Installing Zorin on an external HDD already formatted to exFAT

Installing Zorin OS
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Stop me if you've heard this one already.

first time listener, first time caller.
I'm trying to follow a video on installing Zorin on an external drive but it completely skips over formatting the EHDD. The drive I want to use is a 5TB Seagate that I've already started using as a Win11 backup. I want to partition it and put Zorin into that partition but don't want to completely reformat the whole drive and lose everything that's already there.

Is this possible? if so, how. Right now I know enough to be destructive so help is what I need to avoid that outcome.

Thank you in advance.

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Forgot to mention the video suggest using Ventoy for the install

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When you select to install Zorin OS, do not select the automatic install.
Instead choose the option for "Something Else."

This will open the partition manager, where you can select the partition you want - and then select to Format it.

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Now, is that while using Ventoy or strictly the Zorin installer?

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When your installing Zorin.... :grin:

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Ventoy is not an OS Installer. It is only a means of booting the .iso on the USB stick.

Only the Zorin OS Subiquity Installer is relevant to the OS install - you can use Ventoy or Popsicle or Multiboot or Balena - for the Bootable USB stick.
Also, when you Format the partition, you will want to use ext4 or another applicable GnuLinux Friendly format.
exFAT will not work for the partition as an OS format - it is good for use as a Storage Capacity...

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So then my idea of putting Zorin on a partition of an external drive won't work?
I found a few video's that detailed how to do that with macOS but that requires a complete reformatting of the drive in question. Still going to do that but, I already have the 5TB and thought I could do something similar with Zorin.
The YT video I got my idea to do this is by SixtyAteWhiskey called "Don't buy a Gridbase Pocket... |Offline Internet" and I'm just trying to understand the "mechanics", possibilities and limits of what I can do.

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You can create different partitions on the drive and format just the partition/s for Zorin in ext4 and keep the others in exFAT.

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Well I guess all of this was a waste of time as the drive is in exFAT and won't let me partition it without reformatting it. I have no where to place the data already on it.

I'll have to wait till I can get another computer.

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If you want to divide a drive to create a partition for another OS (e.g. ext4 for ZorinOS) you first need to reduce the existing partition and create empty space. Windows Disk Management tool is usually suggested for this part (Assuming that works for external as well as internal drives) You should then be able to see and format the empty space using Gparted.
The "Something Else" installation method should be used in this case. It is what I have always used for dual-boot installs on a single drive.

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You could create a Bootstick with Zorin on it, start it and go in the Live Mode (choose ''Try Zorin instaed of ''Install Zorin''). There, You can find GParted. Plug in Your external Drive and then start GParted. Then, You can shrink with GParted the already existing Partition on the Drive and the empty Space, You can formta to ext4.

Then start the Installation Process and choose there ''Something else''. Then choose from Your empty Space soemthing like 300mb for an EFI Partition. For the Rest, You take the Mount Point / and format it to ext4.

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So this method would make it possible to partition off 1 TB of my5TB drive and then format that partition without reformatting the whole drive?

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Same question.
So this method would make it possible to partition off 1 TB of my5TB drive and then format that partition without reformatting the whole drive?

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Yes, it would.

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Yes, that is right.

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