Dual-booting Linux Mint

Why Linux

I’ve always heard that Linux is the way to go but I never tried it. I had Windows and it worked fine for me. I took some training at work that required Linux so I started using it inside a virtual machine. I got comfortable with it and decided it would be fun to try at home.

Why Mint

Based on this Dev.to article it sounded like where a Linux newbie like myself should start. I tried a couple versions inside VirtualBox before committing. I used OSBoxes to quickly get them up and running.

Why Dual-Boot

I chose to dual-boot because I didn’t want to risk losing Windows if I messed up the Mint install. Also because the Mint install made it really easy.

How I did it

Disclaimer!

I’ll recount the steps I took and the references I used but can’t guarantee any of it for anyone else.Also it’s a good idea to follow along with Mint’s install docs.

1. Back Up Data

I backed up my data because there’s always a chance it could get wiped from existence.

2. Download Linux Mint

I grabbed the 64bit Cinnamon version from here.

3. Create a Bootable USB

I used Etcher to flash the image onto my USB drive but any flashing software should do the trick.

4. Create Disk Space

My first attempt didn’t take because I didn’t have any room. I ended up freeing up some space from my Windows partitions.

5. Update Boot Configuration

I had to disable secure boot and change the boot order in the BIOS.

6. Install Mint

I followed the on-screen instructions at this point. Here are the important bits:

• Dual booting with Windows
• Create partitions
  • Root (I used 20Gb)
  • Swap (I used 8Gb)
  • Home (I used the rest of my free space)A few more on-screen instructions and I was ready to go!

7. Use Mint

Mint is installed and ready to go. I’m on a Razer Blade Stealth and everything works out of the box except for closing the lid. I’m sure there are other things that don’t quite work that I haven’t encountered yet. When I close the lid Mint is supposed to suspend but when I open the lid back up I have to hard shutdown before my laptop will wake up and respond. Other than that I’m very happy with Mint and hope that this article helps you!