Share this article

Improve this guide

How to Dual Boot Windows 11 and Linux [Step-by-Step Guide]

There are two ways of doing this

11 min. read

Updated onOctober 4, 2023

updated onOctober 4, 2023

Share this article

Improve this guide

Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help Windows Report sustain the editorial teamRead more

Key notes

One of the biggest competitors of Windows is Linux, and with Windows 11 in the spotlight, the competition is greater than ever.

Both systems have their advantages and flaws, and if you want to learn more, we suggest that you read outWindows 11 vs Linux guidefor in-depth information.

However, you don’t have to pick one or the other. With a bit of effort you can dual boot Windows 11 and Linux on your PC, and today we’re going to show you how to do that.

How can I dual boot Windows 11 and Linux?

Note that dual-booting can be done in two ways. You can install Windows 11 from Linux and if you already have Windows 11 on your PC, just install Linux by applying the below steps.

1. Install Linux from Windows 11

In order to have a new partition created, you need to download Linux and create abootableflash drive to install it.

Once the process is finished, you’ll have abootableLinux flash drive ready. Now we can go on and install Linux.

After completing all these steps, dualbootingWindows11 and Linux should be working properly. Of course, you’ll have to select the desiredoperating systemevery time youbootyour PC.

We used Linux Mint in our example, but the steps are more or less the same for every Linux distribution.

2. Install Windows 11 from Linux

Now that we have ourWindowspartition ready, we need to downloadWindowsand create abootableUSB flash drive.

If you don’t have the option to mount the drive from the context menu, you can do that with these commands in the Terminal:

sudo mkdir /mnt/windows10/

sudo mount -t auto -o loop /path/to/window-10-iso /mnt/windows10/

Once the files have been copied, yourbootableflash drive is ready to use, so let’s go on and installWindows10.

After completing these steps, you should haveWindows11 running on your PC, alongside Linux.

Why is Linux missing after installing Windows in dual boot mode?

We’ve observed that Linux might be missing after installingWindowsin dualbootmode. Although this can be extremely alarming, it’s expected becauseWindowswill overwrite the Linuxbootloader.

However, there’s a way to repair this:

Some users claim that you can fix this issue by this method as well:

These instructions are intended for Ubuntu distributions, and other versions of Linux might require you to use different methods to repair thebootloader.

We have a dedicated guide on how to repairWindows 10 bootloader from Linux, so be sure to check it for more information.

Does Secure Boot interfere with Linux dual boot?

The SecureBootcapability is one ofWindows 11’s requirementsalong with theTPM, so let us tell you how this could affect Linux computers and dualbooting.

SecureBoottechnology allows only the approvedbootloaders tobootyour PC in order to protect it from malware.

The issue arises because many versions of Linux aren’t compatible with SecureBoot, and since SecureBootis a requirement forWindows11, many were worried that Linux might not run in dualbootmode withWindows11.

The answer is yes, Linux will be able to run longWindows11, but you’ll have to use Linux that is compatible with SecureBoot, such asUbuntuor Fedora, or disable the SecureBootfrom theBIOS.

As you can see, to useWindows11, you need to have SecureBootcapability, but you don’t have to keep this option enabled at all, which means that you can dualbootLinux without any issues.

Should I install Linux or Windows 11 first when dual booting?

If you want to dualbootLinux andWindows, it is usually a better option to installWindowsfirst, and then create a new partition for Linux.

For starters, it’s a lot easier to create a Linuxbootabledrive and the necessary partitions fromWindows, however, the biggest issue is thebootloader.

If you installWindowsafter Linux, you’re going to overwrite yourbootloaderand you won’t be able tobootto Linux until you repair thebootloader.

Therefore, we suggest installing Linux after your installWindowsto avoid these types of problems. Are you using dualbooton your system? Let us know in the comments below.

More about the topics:dual boot,Linux,Windows 11

Milan Stanojevic

Windows Toubleshooting Expert

Milan has been enthusiastic about technology ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. He’s a PC enthusiast and he spends most of his time learning about computers and technology.

Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s one of the Troubleshooting experts in our worldwide team, specializing in Windows errors & software issues.

User forum

1 messages

Sort by:LatestOldestMost Votes

Comment*

Name*

Email*

Commenting as.Not you?

Save information for future comments

Comment

Δ

Milan Stanojevic

Windows Toubleshooting Expert

Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s specialized in Windows errors & software issues.