Hey everyone! I'm a bit of a noob, so I'm looking for some guidance on setting up a dual-boot configuration on my PC. Right now, I'm running Windows 11 for work purposes, but I want to add either CachyOS or Bazzite as my secondary operating system, primarily for gaming since my games are compatible with Proton. I've read conflicting advice on whether it's best to install Windows and Linux on separate physical drives. I have two 2TB drives—one for Windows and the other for games and media. Should I stick with the recommendation to keep them on separate drives, with Windows on drive 1 and Linux on drive 2?
5 Answers
Please consider using an external USB drive for your Linux setup. That could simplify things and protect your main drives!
Yes, it's definitely better to have Windows and Linux on separate drives. This way, if Windows installs updates, it won't overwrite your Linux bootloader. Keeping a dedicated drive for Linux would be the ideal setup!
Another option could be using VirtualBox. If you don’t need to game on Linux, that's what I did with Ubuntu and Mint on my Windows 11. Works great for light tasks!
If you've got that second drive available, just go ahead and put Linux on it. Just be cautious—creating a partition for your Linux games might be a good idea so you don't accidentally erase your media files! You might want to format that drive to something like btrfs or Ext4 for better performance.
Good tip about formatting! I've had way better results after switching my game partitions to Ext4.
You can install Linux on the same drive too if necessary, but having them separate is just more convenient. Just remember to be careful with partitioning and always back up your data beforehand!
Totally agree! That's the best way to go for sure; Windows can mess with the bootloader updates.