Bual boot Zorin OS andWin 7, or Zorin OS in VMware

davidhk129

Senior Member
I have Win 7 Home Premium 64-bit with only 4 GB Ram.

Questions :
1. If I were to install Zorin OS, I would prefer to use my VMware Player because it would be more straight forward in installing than dual boot.
Comment please.

2. By using VMware, will it affect the performance of the host OS because I will have to allocate X number of Rams to run the Zorin OS ?

3. While reading about installing Zorin OS, a tutorial said one should use FireFox because other browsers might corrupt/damage the iso file while downloading. Really ?
http://zorin-os.com/free7.html

P.S. I never run a Linux before, nor have I run a dual boot before.
So, I don' know what I am talking about.
 
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1. Yes. In a VM you can uninstall w/out any problem with the MBR of windows. The Linux Distro will become the primary in a dual boot setting.

2. Yes. It will be negligible to not noticeable in most case with a 4 core CPU and 8 gigs of RAM. You should be fine allocating 2 gig as I was in mine.

3. Yes...I found out the hard way. Use FF for sure.
 
2. Yes. It will be negligible to not noticeable in most case with a 4 core CPU and 8 gigs of RAM. You should be fine allocating 2 gig as I was in mine.

But my win 7 has only 4 gig of ram, not 8.
I am worried about the effect of win7 performance if I allocate 2 gig to VM.
 
I ran 8.1 in windows 8 with Hyper-V....I gave it 2 cores and 2 gigs or ram....it did really well. You should be fine....just have to test it and see. It's different with different hardware specs on varying systems.
 
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I think you will be fine, linux can fly under a VM even running in a windows host.
As for Zorin, well its not a bad distro to start off with but if you are installing it because it comes with WINE well keep in mind WINE is not perfect so if you are expecting a lot of windows apps to run in it well prepare for disappointment.
Sure Zorin has a rather windows 7 look and feel but one can achieve the same results with other distros.
I think personally a better distro to start off with is Linux mint, sure it may not have WINE by default but it is a good way to learn some of the bases of linux.
 
I ran Zorin for about 30 day on my windows 7 system, a dual boot set up....I hated Zorin.
 
So whats the verdict so far on Zorin davidhk129?

Need any guidance or help?
I am willing to offer it

Regrettably, I gave up. I could not get to first base.

I have Win 7 Home Premium 64-bit SP1.
I have VMware Player for Windows, 32-bit 5.0.2 version ( I used that for Win 8 Preview )

I downloaded the Zorin OS7 64-bit because the tutorial I have uses 64-bit version as illustration.
VMware player install and setup........
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/278957-vmware-player-install-setup-zorin.html
But by step 3, I got this error ;
Image%201.png


Then, I went back and tried to install VMware Player for Linux 64-bit, but after downloading, the system could not open the file. Obviously, that was the wrong move.

I did not try to download the Zorin 32-bit iso because last one ( 64-bit ) took more than 6 hours.
I am not that desperate.
 
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Well it is kind of clear where you went wrong, trying the 64bit version in the 32bit version of VMware.
Any other distros you are willing to try out?
What are you looking for?
Wine out of the box?
Instant codecs?
 
Thank you for trying to help.

I am not in the mood to try another way at the moment, unless the iso will take a lot less than 6 hours.

I had downloaded Vista iso, Windows 7 iso with and without SP1. Never took me that long.
 
Thank you.
I'll reconsider the option.
My concentration right now is to try to buy Win 8 and install it to my Vista laptop.
 
Thank you.
I'll reconsider the option.
My concentration right now is to try to buy Win 8 and install it to my Vista laptop.


Just make sure you hardware will support and run windows 8. My laptop is only 2 years old, came with windows 7 and I attempted to install 8 on it, which it did, but then a few weeks later it started acting up, became buggy. It's a Samsung RV511, with modern hardware...it just didn't like 8, and Samsung isn't releasing any drivers for it either. I got that info directly from an email they sent me.
 
Yeah well Zorin is on its own little thing and has a very small amount of mirrors.

I say linux mint is still worth a shot for you, on average my downloads over there were 15 minutes max.
Of course I dont know your connection speeds and all.
http://www.linuxmint.com/edition.php?id=105

It has plenty of download mirrors, chalk full of them actually.

So far I think I have done it ok.
Question : What's next.........

Image%201.png



I clicked Close........
Image%202.png
 
Just make sure you hardware will support and run windows 8. My laptop is only 2 years old, came with windows 7 and I attempted to install 8 on it, which it did, but then a few weeks later it started acting up, became buggy. It's a Samsung RV511, with modern hardware...it just didn't like 8, and Samsung isn't releasing any drivers for it either. I got that info directly from an email they sent me.

Thank you.
Please read my other thread......
http://windowsforum.com/threads/upgrade-to-win-8-pro.176025/#post-575961
 
Okay maybe i should explain how a linux live image works:

A linux live image is basically an entire OS rendered onto a single disk image and will work as a fully installed OS.
Consider the live image like a trial of the OS, unlike windows which will not run untill you install it linux distros will work like a full image and when you install it everything you see will be installed.
Linux live images will give you an idea how the OS works, and how it will interact with your system.
Essentially its like a virtual install on its own but with no installation.
You can explore the OS to your hearts desire without it sacrificing your windows drive.
A virtual run of the system is even better a there are no burning or using up a USB disk.
Check out the system and explore, then when you are ready install.
If you want an install guide well its all simple, installation is a non complex process:


Linux Mint, Ubuntu, openSUSE all offer an easy to use installer.
 
Thank you.
I'll spend sometime watching your video.

Meanwhile, I need to know how to change the time at bottom right to am/pm format.
I made the change but it is still on 24 hour format.
Image%203.png
 
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