Every one of us has an idea of running two or more operating systems at a time in a single system.Most of us started learning to use computers with the Windows operating system pre-installed, but many of us have an idea of using Linux based operating systems.There were plenty of Linux distro’s available.
also read: What is Linux
Contents
Advantages of running multiple OS
Gain more knowledge:
By using multiple operating systems one can learn lot things such as how they structured, workflow, their processing way and learning new things will not degrade anyone, in contrast, they sharpen your skill set.
Access to more software:
In this digital era, there were lots of software available for every platform.But most of them were available for specific platforms (Adobe products were not available in Linux).So running more than one operating system provides access to multiple software.
Test older operating systems:
Testing older operating system means that if you want to use a discontinued operating systems like Windows XP for using a specific functionality available in those older versions.So you need not search for older machines that running Windows XP.
Test new operating systems:
If you are using older versions of windows and wants to trial or check the functionalities of Windows 10 or recent updates of windows without harming the pre-running OS.
Drawbacks of running more than One OS:
Storage Space:
Allocation of memory space to multiple operating systems is a difficult task.If you’re going to install Linux based operating system means it won’t require a large amount of space, in the case of Windows it requires large memory space and high RAM space allocation.
Ease of use:
Switching multiple operating systems is same time may be a headache because if any have low hardware resources then the performance will be slower to run multiple OS.In some cases, while switching running process of an OS must be closed and then opened in other OS.This may be a problem.
Setup Issues:
Issues related to set up were, older OS does not meet up with new computing devices can be a trouble.
What Os can You run
Firstly any operating system available in this period can be run depending upon your views or needs.Commonly people run
- Linux and its distro’s
- Unix
- Windows (XP,7,8,10)
- Android
- Mac
To run multiple OS following methods can be followed.
- Dual Booting
- Virtualization
Dual Booting Operating Systems
Dual booting in the sense, having more than an OS installed in your computer (internal drive or hard drive) and accessing them based on your priority from the bootloader.And by the name dual booting, it doesn’t mean only 2 OS, it may be 2 or more OS.There is no limit, it’s up to users wish and size of hard drive.
If you want the smoother experience, dual booting is recommended.Because graphics functionality of the secondary os works only when you dual boot it.
Virtualisation
Virtualisation refers to building a virtual environment rather than an actual environment, which means running an operating system inside an operating system with the help of emulating software specially designed for this purpose.
Virtualisation can be carried out with software like VMware, VirtualBox, Qemu, parallels, etc.,
While running virtual machine software system hardware resources were shared between host systems at the same instance.That is starting from RAM, the processor to USB ports.The thing to noted here is not all the available RAM and the processor resources were shared a limited or user-defined amount will be used by host machines.
If you need a virtual machine for gaming it is not recommended because 3D acceleration is not supported by virtual machines.For testing and learning it is recommended for using virtual machine software.
Watch this video to know how to install a guest os (here ubuntu) in Vmware.
Download link for emulating software was given below this video.
download links:
VMWare:http://bit.ly/2ypyXqS
virtual box:http://bit.ly/2kW924Q
ubuntu:http://bit.ly/2yqG0Qa
