Running Linux and Windows on the same physical computer

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Yes, you can install both operating systems on your computer. This is known as dual-booting. It's important to point out that only one operating system boots at a time, so when you turn on your computer, you make the choice of running Linux or Windows during that session. If you're interested in running Windows programs under Linux, you should see the section: Can I run applications for MS Windows on Linux?

If you're going to have this kind of a system, it's important that you install the Windows operating system first in the first partition of your hard disk. You can then install Linux and along with it a program known as a bootloader (nowadays, the most popular are LILO and GRUB) which allows you to choose your operating system. The Linux installation process, in most circumstances, leaves your Windows partition alone during the install. Installing Windows, however, will destroy the information left by bootloaders and so should never be installed second. Due to Microsoft's monopoly on operating systems, most computers have Windows on them before anyone contemplates installing Linux, so you may have to repartition your hard disk - that is, divide what may be a hard disk with only one large partition (known as C: in the Windows world) into two or more different partitions so that Linux can be installed and kept separate from Windows. Third party tools such as Partition Magic generally work well for this purpose. After the re-partitioning, you're free to install Linux.

Due to the increasing availability and reliability of virtualization technologies, there are also methods to run versions of Microsoft Windows in "virtual machines" inside Linux. One can also run versions of Linux inside Microsoft Windows.

I bought a computer with Windows 10 pre-installed. I then also installed Linux on the same computer so that I can choose between Windows or Linux at boot time (dual booting). I also have it set up so that Linux can see Windows files, including C:\Windows\Fonts. I personally like the Windows/Microsoft fonts better than the free alternatives, so I want to use them while running Linux.

According to the Microsoft License Terms:

Applicability: This agreement applies to the Windows software that is preinstalled on your device, or acquired from a retailer and installed by you, the media on which you received the software (if any), any fonts, ...

License. The software is licensed, not sold. Under this agreement, we grant you the right to install and run one instance of the software on your device (the licensed device), for use by one person at a time, so long as you comply with all the terms of this agreement.

Device. In this agreement, “device” means a hardware system (whether physical or virtual) with an internal storage device capable of running the software. A hardware partition or blade is considered to be a device.

Under restrictions (what's no allowed) it list these things that I'm not sure apply:

(i) use or virtualize features of the software separately;

(iv) work around any technical restrictions or limitations in the software;

(v) use the software as server software ... or install the software on a device for use only by remote users;

Would any of those restrictions apply to what I'm doing?

Yes, you can install both operating systems on your computer. This is known as dual-booting. It’s important to point out that only one operating system boots at a time, so when you turn on your computer, you make the choice of running Linux or Windows during that session.

Can I have Linux and Windows 10 on the same computer?

You can have it both ways, but there are a few tricks for doing it right. Windows 10 isn’t the only (kind of) free operating system you can install on your computer. … Installing a Linux distribution alongside Windows as a “dual boot” system will give you a choice of either operating system each time you start your PC.

Can you have 2 operating systems on one computer?

Yes, most likely. Most computers can be configured to run more than one operating system. Windows, macOS, and Linux (or multiple copies of each) can happily coexist on one physical computer.

Is dual boot harmful?

Dual Booting Is Safe, But Massively Reduces Disk Space

However, it does have one key shortcoming: your disk space will be markedly reduced. For example, if you are running Windows 10, it uses around 11GB of SSD or HDD space on a 64-bit system.

Is Microsoft release Windows 11?

Microsoft is all set to release Windows 11 OS on October 5, but the update won’t include Android app support. … It is being reported that the support for Android apps won’t be available on Windows 11 until 2022, as Microsoft first tests a feature with Windows Insiders and then releases it after a few weeks or months.

Is Windows 10 better than Linux?

Linux has good performance. It is much quicker, fast and smooth even on the older hardware’s. Windows 10 is slow compared to Linux because of running batches at the back end, requiring good hardware to run. … Linux is an open-source OS, whereas Windows 10 can be referred to as closed source OS.

Can I have both Windows 7 and 10 installed?

You can dual boot both Windows 7 and 10, by installing Windows on different partitions.

Can you have 3 operating systems one computer?

Yes it is possible to have 3 operating systems on one machine. Since you already have Windows and Ubuntu dual boot, you probably have grub boot menu, where you choose between ubuntu and windows, if you install Kali, you should just get another entry in boot menu.

Can you have 2 hard drives with Windows?

The Windows 8 or Windows 10 Storage Spaces feature is basically an easy-to-use RAID-like system. With Storage Spaces, you can combine multiple hard drives into a single drive. … For example, you could make two hard drives appear as the same drive, forcing Windows to write files to each of them.

Does dual-boot affect RAM?

The fact that only one operating system will run in a dual-boot setup, hardware resources like CPU and memory is not shared on both Operating Systems (Windows and Linux) therefore making the operating system currently running use the maximum hardware specification.

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Which is better VM or dual-boot?

If you plan to use two different operating systems and need to pass files between them, or access the same files on both OSes, a virtual machine is usually better for this. … This is tougher when dual-booting—especially if you’re using two different OSes, since each platform uses a different file system.

Is dual booting a good option?

If your system does not quite have the resources to effectively run a virtual machine (which can be very taxing), and you have a need to work between the two systems, then dual booting is probably a good option for you. “The take-away from this however, and generally good advice for most things, would be to plan ahead.