MicroWin tab from the left-hand sidebar.
- You’ll see multiple options for building a custom ISO.
By default, the tool is set to use Microsoft’s latest official Windows build — usually Windows 11 24H2 or newer.
💡 Tip: The tool automatically checks for new builds, so you’ll always get the most recent ISO available directly from Microsoft’s servers.
Let’s go ahead and create the customized ISO.
5️⃣ Step 3 – Download or Use Your Own ISO
At the top of the MicroWin window, you’ll see two options:
- Use an existing ISO (if you’ve already downloaded one), or
- Get ISO (to automatically fetch it from Microsoft).
Click Get ISO, then choose Windows 11 24H2 (the current stable release).
You’ll be prompted to choose a location to save it — ideally somewhere with enough free space (at least 10 GB).
Once you confirm, the download will begin. You’ll notice a progress bar in PowerShell showing real-time progress.
Depending on your connection, it can take 5 to 15 minutes, as the ISO is roughly 5 GB in size.
6️⃣ Step 4 – Handling Dependencies (If Prompted)
During this step, you might encounter a small pop-up mentioning missing .exe dependencies or GitHub files.
If this happens:
- Click OK, and the script will automatically fetch missing components directly from GitHub.
- Wait for it to complete — it might take a few minutes.
Once all dependencies are in place, the script will continue to prepare your ISO for customization.
7️⃣ Step 5 – Choose ISO Configuration (Pro, Home, etc.)
Once the ISO download is done, you’ll see a prompt:
“Proceed with customization?”
Click Yes.
Now, choose your Windows edition (Pro, Home, or Education).
If you already own a Windows 11 Pro key, select Pro. Otherwise, you can safely pick Home — it doesn’t affect speed or functionality for most users.
8️⃣ Step 6 – Optional Driver Injection
Next, you’ll see several advanced options like:
- Inject drivers
- Include VirtIO drivers (for VMs)
- Import drivers from current system
These are optional but useful:
- ✅ Import drivers from current system:
If you’re building Windows for your current PC, this saves time reinstalling Wi-Fi, GPU, or sound drivers. - ✅ VirtIO drivers:
Essential if you plan to install Windows in a Proxmox, KVM, or Hyper-V virtual machine.
If you’re doing a regular PC installation, you can skip these safely.
9️⃣ Step 7 – Create a Local Account Automatically
This is where MicroWin really shines.
Instead of forcing you to sign in with a Microsoft account, you can predefine your local user account here.
- Enter your desired username (e.g.,
dtpuserorAdmin). - Set a password (optional — you can leave it blank).
When you install Windows later, it’ll automatically log into this local account — no online setup or Microsoft login needed.
🔟 Step 8 – Apply Debloat and Privacy Tweaks
MicroWin lets you choose optional “tweaks” before building your ISO.
If you’re not sure what to enable, leave it at Default Settings — these will:
- Remove telemetry and tracking services
- Disable data collection
- Block Recall and CoPilot integration
- Remove “anti-theft” and “Cloud Sync” dependencies
- Strip unnecessary pre-installed apps
You can also explore advanced tweaks such as:
- Disable Windows Defender temporarily during setup
- Enable old-school context menus
- Optimize for SSDs
Once ready, click Start Process.
11️⃣ Step 9 – Build Your Custom ISO
You’ll now be prompted to name and save your ISO.
Example name:
MicroWin_2025_Win11Pro_24H2.iso
After saving, the script begins building your custom image.
This process can take anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes depending on your system’s speed. It’ll display progress logs such as:
Extracting base image…
Applying tweaks…
Integrating drivers…
Cleaning temporary files…
ISO creation complete.
Once done, you’ll see a “✅ Done” message with the output location.
And that’s it — your custom bloat-free Windows 11 ISO is ready!
12️⃣ Step 10 – Create a Bootable USB with Rufus
Now it’s time to put that ISO to use.
If you’re installing on a real PC (not a VM), you’ll need to create a bootable USB drive.
- Download Rufus from the official site: https://rufus.ie/
- Plug in a USB drive (8 GB or more).
- Launch Rufus → click Select → choose your MicroWin ISO.
- Under Image Option, choose Standard Windows installation.
- Click Start → wait for completion.
Rufus also supports bypassing TPM and online account requirements, but since MicroWin already does this, you can leave those unchecked.
13️⃣ Step 11 – Install Windows 11 (Now in Just 6 Minutes!)
Now for the exciting part.
Boot from your new USB drive or load the ISO into a virtual machine.
- Choose your language and region → click Install Now.
- Select your edition (Pro or Home).
- When asked for a key, click “I don’t have a product key.”
- Accept the license → choose Custom Install.
- Delete all partitions if you want a clean setup → click Next.
That’s it. Installation begins.
In most systems, you’ll see Windows 11 install in 5–7 minutes flat.
During testing with a 4-core CPU and 8 GB RAM virtual machine, it completed in 6 minutes and 20 seconds — far faster than the traditional 45–60 minute setup!
After reboot, your system will load into a completely clean desktop environment — no ads, no Microsoft account nag screens, no bloat.
14️⃣ Step 12 – Post-Install Tweaks with WinUtil
Once Windows is installed, you can re-open PowerShell as Administrator and re-run the WinUtil tool:
irm https://christitus.com/win | iex
This time, instead of using MicroWin, open the Tweaks section and apply a few quick customizations:
- Enable Dark Mode (even without activation)
- Hide Search Bar or reduce it to an icon
- Show File Extensions and Hidden Files
- Activate Ultimate Performance Plan
- Use Cloudflare DNS (1.1.1.1) for speed
- Disable background apps
These quick settings finalize your clean, private, and optimized setup.
15️⃣ Step 13 – Testing Performance and Cleanliness
After installation, open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and observe:
- ~100–120 background processes (vs 180+ in default Windows 11)
- Memory usage under 1.2 GB at idle
- No “CoPilot” or “Widgets” running in the background
- No web ads or Store pop-ups
The result?
A faster, lighter Windows that boots quickly, consumes fewer resources, and stays private.
16️⃣ Bonus – When to Use MicroWin vs Rufus or NTLite
| Tool | Use Case | Complexity | Bloat Removal |
|---|---|---|---|
| MicroWin | Best for home users who want quick clean installs | Easy | High |
| Rufus | Fast USB creation with TPM bypass | Easy | Medium |
| NTLite | Full enterprise image customization | Advanced | Very High |
If you want a fast, privacy-focused Windows image without advanced scripting knowledge, MicroWin is the perfect balance.
❓ FAQ – Common Questions About MicroWin
Q1. Can I use MicroWin for Windows 10?
Yes. While designed for Windows 11, the tool supports earlier ISOs too — you just need to point it to a Windows 10 ISO manually.
Q2. Does MicroWin activate Windows automatically?
No. You’ll still need to enter your valid product key later or use your existing digital license.
Q3. Is MicroWin safe?
Yes. It’s open source and hosted on GitHub. All modifications occur locally on your machine, and the base ISO still comes directly from Microsoft.
Q4. Can I add my own apps to the ISO?
Yes. Advanced users can inject drivers, scripts, or pre-installed programs through the customization interface.
Q5. How is it different from “Debloat scripts” online?
MicroWin builds a clean ISO before installation, while debloat scripts modify an already installed Windows — this makes MicroWin cleaner and safer.
⚡ Final Thoughts
So far, we’ve gone from downloading the Chris Titus Win Utility to building a completely custom, privacy-respecting MicroWin ISO, and even installing it in under seven minutes.
What makes this method stand out is not just speed — it’s control. You get:
✅ No Microsoft account requirement
✅ No forced network setup
✅ No Copilot, Recall, or AI trackers
✅ No pre-installed junk apps
✅ Faster boot times and lower idle usage
Whether you’re an enthusiast, a system builder, or just someone tired of Windows bloat, this approach offers the perfect blend of simplicity, transparency, and efficiency.
Take a few minutes to set it up once, and you’ll have a lean, efficient Windows 11 installation you can reuse anytime.
Tags: Windows 11 installation, MicroWin, Chris Titus WinUtil, Windows 11 debloat, Windows optimization, local account setup, Windows 11 ISO, Windows tweaks, Rufus alternative
Hashtags: #Windows11 #MicroWin #ChrisTitusTech #DebloatWindows #WinUtil #WindowsSetup #PrivacyTools #PCOptimization
