List, good morning, I have purchased a Windows 8.1 (optional W10)
notebook and I wondered what, if anything, I ought to do *first*
before letting Windows start after first switch-on, and then also
installing Debian to make a dual boot system. I have installed Debian
to dual boot on several Windows laptops in the past but have never
installed on UEFI, nor side by side with W8.1 or W10. I do need to
continue to be able to also boot to Windows for work purposes.
In the past I have partitioned a system with 3 sections:
- A windows OS and programs area
- A separate partition where I store all data files (documents,
spreadsheets, etc) which I could read from and write to, from Windows
or from Debian
- A Debian OS area (including /home, but happy to take advice on that)
Previous m/c preparation methods have been:
- Let Windows start, configure it as required, and compress its use of
the HD
- Create the shared files partition
- Create a blank partition for Debian
followed by a Debian install.
The machine config is Celeron N2840, 32GB SSD, 2GB RAM, W8.1/W10,
WiFi, USB 2/3, SD card slot. Apparently (some web comment) the
machine also has a special partition where it keeps various codes and
certificates, and only a recent kernel (I think, > 3.16, does that
seem likely?) can read past that, on boot, without hanging.
The m/c has not yet been switched on. I would welcome advice about
the initial sequence of using this machine, to facilitate the
subsequent installation of Debian. Specific queries I have are:
1. On switch on, do I need to interrupt the boot? Eg should I leave
UEFI on or off, and ought I change any other BIOS things first? It
might be handy to change the boot sequence to default to USB first, I
thought, in case there's some reason to *not* start Windows
immediately on first switch on.
2. Some comments on the web suggest 'imaging' the system, next, in
case of needing to fallback to the original system - though I suspect
that was where users had decided to remove Windows entirely, not
something I wish to do. (And I'm not sure how, unless the machine
would boot from a live DVD or something which I suspect it won't
unless the BIOS config is changed).
3. Because I'll be using Windows from time to time, I will want to
have created its 'recovery' files and I'm inclined to do that pretty
much as soon as Windows starts and settles down. After that I'll
compress the space Windows takes, and create my additional 'files'
partition, using Windows, so that Windows can see that partition
without difficulty.
The main Windows issue is whether Debian more happily co-exists with
Windows 8.1 or Windows 10, because (apparently) we will have a
one-shot choice between the two, on Windows' first start after switch on.
4. Then I'd like to install Debian. I'd prefer to install Debian
Wheezy because we have a very slow internet service and already have
the install DVDs for D7.8. Is Wheezy 7.8 installable on UEFI, or
should I use the legacy boot system in the BIOS?
And that's really my main point of uncertainty, and why I haven't yet
switched the machine on. Do I need to do something, first, to ensure
that I will be able to install Wheezy and be able to dual boot, after
having let Windows start, and compressing the space it takes?
Apologies for the length of the post, but would be grateful for any
advice,
regards, Ron
