Skip to content

Latest commit

 

History

History
171 lines (125 loc) · 5.37 KB

BOOT.MD

File metadata and controls

171 lines (125 loc) · 5.37 KB

Multi-booting

There are a number of ways one can create a bootloader for all your various operating systems. I suggest you try another method for yourself, one that differs from the following, to better suit your needs and taste.

Partitioning

WARNING: If your BIOS Mode happens to be "Legacy", you will need a Master Boot Record (MBR) disk. This will seriously limit the multi-boot possibilities, has an MBR is limited to 4 physical partitions. If your BIOS Mode is "UEFI", no need to worry: 128 physical partitions can be created on a GUID Partition Table (GPT).

Verify BIOS Mode:

  • Win + R;
  • Run msinfo32;
  • System Summary → BIOS Mode.

Determine RAM:

  • Win + R;
  • Run msinfo32;
  • System Summary → Installed Physical Memory (RAM).

Prepare disk in use:

  • Win + R;
  • Run diskmgmt.msc;
  • Shrink the Windows OS partition if there's not enough free space available.
    • Recommended minimum free space: 500 MiB + 6 GiB + (16 GiB × number of operating systems to be installed).

Prepare new disk:

  • Win + R;
  • Run diskmgmt.msc;
  • Right click on unallocated disk;
  • Click on "New Simple Volume...";
  • Select size, path, and format options.
↥

Live booting

To try a Linux flavour, you will need to use a live CD or, in a less antiquated fashion, a USB drive.

Boot on USB drive:

  • Install USB formatting utility:
  • Using Rufus:
    • Select device (USB stick);
    • Select ISO image;
    • If available as option, select the partition scheme according to your disk's partition scheme;
    • If available as option, select the target system according to your BIOS mode;
    • All other options can be left to their default values;
    • Click "START", and wait for the process to end.
  • Shutdown computer;
  • Start computer and access boot menu / BIOS (usually with multiple presses of Esc or a long press of F2);
    • Disable "Secure Boot" if there is one. It might prevent you from running another OS.
  • Boot the USB image.
↥

Installation

First install:

  • Run a disk partitioning utility, like GParted, if available;
    • Create shared partitions:
      • BIOS (500 MiB, FAT32);
      • SWAP (6 GiB, linux-swap);
      • (16+ GiB, ext4);
    • Add names and labels according to your needs;
    • Apply changes.
  • Run distro installer;
    • Mount BIOS partition at /boot/efi, /boot, or /efi depending on your Linux distribution;
    • Mount partition at /.

WARNING: After the first installation, avoid moving partitions around. Changing the order, the size or the start point can lead to instability.

Subsequent installs:

  • Run distro installer;
    • Mount BIOS partition at /boot/efi, /boot, or /efi depending on your Linux distribution;
    • Create new partition for your distribution (16+ GiB, ext4);
    • Mount partition at /.
↥