Remove built-in apps and packages
Features like Windows Update, Windows Defender, Internet Explorer, and language packs are removed.
Many such ISOs contain pre-installed keyloggers, remote access trojans (RATs), cryptocurrency miners, or hidden administrator accounts. Since Windows security tools are disabled in many mods, detection is poor.
To achieve a "highly compressed" size under 1GB, third-party uploaders must aggressively modify the operating system using tools like NTLite or WinReduce.
Pre-configuring the OS to use minimal RAM, which was a key focus for Windows 8's mobile-first design. The Evolution of Windows 8 Efficiency