How to Dual Boot on Separate Hard Drives: 5 Easy Steps

It is always not necessary to use two hard drives for dual booting

5 min. read

Updated onOctober 20, 2023

updated onOctober 20, 2023

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Installing two OS on a computer creates many clustered partitions for running them that can be a mess on the hard drive. Hence, we’ll discuss how to dual boot on separate hard drives on your PC.

Do I need two hard drives for dual boot? Dual booting on your computer doesn’t necessarily require you to have two hard drives available for the process. So, you don’t compulsorily need separate drives, for instance, whendual booting Windows and Linux OSon a single PC.

However, we recommend using two separate hard drives to make the operation easier and smoother. It has many advantages that give it an edge over dual booting from a single drive. Using two drives creates a less cluttered partition table for the two operating systems.

Also, it eradicates the stress of backing up data for the current OS. It preventspartitioning issuesliable to occurring.

In short, dual booting by partitioning a single driver doesn’t harm its performance and stability. However, allowing each operating system to have a designated drive to partition makes it more organized.

How can I dual boot on separate hard drives?

Before proceeding with the steps for dual booting on separate hard drives, follow these:

1. Set a new partition for the new OS installation

Creating a new partition frees up enough disk space for the operating system to be installed.

2. Create a bootable USB for the new OS installation

Using the Media creation tool to create a bootable USB drive allows users to download and store the install file for Windows 11.

You can read our article about how tocreate a bootable USB drivefor more steps to take on Windows 11.

3. Install the Operating System on the new partition

The steps for installing and setting up different operating systems on your PC may vary. So, we recommend you consult a professional for the specific steps for your operating system.

4. Set default operating system for startup

Setting the default operating system and a time limit to display the list of operating systems allows you to access the dual boot menu. It prompts the select operating system boot menu where you can easily switch between OS on startup.

If you’re interested how toremove Ubuntu from dual boot on Windows 11, the highlighted guide will provide all the solutions.

5. Disable the Windows Fast Startup option

Disabling Fast startup allows your PC to bypass loading the default operating system from the boot and shows the boot menu for selecting Operating Systems. Readhow to disable fast startup on Windows 11for more steps.

In conclusion, our readers can checkhow to Dual Boot Windows 11 and macOSon a single PC.

Likewise, our readers may be interested in our guide onhow to Dual Boot Windows 11 and Linux Minton one PC. Also, you may be interested in our guide onfixing PC stuck on Choose an operating systemprompt.

How to Dual Boot on Separate Hard Drives: 5 Easy Steps#

How can I dual boot on separate hard drives?#

1. Set a new partition for the new OS installation#

2. Create a bootable USB for the new OS installation#

3. Install the Operating System on the new partition#

4. Set default operating system for startup#

5. Disable the Windows Fast Startup option#