Inquiries on running both Windows 10 and Linux side by side
Inquiries on running both Windows 10 and Linux side by side
Hi guys! Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but oh well. I have a few questions about dual-booting Windows 10 and Linux that I hope to have answered. I am using an HP Pavilion Power Laptop 15-cb002ne which has a 128GB boot SSD and 1TB HDD. I am running the preinstalled Windows 10 Home edition and would like to dual-boot Linux (haven't decided yet between Ubuntu and Debian), installing the Linux distro on the 1TB HDD. I already saw this video tutorial regarding dual-booting linux and windows. Now, here are a few questions: 1. Is it possible to adapt the methodology using a drive separate from the Windows 10 installation? If yes, do I have to do anything else to make it work? 2. Let's say I want to remove the linux installation to make way for hardware upgrades, how can I remove the linux installation without messing up the Windows 10 installation? If there is another topic which discusses similar questions, I would appreciate the link. Thank you very much!
I haven’t watched the video, but I’m familiar with setting up dual-boot between Linux and Windows. You can install Linux on the HDD instead of the SSD. It’s possible to reduce the existing partition on your HDD (using Windows tools) and use the freed space for Linux installation. For beginners, Ubuntu 18.04 LTS is a solid choice. Use Etcher to write the Ubuntu ISO to an empty USB drive. When you start the installer via USB, pick the largest free space and follow the instructions. Choose GRUB bootloader for either drive; remember to save your HDD if you want to keep Windows intact. Another method involves adjusting your laptop’s BIOS to disable the SATA port connected to the SSD. This ensures the installer only sees your HDD during setup, preventing accidental overwrite of Windows. When you decide to remove Ubuntu later, just delete the partition via Windows tools and restore the original size. Let me know if you need more details.
I'll attempt this. Thanks a lot! Sadly, the BIOS on this laptop doesn't let me turn off the boot SSD. It seems I might have to take out the SSD entirely.
Removing the SSD during the Linux setup is clearly the most reliable way to ensure it doesn’t interfere with the Windows installation. This approach is definitely worth considering if it’s practical. I hadn’t mentioned it before because making physical changes to laptops is growing more difficult, and many users aren’t eager about such modifications.
You can adjust your data partition size using gparted Live USB, though you might encounter some data loss when reducing partitions. Be aware that by default Linux relies on UTC, whereas Windows depends on local time—consider switching one or waiting until your NTP server updates the clock.