CrustyWindows:File hosts
Part of the reason we strive to preserve these ISOs is because of the fragile nature of file hosts. To make it easier for people to search for bootlegs and not waste their time, we've compiled a list of different file hosts commonly used for bootlegs, categorized by if they're still alive and if there's any special steps or caveats to downloading from them.
Dead
Fileserve
The site was shut down in 2012 (less than a year after it started), it is most common with bootlegs posted in 2011.
FileDefend
It died in less than a year. I guess they didn't defend your files very well. Because it was so short-lived, most people didn't upload here, but there's a few bootlegs (all posted in 2012) that did.
Hotfile
The site shut down on December 4th, 2013. The site now redirects to a MPAA "watch it legally" propaganda campaign. Very common in bootlegs posted in 2007 to 2013.
JumboFiles
Dead, dead, dead. Shut down on December 31st, 2015.
Letitbit
Let it bit (rot). Oddly shut down by ICANN in April 2016, though most of its files were purged by then anyway due to legal requests. Extremely common in bootlegs posted between 2009 and 2014
MegaUpload
Infamously had its servers seized by the Department of Justice in 2012. Usually only old bootlegs (2007 to 2010) use Megaupload links.
Plunder
The site is still technically online, but has had all of its files purged. Luckily, it's extremely uncommon.
The site shut off on March 31st, 2015 (though most links were dead well before then). Most common between 2009 and 2014.
Uploaded/Uploaded.net
The site shut down on November 30th, 2022 after giving users less than 24 hours to get their stuff. Purged all Windows ISOs long before that anyway, so it didn't matter much. Most common in 2012 to 2015 posts.
Uploading/Uploading.com
The site shut down in late 2016 and is now replaced with a garbage clickbait blog. Very common with bootlegs posted in 2009 to 2012.
Storage.to/Kickload.com
Storage.to changed into Kickload in October 2011, then died in 2012 for an unknown reason.
Kickload.com also died in early 2012 for also unknown reasons. Domain expiry?
Sites that purge files for inactivity
FileRio
Still active website, seems to purge if they aren't downloaded for a while (how long that is isn't specified anywhere). They have a link checker tool which you can use to see if files are still available. Not very common, but still worth checking if you find a link.
TurboBit
Still online. Like FileRio, it has a link checker tool that you can use to see if the files are still available, which can save a lot of time. Very common on Russian websites.
Premium sites
Chomikuj
There's quite a few bootleg ISOs here, but you'll have to pony up the money to download more than 1 MB (or 50 MB if you've registered an account). And par for the course, it isn't a normal website that just uses PayPal to buy the download points, instead it uses Premium SMS (which is being phased out by many mobile carriers). LeechAll can download up to 2 GB from Chomik per day, but take note that you'll be directed through adfly chains and will have to battle through a ton of redirects to get the file.
An alternative to this is a Telegram bot that allows you to download files from Chomikuj easily. You can add it here and you need to type "/start" then paste the link to the file. (example: http://chomikuj.pl/polonista2233/Systemy+Operacyjne/WindowZ+v2+2010/WindowZ+v2+2010,6660974000.iso(archive))
Active sites
MediaFire
MediaFire is still active with lots of files, however, Microsoft bots are known to scan the website for ISOs and submit DMCA claims on them, so its not extraordinarily common to find links that work.
SendSpace
Still online as of December 18th, 2022. Most old files seem to be purged though.
Google Drive
Google Drive is an extremely active with thousands if not millions of files hosted. Sometimes (rarely) some blogs giving download links may point to Google Drive.
Internet Archive
Internet Archive, AKA archive.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the internet since 1996. While it is not really used for archival anymore (rather a place for children to drop their vista recolours) you can find some interesting ISOs there. We usually don't accept these, so try to use some of the above websites.
Notes
- As of May 26th, 2023, archive.org hosts all three banned ISOs. (Windows CTAC[1], ChaineseOS[2], Windows Komichi Edition 2019[3]). Do not submit these ISOs to us. The request will be rejected
- Archive.org is known to have re-uploads of the collection or a certain ISO in the collection. While this is great (incase Microsoft sees this website, and they have before) please make sure that said reuploads have some ISOs that aren't in the collection if you plan to submit them to us (as some already do, such as this one)
MEGA
MEGA is free to download from and semi-common for bootlegs, however it has a 5GB/day download limit. To get around this you can use megabasterd. However, MEGA is known to remove Windows ISOs and take the account that uploaded it along with it.