Fedora Media Writer vs Rufus
Fedora Media Writer
fedoraproject.org
Rufus
rufus.ieSide by side
| Figure | Fedora Media Writer | Rufus |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Bootable USB Software | 8.0 (#7) | 7.4 (#24) |
| License | The project repository identifies Fedora Media Writer as GPL-2.0 licensed. | Rufus is free software released under GPL v3, and the project says users may compile it from its published source. |
| Purpose | Fedora Media Writer writes Fedora images to USB flash drives. | Rufus formats drives and creates bootable USB flash drives. |
| Support | The project asks users experiencing crashes or writing errors to open an issue on GitHub. | The project directs users to its GitHub issue tracker to report problems or suggest features. |
Plans
In their own words
Fedora Media Writer
Fedora Media Writer creates bootable USB drives by writing Fedora images to them. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows, and can download the image before writing. A Live Fedora drive can be booted to try Fedora without making permanent changes to the computer. Getting started requires a 4GB USB flash drive.
Writing uses direct access to the device and replaces its existing contents and partition layout. Fedora Media Writer includes a Restore feature to put the drive back into a standard single-partition layout. Image checks can include comparing the USB device with the downloaded ISO or booting it and running a media check. Fedora also advises verifying downloaded images with a checksum file signed by a Fedora Project OpenPGP certificate. Installation options include Fedora's RPM package, Flathub on Linux, Windows releases, and a macOS DMG. The project identifies the software as GPL-2.0 licensed and directs users with crashes or writing errors to open a GitHub issue. It is free: free.