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I have Windows Desktop which I am using from a very long time. I have been a regular Windows user since I have stepped in the computer world.

I have a plan to install Ubuntu on my desktop and want to remove the the Windows installation entirely. What I mean by this is I want to replace the whole windows 7 OS with the latest version of Ubuntu.

I have never used Linux before in my life at all but have started developing an interest in it.

My exact question is if in case I happen to install Ubuntu on my C: drive will I be able to access all my data on all the other drives as the data available on all other drives is extremely important for me and I cannot afford to loose it on any circumstances.

If not, then what are the steps to accomplish the same and an information if it is critical.

On the other hand I cannot backup the entire data as it happens to be about 1 TB.

Any help in this case is welcomed and appreciated.

Masroor
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Amit Khamkar
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2 Answers2

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First up, you have to back up. What happens if your computer gets stolen, or dropped, or there's a power surge, flood or fire?

Secondly, yes, just erase the primary drive and all others will be untouched.

Joe of Loath
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If the data are stored in a different drive, Ubuntu won't delete them and they'll be accessible from the system once installed. Just be sure you select the right drive and partition during the installation process.

One advice: In GNU/Linux, there's no C: and D: units. When you start the installation it will ask you which device do you want to use. The names follow the scheme /dev/sda, sdb, sdc... etc where a, b and c are different drives, and partitions you may have are for example sda1, sda2, etc. You could try to boot from an installation DVD and see what partitions and drives you have, and which ones contains the windows system and the data you want to keep. Don't worry, the installer won't delete anything without asking you a confirmation so you can safely have a look and install or decide to reboot to windows if you're not sure.

For the rest, there's plenty of guides online for installing Ubuntu, like the official one here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation

animaletdesequia
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