A virtual machine can come in handy when you don’t want to bother with the trouble of installing a completely different operating system. Virtual machines are simple to install, easy to operate, and for the most part they work fine – provided you’re using them for their intended purpose.
Truthfully, virtual machines aren’t meant to handle more than schoolwork and/or browsing. Sometimes, the need for another operating system is a bit more complicated than the basics.
For example, many people choose to have a Linux platform installed alongside Windows 10. Windows 10 might be perfect for everyday routine, but it has nothing on Linux when it comes to cyber security methods and techniques. This is why many people opt for dual-booting rather than slow and useless virtual machines.
The process is pretty simple too.
Partitioning
- Open the command prompt as Admin
- Type “diskmgmt.msc” to open the Disk Management utility
- Right click on the relevant partition and select “Shrink Volume”
- Enter a value on space to shrink in MB, using at least 20000 MB depending on partition’s size
- Select “Shrink” and exit
Creating UEFI Bootable Ubuntu USB Drive
- Download Ubuntu ISO image from Ubuntu website
- Download Etcher (or a similar tool)
- After Etcher is installed, open the program and insert a blank USB drive
- Press the “Select” option and navigate to the folder that your Ubuntu ISO image is saved in
- Click on the “Select drive” option and choose your USB drive
- Select “Flash”
- Once the process is completed, restart your computer
Installing Ubuntu
- During restart, open your computer’s boot setup menu (usually F12 but a quick Google will do the trick)
- Find your USB drive (usually “use a device”)
- Select “Try Ubuntu”
- Once loaded, connect to the internet and select the option on the desktop to install Ubuntu
- Follow the installation prompts, check-marking “install updates” and “install third party software”
- When asked, choose the option “Install Ubuntu alongside Windows Boot Manager”
- Follow the rest of the installation prompts and BAM! – Ubuntu AND Windows 10