I've been researching whether I need Ventoy for multi-booting Linux distros, but I'm still a bit confused. Can someone clarify? If I do need it, can I store it on the same external SSD as the OS installations? If I don't need it, do I simply partition my SSD (I have a 1TB drive with 500GB available) and install the distros, similar to how I would with Linux Mint, by selecting the unallocated space?
4 Answers
No, you don't need Ventoy! It's a convenient tool for making bootable drives for various systems, but for an SSD, you just need to create a suitable partition scheme. Aim for at least 100GB free space for your new OS. During installation, the installer will let you choose the largest free space available, so you'll have an easier time getting things set up. Make sure to shrink your Windows partition properly to avoid losing files!
Keep in mind that Ventoy is primarily for USB drives, not for SSDs or HDDs. If you want to use multiple distros on a single USB stick, then yes, Ventoy is great for that. But for installing on your SSD, you can use your distro's GUI installer and simply choose the option to install it alongside your existing OS. It'll automatically find the available free space.
You actually don't need Ventoy for a multi-boot setup. It's handy for creating bootable USB drives, especially if you want to keep multiple ISO images available, but it won't help when you're installing directly to a hard drive. To set up a multi-boot system, just make sure you have enough storage on your SSD for both operating systems. Alternatively, if you're feeling adventurous, you could connect a second hard drive, disable your main one while you install the new OS, and then configure a boot manager to handle the multi-boot setup. Just a heads up—if you choose Windows as your second OS, be cautious; sometimes Windows updates can mess up complex boot configurations!
Ventoy is just a tool for accessing and booting multiple ISO images; it's not intended for managing installations on your drives. If you're looking for a way to try out different distros, I have a USB filled with various ISOs to lend to friends—very handy! Just remember, once you install an OS, it does not modify those ISO files since they're read-only.
Don't forget that Ventoy can work with more than just ISOs, as it can also chainload EFI loaders. Still, it's probably not the best choice for setting up a multi-boot directly on the SSD.