.

Get a portable, USB CD drive.
 
I picked one up recently for about $40.
 
 

Hi Mike :))

Yep, an external DVD/RW will work perfectly...

.

Yes, I use YUMI for this and I've been using it for years with no problems on multiple machines (I volunteer to fix computers at a local Senior Center, so I use this a lot).
 
It will allow you to make a bootable Flash drive (if your BIOS supports it).
 
I put Acronis True Image, Acronis Disk Director, Linux Mint, Kaspersky antivirus, Windows installers,and many other ISOs on that flash drive.
 
Most ISOs are 1GB or less, so you can put dozens of ISO startup images on the smallest of drives.
 
And the load time for a DVD could be minutes, while a Flash drive loads in seconds.
 
Get YUMI here:
 
http://www.pendrivelinux....multiboot-usb-creator/

At this point I never use a CD / DVD.
I create image file on hard drive, any one other that the drive being imaged.
 
You can set the image file size to be able to fit on a CD or DVD if you wish to burn them later or for easier transferring.
i usually store my backups on a hard drive connected by USB or external sata docking station.

Some versions of Acronis imaging software will let you create a bootable copy on a flash drive from within the Acronis program without any additional software. If you have a flash drive plugged in when you choose Tools & Utilities\ create bootable media, it will appear as an option as a location to create the bootable Acronis software. 

.

https://kb.acronis.com/content/56196