Early versions of the Raspberry Pi could only boot from SD cards, but newer ones can boot from any USB device, like an external drive or USB stick. Here's how.

USB boot has been possible since the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B (v1.2), but it has only become really worthwhile with the Pi 4. Here is some information, tips, tricks and opinions explaining why and how.

The Raspberry Pi Imager makes this process a cakewalk Unlike the average PC, the Raspberry Pi doesn’t ship with a tweakable BIOS menu, and it's pre-configured to boot from the microSD card.

1. What to Do if Your Raspberry Pi 5 Won't Boot As the fifth full generation of Raspberry Pi boards, the Pi 5 is a little more reliable than earlier models.

For example, the Raspberry Pi 4 won't work with a supply from a Raspberry Pi 3. The Pi 4 introduced a USB-C input with a 5V 3A minimum requirement.