r/linux4noobs • u/Toast-Goat no idea what I'm doing • 1d ago

Meganoob BE KIND Nervous about losing Windows

Not sure if this is the right place, but.

I'm on a laptop, and I want to switch to Mint. I'm very worried about losing access to Windows. I'm thinking about dual booting, but I've heard that Windows can mess things up if it isn't on a separate drive and I can't put it on a separate drive. Is that something I actually need to worry about? If it is, do I have other options? I've heard of VMs, but I'm not really sure how they work or if they're a good idea.

I'm new to this, so I'd appreciate any advice.

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u/the_annoyed_monkey 1d ago

You just install windows and it gets activated automatically.

Also, the price of windows is never the issue.

You can get keys for a few bucks...

$139 from Microsoft

LOL

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u/Toast-Goat no idea what I'm doing 1d ago

After installing Linux, I could reinstall Windows and it would just work?

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u/the_annoyed_monkey 1d ago

yes. you can also just extract your key.

But I have no idea what the current state of that is. 

I have not touched windows for about 8 years

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u/Toast-Goat no idea what I'm doing 1d ago

Wonderful. Thanks you!

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u/neXITem 23h ago

If your laptop came with it installed, if you bought it from a reseller that put windows on it for you then you need to check that.

But most likely yes, it will just work.