The link provided above only offers downloads of the latest version of Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Pro.

Aside from the time spent burning to disc, the read speeds from using a locally mounted ISO are substantially higher than using optical media. Because the installation ISO will be mounted from the local disk for installation on a virtual machine, there is no need to burn the ISO to a disc for installation. Thankfully, Microsoft directly provides ISO downloads of Windows 10. Getting the installation ISO from Microsoft Therefore, this guide is specifically for an in-place switch for people who install Linux on a computer which has an OEM license for Windows 10 from the manufacturer. Attempting to do so is likely to trigger an alert from Windows Genuine Advantage, as the hardware information about the computer attached to an OEM license is likely transmitted to Microsoft from the factory. It is also important to note that using a VM for Windows also prevents any future Windows update from interfering with your computer’s boot partition, which could render both your Linux and Windows installations unbootable.īecause of Microsoft’s licensing terms, it is not permissible to transfer the Windows 10 license from one computer to another.

After all, this is Windows–using a fresh ISO direct from Microsoft eliminates OEM-bundled bloatware which typically accompanies a new computer. SEE: Linux distribution comparison chart (Tech Pro Research)Ĭonsidering that the license has already been paid for with most pre-built, retail computers, it is likely a worthwhile endeavor to install Windows 10 in a virtual machine rather than dual booting. As such, unless you are buying a System76 computer, or a Dell developer laptop, you are already paying the “ Windows Tax” for your device. While it is simple to build your own PC (or simply use an Intel NUC), laptops and all-in-one systems are typically impossible to build in the same way. The long arm of Microsoft’s embrace is similarly difficult to escape.

Even now, the possibility of needing Windows to perform some task still exists–perhaps as part of an employer requirement, a dependency on legacy technology, or to interact with legacy or specialty hardware which has no Linux driver. For Linux users, making a clean break from the Microsoft ecosystem is often a rather challenging task.

Setting up virtual machine windows 10