In that regard, we prepared an in-depth comparison in our Windows 11 vs Windows 10 article, so be sure to check it for more information. If you’re looking to try Windows 11 on your PC, in today’s guide we’re going to show you how to properly dual boot Windows 10 and Windows 11, so let’s get started.
How can I dual boot Windows 10 and Windows 11?
1. Prepare a special partition for Windows 11
Now you should have a new partition available on your system. Up next, we’ll use this partition to install Windows 11 on it.
2. Create installation media
Once the process is finished, you can install Windows 10 on the partition that you created in the previous section.
3. Boot from the USB flash drive and install Windows on the new partition
Now you should have two versions of Windows 10 installed. The last step is to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11 technical preview. You should also know that there’s a way to create a Windows 11 USB bootable USB drive, but this method might not be the most reliable.
4. Join the Insiders Preview and upgrade to Windows 11
If you need more information, make sure to check our guide on how to download Windows 11 properly. After that, you’ll have dual boot for Windows 10 and Windows 11 enabled. Simply select the Windows 11 on the boot screen to boot to it and that’s it. Keep in mind that you’ll have to do this every time your computer starts.
What are the pros and cons of dual booting?
Dual-booting is great since it uses less hardware power than running a virtual machine. By dual booting, you can focus all your hardware resources on a single operating system and get better performance. This is especially important if your PC barely matches the minimum Windows 11 hardware requirements. By using dual boot, you’ll be able to enjoy the other operating system natively, without relying on the virtual environment. It’s worth mentioning that it has a few drawbacks, most notably in multitasking and switching between operating systems. There’s no quick way to do that. You simply need to restart your PC, and then select the operating system that you want to use. SPONSORED You’ll have to do this every time you want to switch to a different OS, and if you tend to switch frequently, this process might feel tedious after a while. Dual-booting also requires a lot of storage space, so you’ll have to take away some space from one of your available partitions and assign that space to a new partition.
How can I set the default operating system when dual booting?
After making these changes, your PC will boot automatically to the selected operating system. If you want to learn more about this tool, we suggest that you check out our System Configuration guide.
Which is better, virtual machine or dual boot?
This depends solely on the user’s needs, but in most cases, dual booting is a better option since it uses fewer hardware resources, so you can dual boot two operating systems even on low-end PCs. Virtual machines require a lot more hardware power since you’ll be running an operating system inside of your current one, so if you don’t have enough hardware power, you might encounter performance issues. On the other hand, using a virtual machine is more secure, since all malware threats and potential issues are contained within that virtual machine. Moreover, if you need to quickly switch between operating systems, or you need to work on both of them simultaneously, a virtual machine is a superior choice. If you want, you can always run Windows 11 on a virtual machine inside of Windows 10 or any other operating system. As you can see, to dual boot Windows 10 and Windows 11 you first need to create a separate partition and install Windows 11 on it. Since the Windows 11 ISO still isn’t officially available, the only way to do that is to install another Windows 10 and then upgrade it to Windows 11. We hope that you found this guide informative and that you managed to successfully boot Windows 11 alongside Windows 10 on your PC.
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