Splitting hard drive to create space for Linux.

JustAnotherSaver

Not sure if this is possible or not but on the back of being curious about Linux recently...


My laptop runs Windows 7 on it and what i was thinking of doing since it's only an occasional use machine right now is if possible, using the free space (hard drive is 500GB with over 50% free) to somehow install Linux on and then have a Linux & Windows 7 dual boot ... all without erasing/corrupting/ballsing up the Windows 7 partition in the process.


Now don't throw a load of terminology at me as you'll lose me but a) can you do this and if so then b) how?

tehone

Simplest way is to install VirtualBox on your Windows machine and then install Linux inside that.

Or even simpler run Linux from a DVD or USB stick without an install

Then once you before more proficient with Linux, it'll be a much easier concept to work with partitions on a disk / changing their size / setting dual boot

Willing2Learn

JustAnotherSaver wrote: »

Not sure if this is possible or not but on the back of being curious about Linux recently...


My laptop runs Windows 7 on it and what i was thinking of doing since it's only an occasional use machine right now is if possible, using the free space (hard drive is 500GB with over 50% free) to somehow install Linux on and then have a Linux & Windows 7 dual boot ... all without erasing/corrupting/ballsing up the Windows 7 partition in the process.


Now don't throw a load of terminology at me as you'll lose me but a) can you do this and if so then b) how?

Yes, I have my Dell laptop running Win7 and Linux dual boot.

It is a straightforward process to set it up. Just remember to backup your Windows OS before you start fiddling around with it, just to cover your backside against a botched installation.

Have a read:
https://www.howtogeek.com/214571/how-to-dual-boot-linux-on-your-pc/

justjohn

Oracle Virtual machine and Ubuntu or mint. You can have a few diferen Linux version installed using vm

JustAnotherSaver

Sorry i should've specified no Virtual Machine. I ran in a VM on a much more powerful machine before and it was too slow for my liking. I don't want the hassle of Virtual Machines either. I'd prefer to just dual boot.

onomatopoeia99

Modern (by which I mean less than 10-12 years old) processors should run virtual machines at native speed due to the inclusion of VT-x in the processor. If this is not present or disabled in the BIOS settings then a VM will be slow as the hypervisor is effectively executing as an emulator. If the computer lacks the memory to run the host OS and the guest OS then paging will make it slow.

From within Windows disk management you can try to shrink the size of the volume that Windows is installed on. Then you'll have some free space for another partition which the linux installer coiuld create, it should also give you the option of installing a boot manager that allows you to select the operating system you want at boot time. Those are the general principles, research every step, particularly any steps you don't understand and try it out on a machine where you can stand to lose all the data and operating system before you attempt it on one where there's anything important. And as always ensure everything is backed up and you have the ability to re-install all software as mucking around with partitions and bootloaders is potentially fraught if you make a mistake.

fiendishlyclever

I downloaded Linux mint for an old laptop (I wanted to use it as a fancy dvd player since it kept stuttering in Windows 10)

Downloaded it, made usb installation media and installed it to dual boot with Windows. Nice and easy. Linux mint is pretty nice and DVDs play without stuttering.

The usb installation media let's you use Linux and see if you like it without installing it first so give it a go.

rajeshk4u

You can 'try' it out, by booting off a USB stick with Linux. It will be slow, but you will get a taste of Linux.

You could also try an external USB (SSD) drive, which will be a little faster.

I would hesitate trying to partition an existing hard drive with data on it. The cleanest way is to back up your data. Re-Install Win7 and then install Linux on the other partition. However, I would change your laptop drive to SSD for speed.

psychic_teabag

rajeshk4u wrote: »

I would hesitate trying to partition an existing hard drive with data on it. The cleanest way is to back up your data. Re-Install Win7 and then install Linux on the other partition.

Once you've backed up, there's no reason to worry about repartitioning in-situ - worst case is that the windows partition gets corrupted and you have to reinstall anyway. (But I've never had anything like that happen.)

Repartitioning basically just means defragmenting the filesystem so that there is a large free space at the end, then tweaking the filesystem parameters so that the empty space at the end is no longer considered part of the filesystem.

I tend to use a live gparted cd for partitioning, rather than doing it during an installation. https://gparted.org/ Though I wasn't aware you could ask windows to do it live. (Long time since I've used windows.)