One solution that has long existed is to have a dual boot system... you can choose which OS you want to load each time you start the system.
Another option is to run a Window VM in Linux.
this post was submitted on 22 Jul 2023
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@Zeppo Yeah I might try the Dual Boot system to begin with to save me time working out VMs but I think the long goal would be running a windows VM on Linux tbh.
If you must dual boot, have totally separate hard drives, and the choosing between Linux and Windows should be done in the UEFI boot menu, not GRUB menu. Windows can render Linux unbootable otherwise, requiring a rather complicated rescue. Windows would ideally not have any chance to see the Linux hard drive while booted.
An external SATA SSD in a USB enclosure is cheap these days.
Yeah, Windows likes to overwrite the MBR with no warning as if that's perfectly fine. I've always wondered what combination of carelessness, incompetence, interface streamlining and competitive malice is responsible for that. It's also ridiculous how in 2023 there's still no native way to read Linux filesystems from Windows.
@Zeppo That does sound ridiculous especially as I wouldn't mind running linux through Windows, I know it wouldn't work as well but I know I would do a lot of my less complex tasks through there such as browsing the internet as I could game on Windows or Linux as I don't really mind if I'm VMing one
Sure, another option is running Linux in a VM, though I thought the goal was to overall switch to Linux as much as possible.
VMs have facilities to transfer files between the host and guest OS, which helps.
@Zeppo The goal would be to use Linux as my base OS in the future. As I look through the many comments from everyone I am now re-evaluating some of the things I feel I 'Need' in my set up such as my Sync Cloud Storage, Instead I hope to move over to External Hard Drives.
Knowing Adobe is a huge part of my setup does hurt the idea of moving to Linux at the moment but I will have to find if there is a workaround other than VMs in the future. People mentioned GPU Passthrough on the VM which would help a lot, It's just not only learning how to run a VM but how to do the pass-through on it.
But yes I do wish to move to Linux in the future but maybe baby testing the Distos I think I might like on a VM might be the best way to step into this rather than going into the deep end straight away.
Sure, installing Linux in a VM would be the fastest and easiest way to test it out and start becoming familiar! You could try a few distros/desktop environments and see what you like without having to deal with reformatting or real hardware.
I've got Windows and Mint dual booting from the same drive, using grub. All seems to work fine for me...
it works great until windows decides to reinstall the bootloader
Windows tends to overwrite the bootloader
@Celivalg This seems to have been a problem I had previously on my old PC as I wanted to dual boot Windows and Linux before. Thank you.
I do the external usb ssd for my windows drive and recommend it endlessly. I use the windows drive for music production and the maybe 2 games in my several hundred game library that don't work in linux. 100 bucks for a 1tb samsung external ssd, and wintousb to make it functional.
@technologicalcaveman Thank you never have heard of a WinToUSB but will really need to look into it as it sounds like a great way to be able to run Linux.
It's a good tool, pretty easy to set up too. I personally recommend not connecting to internet when setting up windows 10 so that you're not forced into either signing in or signing up for a windows account. I did that and about a year later on the same install, it's all good still.
Since people have suggested virtual machines, I wanted to mention that most of them will not be using your GPU (and GPU passthrough is tricky), so they won't be helpful if you are using GPU-intensive apps.
On the other hand, moving form Adobe Illustrator to Inkscape was a pretty smooth transition for me, and I can't say I miss any of Adobe's features (except the Shape builder, which is also coming to Inkscape). However, I'm not a professional illustrator - it's mostly a hobby for me and I only use it for creating icons, simple illustrations and infographics
Gaming experience has been really good, though! (Steam/Proton and yuzu for emulating some Switch games)
@CorInABox Thank you for this input, sadly I would be using GPU intensive apps with things such as Premiere Pro, So I might have to re-look into this at a later date or even decide to look into how I can use GPU Passthrough
For your steam games you can check compatibility at https://www.protondb.com/
@nlm Thank you will check it out, didn't know we actually had a database for it.
There's also https://lutris.net/ and https://usebottles.com/
A lot of games work really well these days but you'll probably notice a 10-20% fps drop. That's at least what I've found.
@nlm Thank you, these will come in handy and I'll have to test it out on my test rig (It's not the best but if I can test out a program on it, Might as well.)
The biggest issue with switching is your "must have" applications.
A lot of people spend time trying to make them work, it often doesn't work well and so they go back.
Take Sync, Linux has similar solutions (insync is a popular one), but there alternative solutions. Perhaps the server could run syncthing or your tooling supports ftp, etc..
The key thing is not to ask for the equivalent of X, but think what you actually use X for.
So if you use Sync to share video on Slack, you don't need a Sync replacement you need a way to share video on slack.
Alas I think Photoshop is the one killer application
@stevecrox Yeah I will have to see what I can find without moving to Linux and see what I can find. Sync sadly isn't a bypass for me it's more of a destination for my files to store (Instead of using Google Drive or any other system). The Adobe suite I've kind of got to keep on using especially with how much work I would loose if I did move across, So I'll have to re-evaluate what I can do from what someone mentioned, I need to learn how to GPU Passthrough for the VM if I where to go that root.
You miss the point about Sync.
You don't need sync, you need a cloud storage solution that works with linux.
Its being willing to step back in that way which will help you transition.
@SamXavia Are there cloud versions available? Or, perhaps, run those apps in a windows VM?
@readbeanicecream I was suggested to use a Windows VM earlier on another post I made, I think that's probably the best way to go but will have to work out how they work as I've never been able to successfully launch a VM yet.
Also, cloud versions are out of the question sadly.
@SamXavia On Linux, I have had the best luck with virtualbox.
+1 for VirtualBox. Super easy to setup a Windows VM on it
Have a dual boot: gaming and personal stuff on Linux (using Proton for games), and pro on Windows.
But if you really need Adobe at any moment, well you either need to stay on Windows or switch to another app suite. That's the unfortunate truth given Apple' unwillingness to support Linux.
@TheFork Yeah I would tbh look into Apple if they actually supported my games at this point but I was told to look into VMing my Professional setup what is a good idea allowing me to use Linux for my own personal stuff but still be able to switch between the two quickly. I'll have to look further into VMs as haven't really touched them before.
VM are good but to get good performances, you need to do some setup so they directly use the hardware and don't use abstractions.
I'd just use WSL. Yeah, it has problems but it's the simplest solution for me.
@bedrooms That's fair enough, from what everyone else has said, I will probably try emulating Windows through a VM on Windows first then try Dual-booting Linux on my PC before deciding to ditch windows for a all Linux set-up where I can then just use a VM for Windows.
I think Premiere is gonna be a problem on a VM. Haven't touched that software for a decade, but that ass was unresponsive already on a native Win. You should test it on the VM first. And other Adobe apps, too.
you can check how well the games run with ProtonDB, as for adobe suite i might be in the minority but if your workflow absolutely depends on it i wouldn't recommend switching to linux
@Monologue Yeah I didn't know if it's the same as it was a few years back as people said I shouldn't switch because of me having to use Adobe. I will try to see if a VM would work for me (just have to work out how to use them) and then I might be able to move across and just use a VM for my workspace when need be, what to fair would make it easier to work.
Unfortunately if you can't afford to take time to learn new programs you're most likely going to have to dual boot. As someone who also does creative work, and had been pretty dependent on Adobe prior to moving to Linux, I can tell you that trying to run any of the Adobe programs on Linux is a fool's errand. Photoshop kind of works in Wine, but the rest are just plain unusable.
There's also winapps, which essentially uses a VM to run Windows programs while integrating them into your regular Desktop in a seamless manner. I've never tried it and it hasn't been updated in 2 years, but you could give it a shot.
If you do decide to try out alternatives though, DaVinci Resolve is good for video editing, Photopea (which is a web app) is pretty goddamn similar to Photoshop, Inkscape is pretty good for vector graphics, and Ardour, Audacity, and Reaper are all good in different ways for audio work.
@carlytm Cool, I think I will try to run Windows through a VM other than learning 50 other software to do my functions atm. Especially as it would allow me to Sandbox any setup I know is slightly more risky in the future. But thanks for the suggestions.
Moving to Linux is probably not going to be a good idea on your work computer. Just grab Virtual Box and install Linux there and learn Linux.
@art I think that might be a good idea, I was originally going to test running Windows in a VM on Windows and then think about Running Linux with a Windows VM on that. But I feel as if I might just need to VM my Linux as it would be easier due to my dependencies with my apps at the moment, I will be looking into changing or even removing the function of the apps I don't need as much as possible.
I might catch flak for this, but WSL would also be a good option. At least it was for me. It’s basically a Linux container that runs in Windows and is developed/supported by Microsoft. Some limitations so YMMV.
Quick way to install Ubuntu WSL in PowerShell:
wsl --install
I also recommend the Windows Terminal app to compliment a WSL install. Download it in the Microsoft Store.
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