Resizing Windows 11 Partition to Install Linux Mint on a Fast NVMe Drive
If you're already using Linux Mint (LM) daily and want to rearrange your drives to take advantage of a fast NVMe drive, you've come to the right place. In this article, we'll cover the key concepts and steps to resize your Windows 11 partition and install Linux Mint on a faster NVMe drive, improving your overall computing experience.
Prerequisites
- A working Windows 11 installation
- A spare NVMe drive with enough capacity for Linux Mint
- A backup of any important data on your Windows 11 and Linux Mint partitions
Resizing the Windows 11 Partition
Before installing Linux Mint on your NVMe drive, you'll need to resize your existing Windows 11 partition to make room for Linux Mint. Follow these steps to resize your Windows 11 partition:
- Backup any important data on your Windows 11 partition.
- Launch the Windows 11 Disk Management tool by right-clicking the Start button and selecting 'Disk Management'.
- Locate your Windows 11 partition (usually the largest one) and right-click it. Select 'Shrink Volume'.
- Enter the amount of space you want to shrink your Windows 11 partition by (in MB) and click 'Shrink'.
Installing Linux Mint on the NVMe Drive
Now that you've resized your Windows 11 partition, you can install Linux Mint on your NVMe drive. Follow these steps to install Linux Mint:
- Download the latest Linux Mint ISO from the official website.
- Create a bootable USB drive using a tool like Rufus or Etcher.
- Insert the bootable USB drive into your computer and restart it. Boot from the USB drive.
- Select 'Install Linux Mint' from the boot menu.
- Follow the installation prompts, selecting 'Something else' when asked how you want to install Linux Mint.
- Locate your NVMe drive and create a new ext4 partition for Linux Mint.
- Select the newly created ext4 partition as the root ('/') partition and continue with the installation.
- Once the installation is complete, restart your computer and remove the USB drive.
Booting into Linux Mint
After installing Linux Mint on your NVMe drive, you'll need to set it as the default boot drive. Follow these steps to boot into Linux Mint:
- Restart your computer and press the appropriate key to enter the boot menu (usually F12, F10, or ESC).
- Select your NVMe drive as the boot drive.
- Log in to Linux Mint using your username and password.
Resizing your Windows 11 partition and installing Linux Mint on a fast NVMe drive can improve your overall computing experience. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can easily move your Linux Mint installation to a faster drive and take advantage of the speed and performance of NVMe technology.
References
- Shrink a Basic Volume - Microsoft Docs
- Download Linux Mint
- Rufus - Create bootable USB drives the easy way
- Etcher - Flash OS images to SD cards & USB drives
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