Installing Ubuntu Near Windows 10: Step-by-Step Instructions

Many who have come to this page for the first time hear that it is possible to install two operating systems next to each other, but there is such an opportunity. This article is intended for those people who want to learn how to install Ubuntu next to Windows 10. The article will analyze in detail all aspects of the operation presented, from the very beginning to the last stages.

Why Install Ubuntu Near Windows?

Initially, it’s worth talking about why this is generally necessary. Indeed, many people throughout their lives use only a single operating system installed on their computer, and do not complain. Of course, everyone has their own need for such an installation, but in any case, stating that it is necessary is silly.

To understand this issue in detail, you must first familiarize yourself with the operating systems themselves, that is, with Ubuntu and Windows. And if almost everyone knows about Windows, then maybe someone is hearing about Ubuntu for the first time. Of course, it will not be possible to tell about everything in the article, after all, the topic is not about that, but it’s worth touching on a couple of aspects.

The first difference, and perhaps most importantly, is that the Ubuntu operating system does not have a registry. This probably doesn’t mean much to anyone, but this fact is positive. After all, everyone faced such a problem that after a long use of Windows, it starts to slow down: the processes start for a long time, the central processor does not cope with the processing of tasks and the computer freezes periodically. So, this is all due to a clogged registry. That is, even if you use Ubuntu for a very long time, its performance will not fall.

In addition, there are no viruses on Ubuntu, and there is no need to protect the system with antiviruses.

All this positively affects the operation of this OS, and most people are therefore interested in how Ubuntu is installed next to Windows 10.

The first step: creating a bootable flash drive

Before you talk about how to install Ubuntu next to Windows 10, you need to explain how to write a bootable USB flash drive with the desired operating system.

Everything is simple here, but many at this stage are at an impasse. Nowadays, there are a lot of programs that allow you to record an OS image, and they are all good in their own way, some allow you to do this quickly and without deep knowledge in computers, and others vice versa.

The article will discuss one of these programs, more precisely, Rufus.

Now let's get to know her more closely.

Recording a flash drive using Rufus

Recording a bootable flash drive using Rufus software can be considered the simplest and fastest. And if you doubt your abilities, then this method is for you.

This program is in the public domain, and anyone can download it for free from the official site. After downloading, installation is not required, you can immediately start recording the image on a USB flash drive.

After opening, the program interface will appear in front of your eyes . As you can see, it is very compact, and this is good, because it is spared from unnecessary information that no one needs, and all the actions performed will lead to only one thing - to record a bootable USB flash drive.

So, the flash drive is inserted into the computer, and you are ready to start the process. For this:

1. We determine which image will be recorded. In the lower right part of the program window, find the button with the disk icon and press it. An explorer will open, in it pave the path to the downloaded file, in this case to Ubuntu, and click OK.

2. We determine the flash drive. In the program window, find the “Device” item, click on it, a drop-down list will appear, select your USB flash drive in it.

3. We determine the partition scheme and the type of system interface. At this step, you need to select your indicators. If you have an MBR, then choose it; if the GPT is it. We will talk about this in more detail below.

4. Define the file system. In our case, we select FAT32, since we install the Linux distribution, if you had to burn Windows, then NTFS should be chosen.

Now press start and wait until the flash drive is recorded.

As for the choice of the partition scheme and the type of system interface, here, in general, everything is simple. If Ubuntu is installed next to Windows 10 on a GPT disk, then select this item in the drop-down list, if on MBR with BIOS or UEFI, then select it accordingly. But do not think that for each item the instructions will be different. Installing Ubuntu next to Windows 10 MBR is no different from GPT.

Second stage: start of installation

Unfortunately, this stage can significantly differ among different users, since it directly depends on the type of system interface. They are known to exist in two types: BIOS and UEFI. The article will discuss each of them, and it will be described in detail how the installation of Ubuntu proceeds next to Windows 10 on UEFI and BIOS.

Start installation via BIOS

Most likely, every second person reading this article has a BIOS installed. In general, it is already considered a relic, it was UEFI that replaced it. But since there are still a lot of people with BIOS, it is worth touching on the topic of installing Ubuntu through it.

After the OS image was recorded on a USB flash drive, the installation of Ubuntu 16.04 next to Windows 10 starts. To do this, restart your computer and press Del or F2 while starting it. This will cause you to enter the computer BIOS. Here we are interested in only one tab. Use the direction arrows on the keyboard to go to the BOOT tab. It is in it that we need to choose a priority device when starting the computer. We need to choose a flash drive.

Important! On each computer, the BIOS may be different, and the choice of priority device may vary, so there will be no specifics.

If you have a bad understanding of a foreign language, then pay attention to the fields where Hard, Disk and Priority will be written. Opposite these fields, the name of your hard drive will be written, often the beginning of it is SATA, it is SATA that needs to be changed to a USB Flash Card.

We hope that such an abstract representation will help you choose the right settings, but even if a mistake has been made, do not be afraid, it will not lead to anything bad.

After choosing a priority device, go to the Exit column and select the first item - “Exit with saving the changed settings”.

Your PC will now reboot and the Ubuntu installer will start.

Start installation via UEFI

In general, installing Ubuntu next to Windows 10 UEFI and BIOS is no different, only the steps are slightly different.

After recording the bootable USB flash drive, you will also need to restart your computer and enter the BOOT Menu, only now UEFI. To do this, when you boot the computer, you must press the corresponding key, it is different on each computer, it depends on your motherboard. Below is a table that clearly shows which key you want to press.

So, you restarted the computer and pressed the corresponding key, now the BOOT Menu opens in front of you, select the flash drive via UEFI in it - this is the point where the word “UEFI” is written in front of the name of the flash drive.

After that, the Ubuntu installer will open.

Choosing an Ubuntu Installation Method

So, after following the above instructions, the grub menu should open before you, it is from it that we choose the method of installing Ubuntu itself. In general, there are two options: start the operating system from a USB flash drive and, after checking its operability, complete the installation or immediately proceed with the installation. Choose only for you. But it is worth noting that if you run the OS from a flash drive, then during installation you can use the programs.

Disk layout

After choosing the installation method of the operating system, installation begins directly.

Algorithm of actions:

1. On the first page, select the language and click "Next."

2. On the second page you need to choose whether to download updates during installation or not. Here, if desired, but if you do not check, then updates can be downloaded later. But it’s better to check the box opposite the installation of third-party software so that there are no conflicts with your devices and everything functions correctly after installation. Click "Next."

3. The third step will be to select the type of installation, since we are installing Ubuntu next to Windows 10 (on another drive or not - anyway), select “Another option” and click “Next”.

4. At this point, we need to partition the disk. If before that you did not leave free space under Ubuntu, then you need to take a piece of memory from the created partitions. It is best to take the memory from drive D, since it is not system on Windows 10. To do this, focus on the size, find it in the list and click RMB and select Resize / Move from the menu. In the window that appears, opposite the line Free space following, specify the size of the memory to be taken, 50,000 MiB is quite enough.

5. Next, you need to break the disconnected partition into subsections. To do this, select it and click the “+” sign. In the window that opens, select the memory for the root partition and in the drop-down list, opposite "Use as", select "ext4", and opposite the "Mount point" - "/". Click OK.

6. Now create the swap partition. To do this, select 4,000 MiB of memory and select swap in the drop-down list. Click OK.

7. Next, select "Install Now" and in the window that appears, click "Continue."

8. At this point, you need to select your time zone.

9. At the last stage, you need to fill in all the fields and click "Continue".

That's all, the installation has begun, after its completion the computer will reboot and you can choose which operating system to boot from, Ubuntu or Windows 10. I would also like to remind you that installing Ubuntu next to Windows 10 on one drive or on the same is no different, just during installation you will need to select the one you need.