Dual Boot Windows 7 and Ubuntu 12.04

[kaisare]

So, I'm getting a new computer and want to dual boot Windows 7 with Ubuntu 12.04, but I'm not sure how I should do it.

I'm getting an 128GB SSD for only OS's and a 2TB HDD for data storage and torrent. I think I'm going to spend more time on Ubuntu (because it's better to program there...) and only play games and few other things on Windows. How should I divide the SSD for both OS? (If I divide the partition, do I get C: and D: for each OS?)

Also, I'm thinking about installing Windows 7 first and install Ubuntu 12.04 using the window installer they provide. Is this better than downloading the file and burn it into a DVD to install?

I would really appreciate if you guys can explain how I should do this in detail. Thank you!

 

[nhasian]

Its easy, Install Windows 7 first. during the installation process you can allocate a certain amount of drive space for windows (aka C

Install Ubuntu afterwards. Now you will be able to dual boot. You probably wont need more than 20 Gigs for the root and home partitions. You can always mount more space from your 2TB hard disk in the future if you need.

In linux the filesystem doesnt use C: and D: like in windows. sda1 will be the first partition on the first hard disk and sda2 will be the second partition, sdb1 will be your 2 TB hard disk, etc.

 

[Ijack]

To get the best performance and lifetime from your SSD you should plan a little more carefully than a hard disk installation. In particular you should ensure that any area which is going to be the subject of frequent writes of small amounts of data should not be located on the SSD. In practice this means, for Linux, that the /var and /tmp partitions (and probably the swap partition too) should not be located on the SSD. Have a look at https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Solid_State_Drives#Tips_for_Minimizing_SSD_Read.2FWrites for more details.

Similar considerations apply to Windows. To get the best value from your investment I would recommend that you use Google to do a little research, to see what others have to say, rather than following a procedure more suitable for a hard-disk-only installation.

 

[nhasian]

Ijack you are gonna confuse the poor guy. optimizing an SSD can get very complicated. especially when you are dual booting

I'd recommend using btrfs instead of EXT4 but I'm not sure if its supported in the standard Ubuntu 12.04 installer or if you need to use the alternate installation cd. Its nice to see the next Fedora 18 will use tmpfs to store the tmp files in ram instead of the hard disk.

Oh you dont need to make a swap partition on the SSD. just make a single swap partition on the hard disk and ubuntu will use it.

 

[Ijack]

Setting up a dual-boot system is not trivial, particularly when you bring SSDs into the equation. I'll take the risk of confusing the guy if it means that he does a little more reading and ends up with a system that will make the best use of his investment and prolong the life of his SSD.

Research before the event is time well spent; the link I gave is well worth reading.

 

[amdfangirl]

Or read about my adventures in the world of SSD optimisation

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/238073-50-optimisation

 

[Ijack]

Interesting read. I disagree with you about having no swap partition, if you have a hard disk available, but that's another matter. Certainly the noatimes are very sensible when installing on an SSD.

 

[amdfangirl]

I don't have a swap partition because I have much (8GB) RAM.



I guess I could put swap on my regular hard disk, but I run pure SSD these days.

 

[Ijack]

You might like to read this link. i also have plenty of RAM, but I can afford a few GB of disk space for additional stability.

 

[amdfangirl]

Can you give that link again? it redirects me to home.

 

[Ijack]

How careless of me. I'll correct it, but to save you looking: http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/10678

 

[kaisare]

Hi, I just build a computer with Crucial M4 128GB SSD and WD 2TB HDD and I want to have both Windows 7 (for gaming and watching videos) and Ubuntu 12.04 (for mostly software programming) booting from my SSD. I have researched little and I have come across 2 options.

1. Dual boot (Installing Windows 7 first then Ubuntu 12.04 using their windows installer)
2. VirtualBox (Use Windows 7 as a host and use it to install Ubuntu 12.04)

I'm not sure which way I should go really. I will be using Windows 7 more due to gaming. I'm falling more toward the option 2, virtualbox, but if I do that, I'm not sure if how much RAM (I will have 8GB for now and maybe upgrade to 16GB later) I should allocate to Ubuntu 12.04 and what how I can optimize Ubuntu for the SSD, such as partitioning.

Can you guys please tell me which one of those 2 options is best for me and explain a little about what I should do if I choose that option?

 

[amdfangirl]

Gotcha. Swap good.

^ (Doesn't understand article, but it had many big words in it so it must be true.)

 

[amdfangirl]

This next topics has been merged by Amdfangirl
■ Ubuntu 12.04 with Windows 7 on SSD

 

[kaisare]

Best answer selected by kaisare.

 

[amdfangirl]

This topic has been closed by Amdfangirl