I have installed Zorin OS 17.1 on my PC. The original plan was this was going to be the only OS on it but, to be honest, I have come to the conclusion that it isn't a daily driver for me and I am going back to Windows. However, there are so many conflicting articles around the internet on how to dual boot Linux that it is a bit of a minefield. Some say to install Windows first, others say you have to disconnect all other drives first, etc, etc.
I would prefer not to have to remove Zorin and reinstall it after installing Windows. I also have 2 nvme drives connected to my motherboard with heatsinks on them so would definitely prefer not to have to remove one.
What is the best way to dual boot Zorin OS and Windows 11 (on separate nvme ssds) and is there a good way to do it with Zorin installed first?
You could install it in a Virtual Machine. But I think this is more useful if you only need it from Time to Time.
To be honest I would install Windows first and then Zorin. But You can now install Windows normally on the Drive that You want. But then it will overwrite GRUB as far as I know. Then You have to use a USB Stick with Zorin, start in the Try Zorin Mode and there You must use Boot Repair to repair it and then You should theoretically have a working Dual-Boot System.
1 Like
Yes, it is Windows first, then GNU/Linux. If you are not going to use Windows for Gaming, I can highly recommend using virt-manager.
During lockdown until I retired, working from home, I only needed Windows 8.1 Pro 32-bit to access a shared (group) email account in Outlook (I could access my Outlook365 without any issues using Evolution mail client), and a Braille translation program that did not work when I moved from FerenOS to Devuan 3.0.
The only option really is as said above: virtual machines or installing Windows then Zorin OS again
I don't know if Windows can be installed on a partition, but if it can, then creating a partition with a reasonable size on GParted then installing Windows on that partition should be the fix