Modern computers allow users to double boot with multiple operating systems. Windows itself offers the same option, that is, you can install Windows 8 along with version 7 and save both operating systems. The dual boot system has several advantages: you can test the disk with a preview of the main OS update (for example, Windows 8) or try a completely different shell (for example, Ubuntu) to see the scope of the proposed changes and functions before making the final choice. The only problem, however, is that there really is no easy way to completely remove the installed operating system. In any case, formatting your partition, you will often encounter problems in the bootloader menu.
Why do we need two OSs and is it always good?
In a typical dual-boot PC setup, the second partition on the hard drive contains a newer version of Windows or a Linux installation. Although this can be useful when your applications or devices need different operating systems, the two shells take up significant disk space. You can remove the second OS without affecting the functionality of the original operating system, however uninstalling the original shell may cause the computer to stop working.
So, how to remove the second "Windows" from the PC to avoid data loss? First of all, you should back up any files related to the second OS that you want to save. After uninstalling the operating system, all saved data in this section will be lost. The uninstall process itself depends on which shell is installed on your device as the source. Two options are listed below.
How to remove the second "Windows 7" from a computer on Windows 8
Boot into the main Windows 8 operating system. Click Search in the Windows 8 Templates panel and enter Computer Management in the search bar. Select the above menu item from the displayed results.
Click Yes to have Windows 8 open the Computer Management window. Click Disk Management in the left pane. You may need to click the arrow next to the Storage tab to display this option.
Locate the level containing the second operating system in the top pane. Typically, such an indicator will have a drive letter such as “D” or “F.” Right-click on it and select "Delete." The volume designated as "C" usually contains your main operating system, so do not try to erase this volume.
Click “Yes” to confirm. Windows will delete the volume containing the second operating system. You will lose all files and data stored on this volume. How to remove the second "Windows 7" from the computer to free up more memory?
Resize Partition
Clean the appropriate disk partition if you want to restore the disk space used by another operating system. Locate the drive containing it in the bottom pane. Each section on the media is represented by a rectangle. The one that previously contained another managed system will be designated as free space and will be highlighted in a different color.
Right-click on it and select “Delete Partition”. Click “Yes” to confirm.
Then, right-click the main partition (the one that contains drive C) and select "Increase Volume". Double-click “Next” and then “Finish” without changing any settings to add free space to it.
Alternative way
There are various options for how to remove a second Windows operating system. If you are looking for an easier way to do this, you can use the NanWick Windows Uninstaller. It not only removes the selected operating system from your computer, but also cleans the boot record of an unattended OS.
The application has a fairly simple and intuitive interface. Please note that the application can only remove Windows from a dual-boot system, so you cannot remove Windows if it is the only operating system on which your device is running.
How it works?
How to remove the second operating system on a PC using this service? After launching the application, click the Scan button to detect disks containing the OS.
After determining the tool displays a list of disks on which operating systems are installed. In this list you can select the one from which you want to remove Windows. After selection, click OK.
You will return to the main uninstaller interface. Now you only need to click the “Delete” button to start this process.
The procedure covers two stages. On the first, the tool actually collects the relevant information needed to delete system files. Therefore, this step can take several minutes, depending on your specifications and the number of OS files. The application accesses the files, writes permissions, deletes unnecessary data, and then terminates the process.
Once everything is done, Windows Uninstaller will open the Success dialog box and offer to reboot the system to complete the changes.
NanWick Windows Uninstall is a very useful tool that is sure to come in handy if you want to remove Consumer Preview from Windows 8 before upgrading to the final build or remove Windows 8 if you want to use Windows 7. It works in Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8. Testing was conducted on Windows 7, 64-bit.
Removing a second Windows 7 from a Linux computer
As noted above, the methods for removing the second operating system depend on which OS is used as the source. The instructions below will help you uninstall Windows from a Linux Mint or Ubuntu- based installation.
This example describes Linux Mint 17.2, but this method should work the same with any other distribution based on Debian or Ubuntu.
How to remove the second "Windows 7" from a computer on these OS? First of all, you should delete the sections selected for it. This is a safe procedure, but any major separation operation has little risk that something might go wrong.
Therefore, it is best to back up all your personal files, not only from Windows, but also from Linux. Thus, in case of problems, you can always make a clean installation of Linux.
Using GParted to Uninstall Windows
GParted, or the “Gnome Partition Editor”, is the most famous GUI markup tool for Linux. It comes preloaded with Linux Mint, Ubuntu, and most other distributions. You can download GParted ISO, a special version only for launching the service, if you do not have an installed application or bootable media.
How to remove the second "Windows 7" from the computer using this service? After loading, you need to start GParted from the "Administration" section. You will see the layout of a typical dual-boot installation of Windows-Linux. So, you need to determine which memory items are NTFS Windows partitions. Then you must right-click on them and delete each item. After that, right-click the linux-swap section and select “swapoff”. When the swap is disabled, you need to click on the freed up section and select “Resize / Move”.
In the window that appears, drag the image of the extended section to the left. Once it takes up all the free space, click Resize / Move. The final step is moving and resizing the Linux partition.
If you want to provide some space for the swap partition, you should leave enough “free space”, as well as for personal data. With the exception of this amount, you must drag the main Linux until it takes up all the free space.
How to cancel or continue the process?
If you change your mind and decide not to uninstall Windows, you do not need to worry. Until you click the Apply All Operations button, nothing will change on the drive and partitions. You can close GParted, reboot, and Windows will still remain as the second OS.
When you are 100% sure that you want to remove Windows, click the "Apply all operations" button. The duration of this process will depend on how much data you have stored on the Linux partition, and how fast your hard drive works. During the operation, you should not shut down the system and turn off the computer. This will destroy the Linux installation. When all processes are completed, you can reboot the system.
How to remove Windows from GRUB
The next time GRUB boots up, it will still show the remote OS record as a “phantom limb”. How to remove the second Windows 7 from boot?
This is actually very easy. You just need to open the terminal ctrl + alt + T in your distribution and enter the command: sudo grub-update. By this action, the computer will scan the disk for any operating systems and subsequently create the corresponding GRUB entries. After the next reboot, Windows from your device will disappear completely.
If your distribution has a bootloader other than GRUB, you need to find additional information on how to update records in it. Also remember that the above settings apply only to removing the additional OS. If you are looking for a way to remove one Windows operating system from a PC, you need to perform completely different actions.