If you are a fan of open source, you are probably also a fan of Linux. Linux is the largest open source project in the world with hundreds of different versions available depending on your needs. These versions, known as “distributions”, are very easy to install, especially if you choose to run them from a USB stick.
One tool that makes installing Linux on a USB stick especially easy is Linux Live USB Creator I have used this tool for many years to try out various distributions, and I like it for its extreme simplicity.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
Linux Live USB Creator helps you dual boot on Windows PC
One of the great things about running Linux from a USB stick is that you can run it on your Windows system without actually installing Linux properly or making big changes to your Windows PC. As soon as you turn off your Linux USB drive, everything you do is immediately erased as if Linux never existed.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
For anyone thinking about the right switch to Linux, or just wondering what a particular distribution looks like, this is an easy and painless way to do it. However, with regular USB Linux distributions, you need to reboot your Windows computer, boot into BIOS, and select your Linux USB stick. In my opinion, this is very tedious and time consuming.
But with Linux Live USB Creator, it launches Linux distribution in virtualization window. This means no restart is required. You can easily switch between the two operating systems. You can also run the portable version of Linux Live USB Creator, so you don’t even need to install the program.
USB Linux Distro Setup
After downloading Linux Live USB Creator, launch it.
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Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
This is a simple example of how to complete each step in the list.
First, select the USB drive you want to use, which is easy enough. Try using a memory card with the largest available memory capacity. Too much is better than too little, which is why I always use a 128GB stick.
The next step is to choose the version of Linux that you want to install. You have three options. The first two – if an uninstalled version of Linux is already installed on your computer. Then you can point this program to this Linux file.
However, if you do not already have the Linux installation file, select the Download option and you will be presented with all the distributions that the program supports.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
If you’re not sure which one to try, Ubuntu will always be the best choice for beginners. But I’m going to take a look at Puppy Linux, which I’ve heard a lot of good things about.
Now select “Download Automatically” and the program will receive an installation file for you.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
It will look for the fastest and most reliable download mirror, and then ask you where to put the installation file on your computer. Be aware that Linux Live may freeze temporarily while receiving the installation file. But just leave it and wait. For a moment, it will start moving again.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
After it checks the setup file, it will tell you if it is “live mode” or “built-in persistence”. Live mode is when no changes are saved to your USB drive after exiting the Linux distribution. Persistence is when you can save data and settings to a USB stick.
Not all Linux distributions support persistence, and since in this case you will be using VirtualBox to run Linux, persistence will not work anyway. So you can more or less ignore this part.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
Step four is important.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
Do not uncheck the “Hide generated files on the key” checkbox. This will make them invisible in Windows, but you can view them by going into Windows Explorer and selecting Show Hidden Files and Folders.
The FAT32 key formatting option is used if you want to erase the key first, or it is formatted in NTFS or exFAT format.
The third option MUST be selected if you want to switch to Linux without first restarting Windows. This option loads the portable version of VirtualBox onto a USB stick to run your Linux distribution.
Now click on the lightning bolt icon on the left to start installing your Linux distribution.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
After installing the Linux distribution, navigate to your USB stick and click on “Virtualize this key” to run the Linux distribution inside VirtualBox. This may take a couple of minutes, so be patient.
Linux Live USB Creator Lets You Create Linux OS’ On The Fly” />
When this distro is enough for you, simply reformat the USB stick and wipe it off completely.
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