What is dual booting an operating system? This guide will tell you exactly what it means to dual boot two Operating Systems on a computer.
Dual Booting means to run two operating systems on the same computer. This is especially useful for if you need Windows for work, but want Linux for personal use. When you turn on your computer, you will typically be shown a terminal - like screen that lists your operating systems. Using Linux Mint as an example, the first option you see should be Start Linux Mint Cinnamon 22.X (Whatever version of Mint you have installed). By pressing the Enter key here, you will enter Linux Mint. But say you want to use Windows. In that same terminal list, somewhere in the list you should see something titled Windows Boot Manager (or something similar). to select it, use the arrow key to move down the list, and when it's selected, press Enter. This will start Windows.
To create room for Linux during a dual boot setup, you will need to resize storage for Linux to use (follow the instructions in the install wizard). Because you are resizing storage, it is VERY IMPORTANT TO BACK UP YOUR DATA FIRST! Data can be lost in this stage (depending on how full your storage is), so BACK UP EVERYTHING IMPORTANT! Here's an example. You want to dual boot Windows and Linux Mint. Your total storage is 100GB. you have 35GB in Data on Windows. You decide to give Windows 50GB and Linux 50GB of storage. Your data should be retained since it didn't exceed the storage amount. Now each OS has a storage size of 50GB. but say your total storage is 100GB, you have 65GB of data in Windows, and you want 50GB of storage in both OSes. Well, if you split it 50/50, some data in Windows will be lost. But I also believe that in the Mint setup wizard,it won't let you do 50/50 storage if this was the case, since the slider wouldn't let you go past that, so your only option would be to make the Linux partition smaller in storage. Either way, BACK UP ALL INPORTANT DATA!!!
So dual booting can be a useful option for many people, and done right it makes the best multipurpose computer. Of course, Whenever installing Linux, always follow the directions in the Setup Wizard and on the website, since it will be the most accurate and up to date.