How to Dual Boot Windows 10 and Linux Starting with Windows or Linux

A computer that boots both Windows 10 and Linux can easily be the best of both worlds. Having easy access to either of the operating systems lets you enjoy the benefits of both. You can hone your Linux skills and enjoy the free software only available for Linux platforms. Or, you can switch back to Windows 10 to use apps like Photoshop, AutoCAD or Microsoft Office. The beauty of dual booting is that it lets each operating system take full advantage of the hardware resources of your computer. While virtual machines and the Windows Subsystem for Linux can give you a taste of the Linux experience, dual booting lets you tap its full potential.

The good news is that Windows 10 and Linux live in harmony better than ever these days. Dual booting Windows 10 and Linux used to be a precarious process that could wreck your Windows installation, your Linux installation or both. While the process isn’t quite a smooth as dual booting macOS and Windows with Boot Camp, it comes close. In this article, we’ll show you how to safely install Windows 10 and Linux on the same hard drive. It doesn’t matter if you’re starting with Linux or starting with Windows—dual booting is easy to set up either way.

Dual Boot Linux with Windows 10 – Linux Installed First

Let’s start with the (slightly) harder way first; you already have a copy Linux installed and you want to install Windows on a partition. The first step is to create the partition where Windows 10 will be installed. We have covered how to create partitions in Linux, so, start by reviewing our article on how to do that.

Once you have your partition set up, you will need to purchase Windows 10, download the ISO file then create a bootable copy. Creating a bootable copy of Windows 10 on Linux can be done using the free Unetbootin (USB thumb drive) or Brasero software if you are installing from a DVD.

Create Bootable Windows 10 Install Media Using Unetbootin

Unetbootin can be downloaded from the Software Center in Ubuntu. Once you have it up and running, launch it. Make sure you are using a thumb drive with at least 8 GBs of free space.

Select the Disk Image radio box, click the browse button (represented by an ellipsis …), browse to the ISO file then click Open. Chose the medium from the Type list box—in this case, your USB drive. Click on the drive list box then select your USB thumb drive.

Click OK, then wait while the bootable copy is created.

When complete, click Exit.

Create Bootable Windows 10 Install Media Using Brasero

If you already made a bootable USB with Unetbootin, you can skip this part. If you are still using an old school system with a DVD drive, you can use the Brasero DVD Burning software, which you can download from the Software Center also. Please keep in mind, Windows 10 ISO files are getting larger beyond the standard 4.7 GB DVDs. So, in some cases, it’s best you use 8.5 GB dual-layer DVDs if supported by your drive. If you can’t, then it’s best you use a USB thumb drive.

In Brasero, click Burn Image.

Select your disc image, make sure a blank DVD disc is inserted then click Burn.

After preparing your install media, insert it or connect it. Reboot your computer, then configure your BIOS to boot from the drive. Windows 10 will boot into setup as it normally does. After you arrive at the setup screen, click Custom: Install Windows only (advanced).

Make sure you select the right partition; don’t wipe out your Linux installation. Click Next then wait while Windows 10 Setup copies files to the drive. Your computer will be rebooted several times.

When setup is complete, follow the instructions to complete the out of box experience.

After that’s complete, you might notice the obvious—there is no way to boot into Linux anymore. Here is how you fix that. Download a free utility called EasyBCD from Neosmart Technologies. Proceed to install EasyBCD then launch it. Select the Linux/BSD tab. Click in the type list box, select Ubuntu; enter the name of the Linux distribution, choose automatically locate and load then click Add Entry. Reboot your computer.

You will now see a boot entry for Linux on the Windows graphical boot manager.

Dual Boot Linux with Windows 10 – Windows Installed First

For many users, Windows 10 installed first will be the likely configuration. In fact, this is the ideal way to dual boot Windows and Linux. Again, I will be using the Ubuntu Linux distribution. You can download the Ubuntu Linux ISO image from Canonical’s web page then create a bootable copy using Unetbootin for Windows or burn to a blank DVD using disc image in Windows 10.

After creating your install media, configure your BIOS to boot from it. Ubuntu’s installation wizard intelligently detects existing Windows installations. It will ask you if you would like to install Ubuntu alongside Windows.

At the Ubuntu install screen, click Install Ubuntu.

Choose whether you want to download and install updates and third-party drivers and codecs then click Continue.

Select the option Install Ubuntu alongside Windows 10 then click Continue.

Ubuntu’s installer will set a default allocation of space for the installation. If you have enough space, you can resize the partition by placing your mouse between the divider then drag it left or right to make adjustments. Once you are satisfied with the allocated amount for your Ubuntu installation, click Install Now.

Click Continue to confirm changes.

Click Continue again.

Enter your time zone then click Continue.

Select your keyboard layout, click Continue.

Create your user account by providing your full name, computer name, login name, and password. Choose whether you want to log in automatically or be prompted for a password. You can also encrypt your home folder for extra security. Click Continue.

Wait while Ubuntu copies files.

When complete, click Restart Now.

Ubuntu will add a boot entry for Windows 10 to the GRUB boot manager, which you can select using the up or down arrow then hitting Enter.

That’s it, Windows 10 and Ubuntu is now set up on your computer.

Let us know what you think. If you have done this before, share some of your tips with us. By the way, what’s your favorite distro?

Windows 10 Ubuntu dual boot not working [QUICK SOLUTIONS]

Many people use a dual boot setup on their PCs depending on their requirements and need. Some use both Ubuntu and Windows 10 because both have their pros and cons.

Ubuntu, like many other non-Windows operating systems, does support dual booting. Windows 10, on the other hand, usually ships with settings that are not optimal for dual boot setups.

GRUB (the acronym for GRand Unified Bootloader) is the bootloader which is used by Ubuntu to manage the operating systems installed on your computer.

Basically, it is the software that looks at the operating systems installed on your PC and allows you to choose which one to start after switching on the machine.

Most of the problems are related to GRUB, so if you are unable to boot into Grub and the system boots directly to Windows repeatedly, you are going to find below some solutions to this problem.

You can use this guide to fix the following Windows 10-Ubuntu issues:

• Dual boot option not showing in Windows 10
• GRUB menu not showing in Ubuntu
• Ubuntu won’t dual boot with Windows 10

What can I do if there is no GRUB on Windows 10 Ubuntu dual boot:

Solution 1: Repair from Windows – Command Prompt

The simplest way to try to solve this issue is by using the Command Prompt from Windows. In order to do this, please use the steps described below:

1. In Windows go to menu and search for Command prompt
2. Right click on Command Prompt and choose the option Run as administrator
3. Copy and paste the command bcdedit /set path EFIubuntugrubx64.efi
4. Restart your computer

Solution 2: Disable Fast Boot

You can also try to deactivate fast boot function of Windows 10 to access the GRUB menu. To do so, please follow the steps below:

1. Access Control Panel
2. Search for the term power in the search bar at the top right
3. Click on Change what the power buttons do
4. Click on the Change settings currently unavailable
5. Uncheck the item Turn on fast start up (recommended)
6. Press Save Changes to save the settings

You can’t open Control Panel? Take a look at this step-by-step guide to find a solution.

Solution 3: Use the Boot Repair Tool

The Boot Repair Tool is a small software that can solve most of the boot related problems. In order to install it and use it:

1. Boot into your operating system
2. Enter the following commands:
   sudo add-apt-repository -y ppa:yannubuntu/boot-repair
   sudo apt-get update
   sudo apt-get install -y boot-repair && boot-repair
3. After the installation is complete, you can launch Boot Repair tool from the apps menu
4. It will do some scanning so let it finish its job
5. Then a screen will appear which will be saying recommended repair based on the scan
6. After choosing recommended updates, it will start the repair
7. Open the terminal and copy and paste the highlighted command in terminal one by one.
8. Select yes by using arrow keys or tab buttons and hit enter to select
9. in Boot Repair Tool screen hit forward
10. Copy the command mentioned there and paste it into terminal and hit enter and let it do the job
11. If prompted some options to configure where to install GRUB Choose yes and then hit enter
12. Use spacebar to select an option and TAB to navigate through options
13. After you finish installing GRUB, you can close Terminal
14. select the forward option in Boot Repair Tool screen
15. Select Yes for every option regarding confirmation
16. a successful confirmation message will appear on the screen
17. restart your computer
    

Solution 4: Windows and Ubuntu are installed in different modes

It is not possible to dual boot two operating systems if they are installed in different modes – one in UEFI mode and the other one in BIOS Legacy mode.

Therefore, to solve the problem and restore the dual boot you have to convert the installation of Ubuntu to the same mode in which Windows is installed.

In order to solve this, you can use the Boot Repair Utility and you will need a live bootable DVD of your installed operating system. Afterwards, you can follow one of the steps below, depending on your situation.

1. To convert Ubuntu to UEFI mode you need to start Boot Repair and activate the panel with the Advanced options, then select the GRUB Position tab, put the check on separate Partition/boot/efi and click Apply.
2. To convert Ubuntu to BIOS Legacy mode, start Boot Repair and activate the panel with Advanced Options, then select the GRUB Position tab, uncheck the separate Partition/boot/efi item and click Apply.

Afterwards, enter into the UEFI firmware configuration panel and choose whether to start the computer in UEFI or Legacy mode.

Most users don’t know how to enable Legacy Boot on Windows. Check out this guide and be a step ahead. If you’re having UEFI boot problems on Windows, this guide should help you solve them in no time.

We hope that one of the solutions described above helped you solve the dual booting problems and now you are welcomed by the familiar Grub screen.

If you have any more questions, feel free to post them in the comments section below.