Computers with linux installed

Buy a Linux Computer

No restrictive software to remove;

Gnu /Linux booting out-of-the-box.

Get a Linux computer: no need to remove (and pay for) all the software you can’t trust! The following vendors sell machines preinstalled with software that’s free as in freedom. This is a hand-picked list with a focus on quality and simplicity.

System76

A vendor known for its sleek laptops and a self-developed line of desktops, all coming preinstalled with Ubuntu or with an in-house derivative called Pop!_OS.

Purism

A unique company selling top-of-range laptops with hardware and software selected specifically to guarantee user privacy and liberties. They have also developed a Linux smartphone.

ThinkPenguin

A smaller vendor that also stands out for its dedication to software freedom; it supports a variety of GNU/Linux distributions on a few desktops and a laptop.

• Dell sells several laptops and workstations with Ubuntu marketed towards developers.

See also the following vendors, sorted loosely by geographical location:

• Juno Computers have a simple lineup of computers shipped with Ubuntu and have branches both in the US & the UK.

• Entroware has a crisp, elegant line-up of Ubuntu laptops and desktops on offer.

• LinuxNow, an Australian vendor, sells a great number of laptop and desktop computers, which come preinstalled with a Linux distribution at the choice of the customer.

None of the links on this page are commercial. This is a hand-picked, subjective, opinionated but disinterested list. I am always happy to hear about vendors, and to add new quality links — don’t hesitate to get in touch with me (my name is Olivier). Please note that I do not work with coupons, link exchanges, or referrals. Thank you.

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Getting Started with Linux: Installing Linux on Your Computer

So you’ve decided to give Linux a shot, and you’ve found a distribution that suits you. But how do you actually get it installed? Here, we’ll show you how to create a live CD or USB drive, boot into Linux, and install it on your system.

Whether you’ve played around with live CDs and drive partitioning before or this is your first time, this guide will get you up and running with Linux in just a little bit of time. It isn’t the most straightforward process, but if you’re reading this, you’re probably experienced enough with a computer to pull this off—it just takes a bit of legwork.

Five Best Live CDs

Live CDs (and DVDs) are versatile tools, allowing you to boot into an operating system without…

Note: If you’re installing Linux on a Windows computer, the process shouldn’t be too difficult (though you may want to brush up with our previous installation guide while you’re here). If you’re installing on a Mac or Hackintosh, however, you’ll need to perform a few extra steps, so definitely check out our triple booting guide for Macs and Hackintoshes , even if you aren’t triple booting.

Hack Attack: How to triple-boot Windows XP, Vista, and Ubuntu

Burning a Live CD or USB Stick

There are a few different methods for installing Linux on your computer, but generally, the most popular way is by downloading and burning a live CD (which has its own uses besides just installing Linux ). I’ll show you how to do both here. The live CD method is probably easier, so go that route unless you’re on a netbook, or otherwise can’t burn a CD.

Use an Ubuntu Live CD to Test Your PC’s Memory

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The Live CD Method

You’ll have to get your live CD from the net, so head to your distribution’s home page (like Ubuntu’s )and look for a downloads section. Most will make it pretty easy to find. In addition, many sites will even host BitTorrent downloads of their distribution too, which will be a little faster—so if you see a link for » alternative downloads «, check that out. Otherwise you can probably download it directly from the site.

You’ll probably have a few different choices when you download. For example, some distributions have netbook-optimized versions, while others (like Ubuntu) will offer different versions based on the desktop environment they come with. And, most will have 32- and 64-bit versions available as well (if you don’t know which one’s right for you, we’ve written a handy guide to help you out ). Generally, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out which one you want. When in doubt, just go with the 32-bit desktop version (sometimes labeled «i386»).

WTF Desktop Environments: GNOME, KDE, and More Explained

You can customize nearly every last inch of your Linux installation to fit your liking, and it…

Once your .ISO file is done downloading, open up your favorite burning program and burn that sucker to a blank CD. It’s pretty easy to do on Windows 7 . Once it’s done burning, restart your computer. Wait for the «press any key to boot from CD» prompt, and then press a key. Once the CD boots up, it’ll give you the option to try out Linux or install it. Go ahead and click install. If you want to try it out, though, go for it—you’ll be able get a pretty good feel for what the desktop is like. When you’re ready to install, you can usually launch the installer right from the desktop.

How to Burn ISOs in Windows 7

Good news for Windows users looking to burn a quick ISO disk image to a CD or DVD: Windows 7…

The Live USB Method

The Live USB method requires previously mentioned Unetbootin for Windows. All you need to do is download it, start it up, and you can manage everything from right inside the program. Pick your distribution from its list (remember to pick the right version, as described above), pick the drive letter that corresponds to your thumb drive at the bottom, and hit OK. If Unetbootin doesn’t list your distribution, you can still download an ISO as described in the live CD method and point Unetbootin to that file instead.

UNetbootin Creates USB-Bootable Linux the Easy Way

Windows and Linux only: Free bootable image creator UNetbootin automates the downloading, imaging,…

Booting from your USB drive will take a few extra steps over the live CD method. While your computer is probably set to check your CD drive for bootable discs, it probably isn’t set to check your USB ports. So, with your newly created live USB stick plugged in, restart your computer and enter your BIOS setup (usually by hitting a key like Delete when you first start up—your computer’s splash screen will let you know when you first turn on your computer). Head over to the «Boot» section of your BIOS and find the section for changing your PC’s boot order. You’ll want to move your USB hard drive to the top of the list. Save your settings and exit the BIOS. When your computer reboots, it should take you to the Unetbootin menu, from which you can boot into your Linux live session (as described in the live CD method).

The Installation Process

The installation process will be slightly different for every distro, but in general setup should guide you through the necessary steps pretty easily. Assuming you’re installing Linux alongside another OS like Windows, though, there are a few things you’ll want to pay attention to.

Partitioning Your Drive

When the installer asks you where you want to install Linux, you’ll have to partition your drive. We’ve gone through how to do this a few times before , and it’s usually pretty simple to add new partitions from the free space on your drive.

Ubuntu’s installation should partition the drive for you automatically, and unless you have any special needs (like if you’re on a Mac), you can breeze right through the installation with no problems. If not, you may be given a more advanced partitioning tool, and you’ll have to create the partitions yourself. If this is the case, you’ll actually want to create two new partitions. One is for the operating system itself, which I’d format as Ext4. Give it at least 10 GB of space, and set the mount point as / . You’ll want to create the second partition for what’s called swap space. This essentially helps your computer manage memory more effectively and keeps it running fast. If you have a small amount of ram (one or two GB), you’ll want your swap partition to be twice as large as the amount of RAM you have. If you have 3 GB or more, you can probably just make a swap partition that’s the same size as the amount of RAM you have.

GRUB and Other Bootloaders

Linux is going to install a new bootloader for you called GRUB. It’s going to replace your normal bootloader and give you the option to choose between Windows and Linux at startup. In general, you shouldn’t have to do anything here—most distros will install GRUB by default, and it should work correctly out of the box. Just note that Mac users will want to install GRUB on the Linux partition itself , and Windows users will need to be careful since if you reinstall Windows, you’ll lose GRUB and have to reinstall it yourself . Of course, if you prefer something a little prettier, you can mess around with previously mentioned Burg , but we’d recommend doing that after you get your Linux installation up and running.

Recover the GRUB Menu on a Dual-Boot System

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That’s it! To boot into your newly installed Linux partition, you just need to restart your computer. When you do, it’ll take you to the GRUB menu, which will let you choose whether to boot into Linux or Windows. From there, you can play around with your new Linux installation. It’ll probably come with quite a few apps installed, some you’ll recognize and some you won’t, and you can poke around in the settings and see what’s available to you. If you’re lucky, most of your hardware will work. If you’re unlucky, you’ll have a few quirks with your hardware, and if you’re really unlucky, your Wi-Fi won’t work out of the box and you’ll have to work just to get connected to the internet. Luckily, we’ll be talking all about getting your hardware working tomorrow, so check back with us then!

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How to Remove Linux and Install Windows on Your Computer

For a Microsoft Windows XP version of this article, see 314458.

Summary

This article describes how you can remove the Linux operating system from your computer, and install a Windows operating system. This article also assumes that Linux is already installed on the hard disk using Linux native and Linux swap partitions, which are incompatible with the Windows operating system, and that there is no free space left on the drive.

Windows and Linux can coexist on the same computer. For additional information, refer to your Linux documentation.

More Information

To install Windows on a system that has Linux installed when you want to remove Linux, you must manually delete the partitions used by the Linux operating system. The Windows-compatible partition can be created automatically during the installation of the Windows operating system.

IMPORTANT: Before you follow the steps in this article, verify that you have a bootable disk or bootable CD-ROM for the Linux operating system, because this process completely removes the Linux operating system installed on your computer. If you intend to restore the Linux operating system at a later date, verify that you also have a good backup of all the information stored on your computer. Also, you must have a full release version of the Windows operating system you want to install.

Linux file systems use a «superblock» at the beginning of a disk partition to identify the basic size, shape, and condition of the file system.

The Linux operating system is generally installed on partition type 83 (Linux native) or 82 (Linux swap). The Linux boot manager (LILO) can be configured to start from:

The hard disk Master Boot Record (MBR).

The root folder of the Linux partition.

The Fdisk tool included with Linux can be used to delete the partitions. (There are other utilities that work just as well, such as Fdisk from MS-DOS 5.0 and later, or you can delete the partitions during the installation process.) To remove Linux from your computer and install Windows:

Remove native, swap, and boot partitions used by Linux:

Start your computer with the Linux setup floppy disk, type fdisk at the command prompt, and then press ENTER.

NOTE: For help using the Fdisk tool, type m at the command prompt, and then press ENTER.

Type p at the command prompt, and then press ENTER to display partition information. The first item listed is hard disk 1, partition 1 information, and the second item listed is hard disk 1, partition 2 information.

Type d at the command prompt, and then press ENTER. You are then prompted for the partition number you want to delete. Type 1, and then press ENTER to delete partition number 1. Repeat this step until all the partitions have been deleted.

Type w, and then press ENTER to write this information to the partition table. Some error messages may be generated as information is written to the partition table, but they should not be significant at this point because the next step is to restart the computer and then install the new operating system.

Type q at the command prompt, and then press ENTER to quit the Fdisk tool.

Insert either a bootable floppy disk or a bootable CD-ROM for the Windows operating system on your computer, and then press CTRL+ALT+DELETE to restart your computer.

Install Windows. Follow the installation instructions for the Windows operating system you want to install on your computer. The installation process assists you with creating the appropriate partitions on your computer.

Examples of Linux Partition Tables

Single SCSI drive

Multiple SCSI drives

Single IDE drive

Multiple IDE drives

Also, Linux recognizes more than forty different partition types, such as:

FAT 16 > 32 M Primary (Type 06)

FAT 16 Extended (Type 05)

FAT 32 w/o LBA Primary (Type 0b)

FAT 32 w/LBA Primary (Type 0c)

FAT 16 w/LBA (Type 0e)

FAT 16 w/LBA Extended (Type 0f)

Note that there are other ways to remove the Linux operating system and install Windows than the one mentioned above. The preceding method is used in this article because the Linux operating system is already functioning and there is no more room on the hard disk. There are methods of changing partition sizes with software. Microsoft does not support Windows installed on partitions manipulated in this manner.

Another method of removing an operating system from the hard disk and installing a different operating system is to use an MS-DOS version 5.0 or later boot disk, a Windows 95 Startup disk, or a Windows 98 Startup disk that contains the Fdisk utility. Run the Fdisk utility. If you have multiple drives, there are 5 choices; use option 5 to select the hard disk that has the partition to be deleted. After that, or if you have only one hard disk, choose option 3 («Delete partition or logical DOS drive»), and then choose option 4 («Delete non-DOS partition»). You should then see the non-DOS partitions you want to delete. Typically, the Linux operating system has two non-DOS partitions, but there may be more. After you delete one partition, use the same steps to delete any other appropriate non-DOS partitions.

After the partitions are deleted, you can create partitions and install the operating system you want. You can only create one primary partition and an extended partition with multiple logical drives by using Fdisk from MS-DOS version 5.0 and later, Windows 95, and Windows 98. The maximum FAT16 primary partition size is 2 gigabytes (GB). The largest FAT16 logical drive size is 2 GB. For additional information, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

105074 MS-DOS 6.2 Partitioning Questions and Answers
If you are installing Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 2000, the Linux partitions can be removed and new partitions created and formatted with the appropriate file system type during the installation process. Windows allows you to create more than one primary partition. The largest partition that Windows NT 4.0 allows you to create during installation is 4 GB because of the limitations of the FAT16 file system during installation. Also, the 4-GB partitions use 64-KB cluster sizes. MS-DOS 6.x and Windows 95 or Windows 98 do not recognize 64-KB cluster file systems, so this file system is usually converted to NTFS during installation. Windows 2000, unlike Windows NT 4.0, recognizes the FAT32 file system. During the installation of Windows 2000, you can create a very large FAT32 drive. The FAT32 drive can be converted to NTFS after the installation has completed if appropriate.

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