- Sep 7, 2010
- 94
- 2
- 18,545
Apparently, my question is strange enough that there aren't any similar ones that don't involve a Windows/Ubuntu dual boot.
Incidentally, I wouldn't mind running linux on its own drive, but my question is not about that. I have several old laptops that run some kind of dual boot, I know how they work.
No, my question is: what is the best way to run, out of the same computer, two separate Cdrives, each with its own independent windows 10. One for work, one for Gaming.
As you can likely see from my signature, I have a fairly good windows workstation and I am in the market for a more modern Graphic card.
I would like to start gaming again though, and "Gaming" for me means Auto racing simulators and Flight Simulators. I have the racing seat, the manual shifter, 4 different wheels and some old Flight sim gear as well.
Here is the issue: My work windows install is geared toward working with a number of clients. For that reason I have to have Gdrive, MS Onedrive, Adobe Cloud, Dropbox and a plethora of other programs, as well as all sort of monitoring software, etc. etc. This means not only a bunch of processes running in the background, but also means notices from a half dozen services, interruptions, calls, etc.
Well, back when I was more involved in Racing and Flying Simulation I used a separate Windows profile I could setup differently from my working profile. It wasn't ideal but it was better than nothing.
This time I happen to have at least 3 SATA3 SSD slots that are not being used plus a PCI3 SSD slot that's empty.
It occurred to me that running a separate installation of windows just for gaming would make a heck of a lot more sense. In fact, I calculated I could run the OS and most of my games out of a 250GB SSD I have laying around and then use another 250GB SSD as a documents/files repository, cutting out even my 4 (3 internal, one external) document and backup drives.
In fact, if it works, I'll be happy to go out and buy a PCIe SSD just like the one my machine is running right now, put it in the other slot and run my Gaming Windows 10 out of that, using one of the 250GB SATA SSD out of the SATA port for anything that may not fit in the Cdrive, if that's even a concern. For instance, Microsoft Flight Sim is supposed to be huge. If my C drive is a bit tight, I could use one of my extra SSD just for it.
In Driving Sims Circuits can take a lot of physical space, again, I can put those in a separate SSD.
That way, my work computer is pretty much left out of the gaming business, my games should run pretty fast and the only thing they will really share will be a bunch of 4TB storage HD I won't be using while I am gaming.
1) Is there something that can help me make a choice between startup disks either before I shut off (like the macOs does) or that gives me a chance to choose the start up drive as soon as the computer restarts, defaults to my main Installation, but lets me choose another disk to start with without it being a hassle?
In other words, is there a way for me to say "Next restart, use the OS from this HD" or something similar enough?
2) Do I have to buy another copy of Windows 10? I would be only using one installation at a time on the same hardware. The ID should be the same. Anyway, do I have to buy a new Windows 10 or in my case one copy could be enough? I don't care either way, but if I can save $200 for Windows pro I'd be happier, or maybe I can run Windows Home for Gaming.
What say you? Can anyone help?
Incidentally, I wouldn't mind running linux on its own drive, but my question is not about that. I have several old laptops that run some kind of dual boot, I know how they work.
No, my question is: what is the best way to run, out of the same computer, two separate Cdrives, each with its own independent windows 10. One for work, one for Gaming.
As you can likely see from my signature, I have a fairly good windows workstation and I am in the market for a more modern Graphic card.
I would like to start gaming again though, and "Gaming" for me means Auto racing simulators and Flight Simulators. I have the racing seat, the manual shifter, 4 different wheels and some old Flight sim gear as well.
Here is the issue: My work windows install is geared toward working with a number of clients. For that reason I have to have Gdrive, MS Onedrive, Adobe Cloud, Dropbox and a plethora of other programs, as well as all sort of monitoring software, etc. etc. This means not only a bunch of processes running in the background, but also means notices from a half dozen services, interruptions, calls, etc.
Well, back when I was more involved in Racing and Flying Simulation I used a separate Windows profile I could setup differently from my working profile. It wasn't ideal but it was better than nothing.
This time I happen to have at least 3 SATA3 SSD slots that are not being used plus a PCI3 SSD slot that's empty.
It occurred to me that running a separate installation of windows just for gaming would make a heck of a lot more sense. In fact, I calculated I could run the OS and most of my games out of a 250GB SSD I have laying around and then use another 250GB SSD as a documents/files repository, cutting out even my 4 (3 internal, one external) document and backup drives.
In fact, if it works, I'll be happy to go out and buy a PCIe SSD just like the one my machine is running right now, put it in the other slot and run my Gaming Windows 10 out of that, using one of the 250GB SATA SSD out of the SATA port for anything that may not fit in the Cdrive, if that's even a concern. For instance, Microsoft Flight Sim is supposed to be huge. If my C drive is a bit tight, I could use one of my extra SSD just for it.
In Driving Sims Circuits can take a lot of physical space, again, I can put those in a separate SSD.
That way, my work computer is pretty much left out of the gaming business, my games should run pretty fast and the only thing they will really share will be a bunch of 4TB storage HD I won't be using while I am gaming.
1) Is there something that can help me make a choice between startup disks either before I shut off (like the macOs does) or that gives me a chance to choose the start up drive as soon as the computer restarts, defaults to my main Installation, but lets me choose another disk to start with without it being a hassle?
In other words, is there a way for me to say "Next restart, use the OS from this HD" or something similar enough?
2) Do I have to buy another copy of Windows 10? I would be only using one installation at a time on the same hardware. The ID should be the same. Anyway, do I have to buy a new Windows 10 or in my case one copy could be enough? I don't care either way, but if I can save $200 for Windows pro I'd be happier, or maybe I can run Windows Home for Gaming.
What say you? Can anyone help?
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram