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Installer Linux sur Windows XP

Lucas -  
mamiemando Posted messages 33228 Registration date   Status Moderator Last intervention   -

Hello,

I have an old PC running Windows XP Professional and I can no longer surf the Internet because it tells me that the contracts are no longer valid, the date is no longer correct,... Basically, the PC is too old to go online.

I would like to install Linux on this computer, which should solve the problem, except that I only have one hard drive and on Windows XP you can't "shrink the disk volume," the option is not available.

Anyway, is there someone who can tell me in detail the steps to follow to install Linux on Windows XP, Linux Mint if possible?

Thank you in advance and I remain available if you have any questions.

4 answers

  1.
    [Dal] Posted messages 6122 Registration date   Status Contributor Last intervention   1 108
     

    @Lucas:

    If the computer has a 32-bit processor, Linux Mint is not a viable choice, as they have abandoned this architecture and only provide 64-bit distributions. If the computer is 64-bit, installing Linux Mint with an Xfce desktop will probably be feasible.

    https://linuxmint-installation-guide.readthedocs.io/en/latest/choose.html

    Debian distributions continue to offer 32-bit versions: https://www.debian.org/releases/stable/i386/pr01.fr.html

    With Debian, a "netinst" installation is probably the best option to only use the essential elements on a machine with limited resources.

    If you don't know whether your processor is 32-bit or 64-bit, you can determine it on Windows XP as shown here: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/winmsdexe-shows-me-running-a-32-bit-os-and-my-pc/9e382455-8563-e011-8dfc-68b599b31bf5

    To help you, by the way, the information returned by this tool would be useful to know the other characteristics of your machine:

    Click Start, Run and in the box enter:

    msinfo32 (or winmsd.exe will work too)

    Click OK, and when the System Summary info appears, click Edit, Select All, Copy and then paste the information back here.

    There will be some personal information (like System Name and User Name), and whatever appears to be private information to you, just delete it from the pasted information.

    Basically, the steps, regardless of the Linux distribution to install and if you want to keep Windows XP in dual boot:

    1. make space on Windows XP by uninstalling as much as possible and deleting as much data as possible
    2. access the computer's BIOS to change the boot sequence so that the machine boots from CD or USB stick (if the computer supports USB stick booting) before attempting to boot from the hard drive
    3. prepare the installation media (CD or USB stick as applicable)
    4. just before starting the Linux installation, under Windows, defragment the disk
    5. start the Linux installation from the CD or USB stick by rebooting the computer with this installation media
    6. the computer should boot from the CD or USB stick, then you need to follow the instructions, which will suggest partitioning the disk by reducing the size of the partition on which Windows is installed, creating a partition for Linux, creating the file system on it, installing the desired applications, etc., and installing the boot loader that will allow you to choose which operating system to boot

    If you do not want to keep Windows XP, then you don't have to do steps 1 and 4, and during the installation, you indicate that you want to use the entire disk instead of installing Linux on a new partition (you will then lose all content, and Windows XP will be deleted from the disk).

    @brucine:

    I disagree, staying on Windows XP exposes you to security risks.

    @pierrotlefou:

    Installing Linux on a machine where you cannot see the screen will be difficult, as you will not have text-to-speech (TTS) software to help you access the computer's BIOS (which works before loading the operating system) or to use the Linux installation software.

    You might try reaching out to a local LUG (Linux User Group). They hold "install parties" where you can bring your machine, and someone installs Linux for you or helps you do it, and possibly a member of the group can come to your home.

    http://lugslist.com/ctry/canada.php

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    1. mamiemando Posted messages 33228 Registration date   Status Moderator Last intervention   7 940
       

      Hello, I validate this message. A few clarifications:

      • Before installing anything, copy the documents you care about to an external drive (USB stick...)
      • Prefer a 64-bit distribution if your CPU allows it. Otherwise, the main distributions compatible with 32-bit processors are listed here. I recommend Antix if you're a beginner, otherwise Debian.
      • In any case, make sure to choose a lightweight graphical environment (icewm, Fluxbox, LXDE, ...). There’s nothing to prevent you from installing several or switching.
        • Some distributions allow you to choose at the end of the installation (this is the case with Debian)
        • Some distributions (like Ubuntu and Mint) install a graphical interface at the same time as the system. So be careful to opt for a lightweight variant (lubuntu, xubuntu).

      Good luck

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  2. Kori-Kori Posted messages 2392 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   411
     

    Good evening,

    An exact description of your old hardware is needed; even Linux Mint has grown; it is becoming more resource-intensive. RAM, processor... Everything evolves with each version.

    Whether it's good or not, staying free to think, act or not... That may be the question, or to invest? Finding a compatible and operational browser and search engine can be complicated.

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  3. PierrotLeFou
     

    Indeed, we need to know what "old" means.
    I have a 4th generation processor running at 4.4 GHZ in turbo mode with plenty of RAM, SSD, and HDD.
    But I cannot upgrade to Windows 11 because of a protection circuit that has only existed since the 8th generation.
    Could we install Linux + Mint or Ubuntu on such a computer?

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    1. bel
       

      Hello

      In reality, the famous circuit installs 11 without using it; we saw that here on the forum. It's a collection of hardware differences that increasingly differentiate older and recent computers.

      Microsoft is abandoning older operating systems and working for more recent devices.

      They're missing their servers to continue "validating" old software; it's not just a matter of a chip.

      Google is also releasing software that's available to try out.

      Linux to get Lucas's computer running right away? Toutoulinux is still available in all its versions: come discover 4 ways to install Linux on this site, on a simple directory in the XP partition and only 3 files on an old floppy disk if you want. - We still have the problem of accessing social networks. (If the old PC is only used for playing around, go for it)

      *

      Toutou Linux - Ultra lightweight linux distribution

      https://moulinier.net/Disquette.php

      Install without problem, it works, you can be online or visit websites or servers that haven't planned to interface with older hardware-software too different.

      It says somewhere in the following tutorial: the principle is the same for installing Mint or Ubuntu.

      Let's not forget that we start from a live Linux, on a USB drive, or a disk, or that RAM and CPU: it still runs a Linux!

      Here too, parallel evolutions, and we've always done that.

      For PierrotLeFou, it's more "feasible," let's say, 64 bits confirmed to start, going back to 11, 10, Vista, 7; for XP, it has become quite rare, to be honest.

      Install Ubuntu in Dual-boot with Windows

      https://www.malekal.com/installer-ubuntu-dual-boot-windows/#Reparer_Grub_et_le_Dual-boot_Windows_et_Linux

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  4. PierrotLeFou
     

    While waiting for Lucas to provide his configuration, here is part of mine:
    Intel I7 4790K processor, 4 cores, 4GHz base, 4.4GHz max.
    (64-bit processor)
    16GB RAM
    250GB SSD (229GB usable)
    2TB HDD (1.81TB usable)
    It would be a shame to let all this go...
    I don't play video games, mostly just programming (C, C++, Python, Rust, etc.)
    I am currently on Windows 10 with Cygwin64 installed.
    My browsers are Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome (Edge? Don't know it, uninstalled).
    @bel: I knew it was possible to set up a dual boot. The site update is more recent than what I found.
    I have one additional constraint. I am blind and need a screen reader software (TTS), I have JAWS.
    I don't know what I would find for Linux Ubuntu:
    https://murf.ai/resources/text-to-speech-for-linux/
    https://www.antixforum.com/forums/topic/tts-text-to-speech-in-linux-piper/

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    1. brucine Posted messages 24783 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   4 161
       

      Hello,

      We often confuse the genres a bit: the main reason to migrate to Linux on an old machine is that an older Linux distribution will use less disk space and resources, but that is not relevant with XP, which is not very resource-intensive in this regard.

      A number of recent Linux distributions will not be compatible with old machines, and there is no guarantee that the older ones will be updated, particularly regarding security certificates, which are the issue here.

      In any case, we are taking a step back to jump better; due to the lack of this update, browsing will gradually be limited.

      But as the sole navigator, I don't see the point in migrating to Linux.

      IE8 integrated with XP will block us from most sites (including this forum), but not from Mozilla's site, which will allow us to download Firefox ESR 52.9 and solve the problem, as long as its own lack of updates doesn't crash us.

      https://archive.mozilla.org/pub/firefox/releases/52.9.0esr/

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      1. mamiemando Posted messages 33228 Registration date   Status Moderator Last intervention   7 940 > brucine Posted messages 24783 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention  
         

        @brucine StatusMember

        People often confuse the genres a little: the main reason to migrate to Linux on an old machine is that an old Linux distribution will use less disk space and resources, but that's not relevant with XP which itself isn't very demanding in this respect.

        That's true, but a lightweight Linux will have comparable requirements to Windows XP while allowing the use of up-to-date browsers and certificates, and have a reasonably secure system.

        Nowadays, Windows XP requires taking quite a few precautions, as Microsoft emphasizes here.

        A number of recent Linux distributions will not be compatible with old machines, and nothing guarantees that the older ones will be updated, particularly security certificates which are the issue here.

        I suppose you are referring to the CPU (32-bit or 64-bit) (i.e., x86 or amd64). That's indeed the case, and if we're in that situation, we can refer to this link. But you can see that distributions like Debian and Antix support these old CPUs.

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