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Firstly, I am a complete beginner. I've been using Windows for all my computing life. I'm confident about installing Linux as I've done it before, however I am about to buy a new laptop and it will have a 256GB SSD and a 1TB HDD.

I want the option of installing other Ubuntu variants, but will begin with standard Ubuntu and need some detailed guidance on how to configure the partition correctly. I've seen a few guides on this site and elsewhere, but they all seem to assume some prior knowledge and make assumptions that you know something when you really don't.

I need an idiot's guide to how to configure the installation of Ubuntu on a new machine whilst allowing for the installation of one or more other Ubuntu/Linux installations at a later date. I am wondering if I should install Ubuntu on the entire SSD and then, later, I can install another Linux system on the HDD, or would it make more sense to partition the SSD and put a couple of Linux installations on it? In which case, I need help with setting up the first partition for the first installation of Ubuntu to both optimise it, and allow for the other variant's installation later.

K7AAY
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1 Answers1

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When you install an Ubuntu or Ubuntu flavour desktop OS, the Ubiquity (more) or Calamares (used by Lubuntu) OS installers give you the choice of where to install that new OS. They allows\ you to put the OS on the drive without erasing the prior OS, and to shrink the space given to the original OS to give more space to the new version. Consider that installer your Idiot's guide.

FYI, unless you plan to add Hibernation in Ubuntu to your system after installation, you do not need a separate swap partition, which will make installation choices simpler. Here's more on swap.

The most frequent recommendation I have seen here historically has been 30 GB per Ubuntu instance, but with the growth of Snaps to install new apps, I would suggest 50 GB per Ubuntu instance, as Snaps consume more disk space per app when compared to installing apps using the traditional apt method.

Both OS installers cited above will edit GRUB (more) to add links to boot with the new OS, to the links which allow you to boot with the original OS.

Each Linux you install must have its own /home directory, but can share a common directory for documents and media files. That shared directory can reside on any drive.

A 256 GB SSD gives you plenty of room for multiple versions of Linux, especially since you can put /home for each distro on your HDD. As you learn more about Ubuntu, you will acquire system maintenance skills which will allow you to clean out files you don't need, and you can resize partitions as needed.

K7AAY
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  • But /home doesn't need to be in it's own partitions. It can be a part of the root file system for each OS / Ubuntu flavor. – Soren A Feb 21 '20 at 17:59
  • /home does not need to be in the SSD; as noted in the last graf in my answer, you can put /home for each distro on your HDD. – K7AAY Feb 21 '20 at 18:03
  • I like to keep /home inside / (root) as when I have all my documents, Music, etc in a shared data partition linked back to /home, my /home is tiny. I uninstall all snaps and my 20.04 new install is 8.2GB. My 18.04 install is 10 GB after about 2 years of use but a lot of regular housecleaning. https://askubuntu.com/questions/1013677/storing-data-on-second-hdd-mounting & https://askubuntu.com/questions/1058756/installing-all-applications-on-a-ssd-disk-and-putting-all-files-on-hdd-disk – oldfred Feb 21 '20 at 18:13
  • @oldfred I am trying to avoid opinions (e.g., "I like to..."), references to Ubuntu +1 (" my 20.04 new install"), and expecting a new Ubuntu user to have skills they may not yet have ("a lot of regular housecleaning.") – K7AAY Feb 21 '20 at 18:21
  • @K7AAY there are no right or wrong. Unless you have strong arguments for your solution, it is only a preference that you like. – Soren A Feb 21 '20 at 20:27
  • @Soren A Ubuntu +1 is definitely off topic as per https://askubuntu.com/help/on-topic – K7AAY Feb 22 '20 at 08:13
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    @ K7AAY How do you put /home for each distro on your HDD? At what stage of the installation process do you do that? I think I will simply install Ubuntu on the HDD and maybe Budgie on the SSD to keep things as simple as possible. –  Feb 22 '20 at 17:38
  • You do that in the Allocate Disk Space https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/tutorial-install-ubuntu-desktop#6-allocate-drive-space step by choosing Something Else.See https://www.maketecheasier.com/install-ubuntu-with-different-root-home-hard-drives/ – K7AAY Feb 22 '20 at 21:42