What Are Windows Portable Apps and How to Use Them

Sometimes the efficiency of a computer is measured by the applications they are powerful enough to run. And this is really the main reason why computers exist as hardware – to run software / applications. Did you know that there are Windows Portable apps that you can carry and run on any Windows computer?

For Windows computers, there are several ways to get them to run an application. However, the most common method is to run the application configuration file directly on the computer or from an external storage device and following the prompt. installation.

It makes perfect sense to install apps on your computer if you use them frequently – daily, weekly or monthly. Installing apps that you use occasionally or barely, however, wastes time and consumes your PC storage space. This is where portable applications come in.

Portable applications are computer applications that you can use without having to install them. It's very similar to the concept of Android instant apps; mobile apps that you can use on your Android smartphone without installing them.

Portable applications explained

Portable applications are software designed to be used without being installed on the host device / computer. They are commonly used from a USB stick or other forms of external storage drives. Portable applications offer users the luxury of moving and using PC software across multiple (computing) environments without having to carry their computers everywhere.

Picture Portable applications act as standalone software that uses the processor and RAM to operate. Their operations are independent of the storage of the host device. This means that portable applications do not automatically create, write or store their configuration settings or any other file on the PC on which they are used. Instead, the files created are stored on the storage device (USB stick, external hard drive, etc.) from which they are used.

For context, if you are using a portable browser application from a USB stick on your personal computer, all browsing sessions, saved pages and passwords, cookies, etc. are stored in a specific location in the USB key. After that, you can insert the player into another computer, run the portable browser app and have full access to everything you've done on the browser.

So yes, your computer (or any computer) is simply a host of your portable application – a host is only necessary to function.

Why should you use portable apps?

There are a handful of benefits associated with using portable applications on your Windows PC.

Portable

Portability is the biggest advantage of portable applications. The ease of portability that accompanies their use. You can carry your most frequently used app on a flash drive in your pocket and use it on any computer, anywhere in the world. It's a lot easier than getting around with your (bulky) laptop.

Portable apps can even be downloaded to cloud storage platforms like Google Drive or Dropbox. That means you don't even have to carry a storage disc. Save your portable app in the cloud and use it wherever you are.

Secured

Because portable applications leave virtually no data (files, settings, etc.) on the computer on which they are used, it is very difficult to track you or your information. Portable applications leave no traceable footprint on the host PC. Temporary files created by the application are deleted by default as soon as you exit the application. This makes them perfect for use on a public PC.

So the next time you are in a public library and don't want to use the library browser to surf the Internet, you can whip up your thumb drive and use a portable browser instead.

Easy to use

Portable applications do not take up any storage space on the host computer. Their file size is small and they occupy almost zero space on your storage drive. On average, the size of portable apps is in the range of about 4MB to 10MB. You can carry as many apps on a flash drive.

About usage, download them to your computer or storage device and click to run. It’s so easy.

Disadvantages of portable applications

Limited functionality

Portable applications are mainly watered-down versions of conventional software. And for this reason, some portable apps generally do not have all of the features and functionality that come with full versions.

Overall, however, the most basic functionality is almost always available on portable apps.

Availability

Although there is a large collection of portable apps in different categories, not all software companies make portable versions of their apps. Some applications require access to create and store certain files and settings on the host PC to function properly, which goes against the purpose of portable applications.

Easy to lose

It is a no-brainer. You lose the storage device containing a portable application, you lose the application and its data. Physical damage or an unexpected surge (voltage) can also damage the player containing portable applications.

This is why you sometimes need to create a backup of your player or store your portable applications in the clouds.

How to use portable applications

As mentioned before, portable apps are super easy to use; just download and click to run. Easy peasy. But where do you find these applications?

There are several platforms that provide these apps, but one of the most popular and reliable is PortableApps. The platform is a trusted repository for portable apps, and you can find all the categories of apps (over 400 apps) you want on the website.

Visit PortableApps.com

PortableApps.com also serves as a launcher that helps you efficiently configure the applications to use on your PC. To show you how this is done, let's download a portable app – a chess game. Follow the steps below as they apply to all types and categories of portable apps on the platform.

Step 1: See the list of PortableApps.com applications.

2nd step: Tap the app that interests you.

Step 3: Press the green "Download from PortableApps.com" button.

Step 4: Open the file manager of your PC and navigate to the folder where the downloaded application is located. Now let's extract the portable application from the downloaded file.

Step 5: Right click on the file and press "Run as administrator".

This opens the PortableApps.com installer.

Step 6: Tap Next to continue.

Step 7: Now select the folder where you want to extract the portable application and click on the Install button.

Note: It is recommended to extract to external storage. If you don't have one, you need to move it later after the extraction.

Step 8: After extracting and installing to the destination folder, press Finish to exit the PortableApps.com installer.

Step 9: To run the portable application, open the folder where you extracted the application and open the portable application folder. In this case, this is the folder.

Step 10: Then double tap the app to run it.

And There you go. The game (or the portable app you downloaded) starts playing seamlessly.

Try portable apps

Portable apps are very useful if you are concerned about data and security to leave the usage data on public apps and computers. You can have your app in your pocket and take it anywhere with you. If you don't have your own computer or hate carrying your laptop in your backpack when traveling, portable apps offer you the luxury of having all your computer programs and files on one device. storage. The best part – they are free. Tries.

Then: Now that you know what portable apps are, you should also check out some of the best portable apps in the linked article below. We have also listed some portable game apps.