The ability to install or reinstall Windows is important when formatting a new hard drive or fixing a corrupt operating system. When the message "Windows cannot open the required file D:\Sources ...

If 7-Zip cannot open an archive or compressed file and you see Cannot open file as archive error message, here's what you can do.

The install.wim has been replaced with install.esd file format in Windows 11/10 image file downloaded using the Media Creation Tool or the Windows Upgrade Assistant.

That image (. wim stands for stands for Windows Imaging Format) contains not just your personal files, but the Windows 7 operating system and all your PC programs.

At the top, you will find three main options—Add, Convert, and Extract. Selecting the Add option allows you to archive files, ...

That option works fine when you download the Windows 10 installer files using the official Windows 10 Download page, because those files are packaged specifically for use on USB flash drives.

Downloaded Windows Automated Installer Kit (WAIK) for Vista so that I could use ImageX.exe to extract a file from a 2.5GB WIM file. (Windows Image File) Apparently WIM is the new hotness and CAB ...