Installing two different OSes on different hard drives.

[Fortress]

Hello there. I'm planning to try out a Linux distribution called Elementary OS. But I was wondering, can I skip the hassle of dual-booting if I install Elementary OS on a separate hard drive? I don't want to stress myself because you have to install the Linux distribution first before installing Windows, and I don't want to do that. Help would be appreciated. 

[Wi RoZ]

If you have a (fast) USB-stick that has enough GB and a (fast) port (or use DVD or something) you can run the OS from that

[MrBucket101]

Hello there. I'm planning to try out a Linux distribution called Elementary OS. But I was wondering, can I skip the hassle of dual-booting if I install Elementary OS on a separate hard drive? I don't want to stress myself because you have to install the Linux distribution first before installing Windows, and I don't want to do that. Help would be appreciated. 

you'll avoid many of the headaches, but you will still need a bootloader installed on whichever disk is the BIOS primary boot device

 

Otherwise, how would you choose which OS you wanted on startup?

If you are dual-booting elementary OS and windows, install windows first (or if it's already installed, then that's fine as well), then elementary second. The installer will detect windows and configure itself accordingly. Windows isn't so smart.

[AnnoyedShelf]

Hello there. I'm planning to try out a Linux distribution called Elementary OS. But I was wondering, can I skip the hassle of dual-booting if I install Elementary OS on a separate hard drive? I don't want to stress myself because you have to install the Linux distribution first before installing Windows, and I don't want to do that. Help would be appreciated. 

You can install windows first.  Linux will autodetect your windows install, and partition appropriately.  Plus installing on separate drives involves a LOT of hassle, and is something I would not recommend to a beginner.

[slightlyjaded]

technically possible, but the only way I can think to do it is by going old school. Have your boot priority with the option of one drive like normal, but have two different autoexec.bat files directing it to the appropriate OS. As long as you can direct it to the appropriate autoexec file, then it won't matter where your OS is.

[Fortress]

If you are dual-booting elementary OS and windows, install windows first (or if it's already installed, then that's fine as well), then elementary second. The installer will detect windows and configure itself accordingly. Windows isn't so smart.

I may have to give this a try. I'll post the outcome later.

[Nineshadow]

What about virtual machines?

[MrBucket101]

technically possible, but the only way I can think to do it is by going old school. Have your boot priority with the option of one drive like normal, but have two different autoexec.bat files directing it to the appropriate OS. As long as you can direct it to the appropriate autoexec file, then it won't matter where your OS is.

You can install something like grub or grub2 (default bootloaders for just about every linux distro). Both are perfectly capable of booting any OS across multiple drives and partitions. 

 

You can also use EasyBCD to reconfigure the windows bootloader to detect other OS. It's just not as good as the counterparts above.

 

Not sure where you're getting the autoexec.bat scripts from.

[slightlyjaded]

You can install something like grub or grub2 (default bootloaders for just about every linux distro). Both are perfectly capable of booting any OS across multiple drives and partitions. 

 

You can also use EasyBCD to reconfigure the windows bootloader to detect other OS. It's just not as good as the counterparts above.

 

Not sure where you're getting the autoexec.bat scripts from.

I'm 35 years old. I grew up having to write them, and config.sys to get anything to run that required the first 256Kb of ram.

They're pretty much ignored nowadays, but it's still the first file on any disk to execute.

[Fortress]

You can install windows first.  Linux will autodetect your windows install, and partition appropriately.  Plus installing on separate drives involves a LOT of hassle, and is something I would not recommend to a beginner.

I'm currently typing this through the Live CD. I haven't installed it yet. It did detect that I have a Windows installation but when I click the Install Alongside Windows, it detects my 500GB external hard drive, not my main 1TB drive, where Windows is installed. When I unplug the external hard drive, it still detects that I have Windows installed but only gives out the Delete everything option. Help?

[Albatross]

You can install windows first.  Linux will autodetect your windows install, and partition appropriately.  Plus installing on separate drives involves a LOT of hassle, and is something I would not recommend to a beginner.

 

What? No it doesn't! And it is perfectly fine for a beginner to do.

 

I'm currently typing this through the Live CD. I haven't installed it yet. It did detect that I have a Windows installation but when I click the Install Alongside Windows, it detects my 500GB external hard drive, not my main 1TB drive, where Windows is installed. When I unplug the external hard drive, it still detects that I have Windows installed but only gives out the Delete everything option. Help?

 

You want Linux and Windows on two separate drives, right? If so, to do that plug your Windows drive in and go through the installation until you get to the selection screen. You want to select "Something else" and find the drive you want Linux on, not the Windows one.

 

Anyways, as for your problem and if you really want to install alongside Windows: what BIOS settings do you have enabled/disabled? Do you have secure boot on and what is the boot mode set to? Did you get any errors or anything when you put the Ubuntu disc in or when you started the installation process?

 

edit

 

damn it, posted without finishing post. hold on let me finish this up real quick

 

edit2

 

there haha

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

Hello there. I'm planning to try out a Linux distribution called Elementary OS. But I was wondering, can I skip the hassle of dual-booting if I install Elementary OS on a separate hard drive? I don't want to stress myself because you have to install the Linux distribution first before installing Windows, and I don't want to do that. Help would be appreciated. 

yeah you can do that. to be doubly sure the linux installation doesn't mess with the windows drive, remove the windows drive during installation. install both when you are done and they should play nicely after that.

good luck!

[AnnoyedShelf]

What? No it doesn't! And it is perfectly fine for a beginner to do.

K not a ton of hassle, but he has to decide whether he wants to use GRUB or the Windows bootloader.

[Tarzan]

I have W7 on an SSD, and Linux Mint on an other SSD. Whenever I want to boot in Linux, I just press F11 (MSI Mobo) to choose the correct drive. It's really easy... No hassle.

[Eniqmatic]

you'll avoid many of the headaches, but you will still need a bootloader installed on whichever disk is the BIOS primary boot device

 

Otherwise, how would you choose which OS you wanted on startup?

If you are dual-booting elementary OS and windows, install windows first (or if it's already installed, then that's fine as well), then elementary second. The installer will detect windows and configure itself accordingly. Windows isn't so smart.

 

Technically you wouldn't need a bootloader, you could just select the drive you wanted everytime you startup. 

 

But I get where your coming from

[osbios]

Most modern Mainboards enable you to chose a boot device at start by pressing a button (f8, f9 or f11, etc...)

So that should work just fine.

 

Otherwise just install windows first and then your Linux Distribution of choice. The Linux boot manager (Mostly Grub2 this days) will then boot into whatever you want.

Its pretty easy if you don't do exotic things like encrypting everything.

[grayperview]

Simplest way to do this, is before you install your second OS go into BIOS and disable all other hard disks apart from the one which you wish to install your second OS on..

 

This way niether Os will know the other and you can use the bois boot from option to pick which disk/Os you boot from.