Can Mint Xfce be installed onto a partition made by Windows Hard Drive Manager?

[Kuen]

I am trying to run Mint Xfce on my Windows 10 machine.

Hardware of my Windows 10 machine:
Acer desktop machine, Aspire T3 715
CPU Intel Core i5-6400
RAM DDR4-SDRAM 16GB 2133MHzDDR4-SDRAM
GPU NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
SSD 128GB C-drive, running Windows 10 Home 64b. 22H2
HDD1 D-drive, 3.5" SATA3 HDD 7200rpm 1.0TB for general storage
HDD2 F-drive, 3.5" SATA3 HDD 7200rpm 1.0TB, USB external hard drive for storing photos only.

There is 500gb free space on the above said HHD2.

This is what I plan to do:
1. Partition HHD2 by Windows with Windows Hard Drive Manager, to make a new and free partition of 200gb free space.
2. Install Mint Xfce onto the said new partition and run it sharing the same machine with Windows 10.

My question:
Can Mint Xfce be installed onto this partition or does it require a different partition?

Thanks.

[decrepit]

It should run fine on 200gB but the installer will format it as ext4

[Hawaiihemd]

That is true but it will recognize the efi on the windows ssd an install grub there, not on hdd2.

[Hoser Rob]

This is such a bad idea. Don't try to outsmart Linux and Windows devs.

[zcot]

The answer is no, but you can make empty space using Windows. Don't try to format for a Linux partition from Windows, you just waste your time it will not work and it will be created correctly from the Linux installer. You can create/format Linux partitions easily using the live installer session GParted tool, or just make available a 200GB empty space and let the installer take it for you.

Also, check into this setup, because it's a different thing installing to an external, already mentioned above with the efi not going onto the external. There are a number of points to be aware of here first:
Full Install to USB Drive: Four Options
viewtopic.php?t=287353

[Kuen]

The answer is no, but you can make empty space using Windows. Don't try to format for a Linux partition from Windows, you just waste your time it will not work and it will be created correctly from the Linux installer. You can create/format Linux partitions easily using the live installer session GParted tool, or just make available a 200GB empty space and let the installer take it for you.

Also, check into this setup, because it's a different thing installing to an external, already mentioned above with the efi not going onto the external. There are a number of points to be aware of here first:
Full Install to USB Drive: Four Options
viewtopic.php?t=287353

Thank you very much.
The hope of a dual system running Mint and Windows 10 on one desktop machine is doomed for me. 1.Windows 10 utilizes UEFI to boot and run, 2.Mint uses Ubuntu installer having a "bug" which will "bollix" the internal hard drive’s boot loader, and 3. I do not have that much knowledge and technique to cope with the issues.

[AZgl1800]

Actually,
the installer will just install Grub on the first UEFI partition it finds,
and when you boot the PC/laptop the Grub menu comes up asking you to select the OS you want.

It defaults to Linux, but lists Windows as an Alternate.

All I had to do was use the Windows Partition manager to shrink the Windows disk space to allow room for mint to exist.

later, I installed a 2nd SSD, and by using the "something else" method, pointed it to install the OS on the SSD, and it left the Grub Menu on the NVME drive.

works great for me.

[Kuen]

Actually,
the installer will just install Grub on the first UEFI partition it finds,
and when you boot the PC/laptop the Grub menu comes up asking you to select the OS you want.

It defaults to Linux, but lists Windows as an Alternate.

All I had to do was use the Windows Partition manager to shrink the Windows disk space to allow room for mint to exist.

later, I installed a 2nd SSD, and by using the "something else" method, pointed it to install the OS on the SSD, and it left the Grub Menu on the NVME drive.

works great for me.

Thank you, Mr. Azgl1800.
Great! There is hope.
Due to the fact that I am not good of computer knowledge and technique, please allow me asking many silly questions.
Question about the SSD. Do you install Mint on the free space you made on your hard drive? Why do you have to install an SSD if so? Why to make a free space on the hard drive since a new SSD is installed and used?

[AZgl1800]

Thank you, Mr. Azgl1800.
Great! There is hope.
Due to the fact that I am not good of computer knowledge and technique, please allow me asking many silly questions.
Question about the SSD. Do you install Mint on the free space you made on your hard drive? Why do you have to install an SSD if so? Why to make a free space on the hard drive since a new SSD is installed and used?

When I first bought my laptop, it only had the OEM drive in it, and I wanted to experiment with Linux Mint.

that laptop was the previous one to the one I have now.

and that laptop did not have a 2nd drive slot to hold a separate SSD.
So, I used the Windows Disk Partition Manager to Shrink the size of the unused portion of the disk to allow room to install Linux Mint.

this must be done from Windows, unless you intend to Erase Windows completely.

After the Windows had shrunk the partition, and left me enough room to install Linux, I made sure that Secure Boot was turned OFF in the BIOS.

and that FAST BOOT is turned OFF in Windows itself, so that when Windows shuts down, those two items are no longer in effect.

Then I booted up the laptop on a flashdrive with the ISO for Linux Mint.
the Installer will ask you if you want to:

1) Erase disk and install Linux?

2) Install Linux ALONG SIDE Windows

I chose #2 and it installed Mint alongside Windows, and installed grub on the drive so that when it rebooted, it presents a Grub Menu.

1) it will default to Linux if you do not make a selection within 8 or 10 seconds.
2) you can arrow down to the Windows OS and press ENTER and go back to Windows if you need to.


this is a good thing for folks who are experimenting with Linux, it gives you the freedom to play with Linux for a while, but go back to Windows if you have the need to do so.

In my case, I had been using TurboTax for decades, and needed to Keep Windows working simply to do my taxes each year.

a couple years later, I bought this Laptop which has two drive slots.
I installed a 1 TB SSD in the 2nd slot, and told the Linux Installer to do "Something else" and pointed it to the SSD to install Linux there.

it still installs Grub on the OEM UEFI partition if you don't know how ot made it put it on the 2nd drive, which at the time, I did not.

EDIT:
I went back and reread your 1st post.

you want to put Linux on "
There is 500gb free space on the above said HHD2."

there is no need to do anything to HHD2, just use "something else" to point the Installer to install Mint on the 500gb of free space there.

it will still install Grub on the 1st UEFI partition that it can find, if you do NOT remove the other two drives....

you will then be able to boot up either Windows, or Linux with the Grub Menu.

the only caveat is that when you point it to the 500gb free space, that you tell it to format it to ext4

[AndyMH]

The hope of a dual system running Mint and Windows 10 on one desktop machine is doomed for me. 1.Windows 10 utilizes UEFI to boot and run, 2.Mint uses Ubuntu installer having a "bug" which will "bollix" the internal hard drive’s boot loader, and 3. I do not have that much knowledge and technique to cope with the issues.

Don't know where you heard that, simply not true, except for the last part .

Mint will install its bootloader into the EFI partition alongside win. This is only an issue where you dual boot on separate drives and you want the linux bootloader, grub, on the same drive as mint - it will put grub in the first EFI partition it finds, so alongside win.

[Kuen]

The answer is no, but you can make empty space using Windows. Don't try to format for a Linux partition from Windows, you just waste your time it will not work and it will be created correctly from the Linux installer. You can create/format Linux partitions easily using the live installer session GParted tool, or just make available a 200GB empty space and let the installer take it for you.

Also, check into this setup, because it's a different thing installing to an external, already mentioned above with the efi not going onto the external. There are a number of points to be aware of here first:
Full Install to USB Drive: Four Options
viewtopic.php?t=287353

What if Mint Xfce is installed on my (D:) drive? Will this avoid the "bug" issue of the Ubuntu boot loader?

[Kuen]

Thank you, Mr. Azgl1800.
Great! There is hope.
Due to the fact that I am not good of computer knowledge and technique, please allow me asking many silly questions.
Question about the SSD. Do you install Mint on the free space you made on your hard drive? Why do you have to install an SSD if so? Why to make a free space on the hard drive since a new SSD is installed and used?

When I first bought my laptop, it only had the OEM drive in it, and I wanted to experiment with Linux Mint.

that laptop was the previous one to the one I have now.

and that laptop did not have a 2nd drive slot to hold a separate SSD.
So, I used the Windows Disk Partition Manager to Shrink the size of the unused portion of the disk to allow room to install Linux Mint.

this must be done from Windows, unless you intend to Erase Windows completely.

After the Windows had shrunk the partition, and left me enough room to install Linux, I made sure that Secure Boot was turned OFF in the BIOS.

and that FAST BOOT is turned OFF in Windows itself, so that when Windows shuts down, those two items are no longer in effect.

Then I booted up the laptop on a flashdrive with the ISO for Linux Mint.
the Installer will ask you if you want to:

1) Erase disk and install Linux?

2) Install Linux ALONG SIDE Windows

I chose #2 and it installed Mint alongside Windows, and installed grub on the drive so that when it rebooted, it presents a Grub Menu.

1) it will default to Linux if you do not make a selection within 8 or 10 seconds.
2) you can arrow down to the Windows OS and press ENTER and go back to Windows if you need to.


this is a good thing for folks who are experimenting with Linux, it gives you the freedom to play with Linux for a while, but go back to Windows if you have the need to do so.

In my case, I had been using TurboTax for decades, and needed to Keep Windows working simply to do my taxes each year.

a couple years later, I bought this Laptop which has two drive slots.
I installed a 1 TB SSD in the 2nd slot, and told the Linux Installer to do "Something else" and pointed it to the SSD to install Linux there.

it still installs Grub on the OEM UEFI partition if you don't know how ot made it put it on the 2nd drive, which at the time, I did not.

EDIT:
I went back and reread your 1st post.

you want to put Linux on "
There is 500gb free space on the above said HHD2."

there is no need to do anything to HHD2, just use "something else" to point the Installer to install Mint on the 500gb of free space there.

it will still install Grub on the 1st UEFI partition that it can find, if you do NOT remove the other two drives....

you will then be able to boot up either Windows, or Linux with the Grub Menu.

the only caveat is that when you point it to the 500gb free space, that you tell it to format it to ext4

Thank you.

"there is no need to do anything to HHD2, just use "something else" to point the Installer to install Mint on the 500gb of free space there."

My concerns:
1.The HDD2 (HHDS mistake) is not partitioned. The whole HDD2 is one partition. Hundreds of photos in RAW format are stored on this hard disk. What will Mint installer do to the whole hard disk and to the files of the photos?
2.How to tell Mint installer to partition only 200gb space out of the whole hard disk drive and install Xfce on there?

[Kuen]

This is such a bad idea. Don't try to outsmart Linux and Windows devs.

Thank you.
If my D: drive has a free space of 500gb and let Mint installer do the partition on the D: dive and install Mint Xfce onto there, if this reasonably practical, please?

[AZgl1800]

well, "free space" and a Partition are two different things.
I would advise that you use Windows to compress the D: drive, and then Partition it so that most of the 500gb free space is a separate partition.

I am not sure, what the Installer would do if you leave it like it is, possibly it will do the hard work for you, but that is Above My Pay Grade....

let someone advise you on this before you continue.

[axrusar]

If my D: drive has a free space of 500gb and let Mint installer do the partition on the D: dive and install Mint Xfce onto there, if this reasonably practical, please?

If your drive is storing data by windows already you should:

1. Backup the data to another disk just in case.
2. Use windows to "shrink" the partition, and leave the desired 200GB available. But do not format that new partition yet, as previously mentioned you will be wasting your time.
3. Use the mint installer as explained before, let it do the work for you on that new 200GB unclaimed space.

I never tried to install mint to an external USB drive and im sure it will run a lot slower than a local hard drive like your HDD1. You should install it there and leave the USB drive for backing up your SDD data and HDD1 IMO.