What’s the safest way to move my important Windows files to Linux?

You don’t necessarily have to migrate everything immediately. You can keep Windows in a smaller partition and install Linux alongside it, then access the Windows partition from Linux when needed. Before resizing or formatting anything, make a complete backup somewhere external or online. A small flash drive can hold important documents, while larger files can be copied later or left on the Windows partition.

The simplest options are a USB flash drive or cloud storage. Copy your documents, photos, browser bookmarks, and anything else important to the drive or upload them to a storage service before changing partitions. Ideally, keep at least two copies of anything you can’t replace. Microsoft 365 in a web browser works on Linux, although it doesn’t have all the features of the full desktop apps. LibreOffice is a good local alternative, but check important school documents afterward because complex formatting can change.

If you only have one 232 GB drive, dual-booting can be uncomfortable because both operating systems need free space. Consider starting Linux from a live USB to test your hardware and applications without changing the internal drive. Once you know what you need, back up your personal files, remove unnecessary data, and decide how much space each system actually requires. Don’t rely on the Windows partition as your only backup.