Hello. I am trying to setup a Windows / Linux dual boot PC. I have done this a few times over the years and it has always gone smoothly. I was able to set this up on on an SSD and then I changed to a larger one. Currently I get Windows running fine as the only O/S, boot Mint 19.2 and when I try to install it always says it cannot find another operating system. Because of this I cannot install it dual boot.
Has anyone seen this?
thanks for any info
Hi Brian
I haven’t got a solution to your particular problem, however, you may benefit from the following comments.
I moved from windows 10 to Ubuntu around 18 months ago and started by dual booting, with the idea of just booting windows when I needed it for the odd programs that I could not find an alternative for in linux eg. Quickbooks.
I soon learned that this was very cumbersome, not giving access to email etc. while in windows boot - also every now and then a windows update would clobber the grub config and cause a lot of pain. and the really big issue was waiting for windows update to finish before I could move back to Linux
I subsequently started to look into virtual servers (forget Wine) like virtualbox (which I finally settled on) I struggled initially setting up shared drives and getting access to printer and USB but since being sorted, it works like a dream and I can access everything I need on the windows drive or linux drive simultaneously without any hassle.
Have been running this configuration now for almost a year with no issues at all - I only install the bare minimum of windows programs on the W10 virtual m/c just what I can’t find alternative s to.
Would recommend staying away from dual booting - hope this helps
Peter
That’s fine. You always has the “Something else” option and install it by creating manual partitions.
Hi Peter and welcome to our community. Nice answer to this question. The only thing that I would add to it is that there are a lot of alternatives to Windows applications/programmes (I hate the other spelling) many which I have found through @abhishek via its foss - so it is worth digging around for them.
Hi Brian
Welcome to the community.
I take it you that you went into the BIOS and turned off the secure boot
I take it that you changed the setting to Legacy in there as well
I take it that you also changed the boot order to Mint. If you do not do so then it will boot into windows. In fact it will do that if you do not do any of the above.
In his answer @abhishek has given the guide for you which is worth looking at as no matter how many times we have done it, a refresh always helps us to remember things. 
Hi, thanks for the comment - I have found great linux alternatives for most things, but although Quickbooks desktop takes some beating, it costs me ÂŁ30 a month so would like to get rid - I tried GnuCash, but not being an accountant found it difficult to get my head around and easy to make mistakes !
Yes, “Something else” option is the only option I use now. It seems to work Great and it allows me to define root (/), swap, and Home the size I want them to be.
@petercircuit
There are a couple of valid alternatives to GnuCash. All you have to know beforehand is what you need. More features i.e. it being a little more complicated or less features i.e. it being a little less complicated.
I’ll take this opportunity to enter a vote for Kmymoney. I keep my working file on Dropbox, so I can install the program on any distro I happen to be experimenting with and still access my financial data. There’s even a Kmymoney for Windows (or there used to be). Kmymoney has proven to be bulletproof for me for years and generates all the reports I need at tax time. It has also totally replaced my paper checkbook, since we only write 12 or 15 checks a year. Now, back to Abishek’s really terrific dual-boot discussion!
Sounds like a good recommendation. I will check it out at some point.
For Alternative Programs, please checkout: https://alternativeto.net/platform/linux/
For a money program, I’ve been using “Money ManagerEx” since its’ inception, maybe 8 years ago. It has very recently shown-up in Synaptic, is available from the website(as a deb file) , and also as a SNAP.
Small package, but a very comprehensive.