3

I just built my first computer and I want to have Windows and Linux installed. My hard drive is on the small side for a dual boot (256 GB SSD), but I plan on upgrading at a later date.

Following the advice of a friend, I installed Windows first on a 200 GB partition. When I installed it, an EFI System Partition was automatically created.

I am currently following the steps of Arch Linux beginner's installation guide. The part I am confused about is:

For UEFI, you should format the EFI System Partition with:
# mkfs.fat -F32 /dev/sdXY 

... 

In case you have a UEFI motherboard, mount the EFI System Partition to /boot.

# mkdir /mnt/boot
# mount /dev/sdXY /mnt/boot

Given that Windows already created the ESP, do I need to format it? And is it even possible to mount it on /boot? Do I need to create a second ESP specifically for Arch?

Thanks.

Improve this question

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
2

Given that Windows already created the ESP, do I need to format it?

No.

And is it even possible to mount it on /boot?

Yes. In fact, systemd will do that automatically.

Do I need to create a second ESP specifically for Arch?

No. There must be exactly one ESP on a disk.

Improve this answer
3
  • Actually, you can have more than one ESP. I have a dual-boot laptop with a separate EFI system partition for each OS and both of them boot just fine.
    – David Z
    Commented Sep 29, 2014 at 18:40
  • @DavidZ: You can, because the EFI boot entries explicitly reference the partition's GUID, but this is not supported in any way.
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Sep 29, 2014 at 18:41
  • Thank you! I thought this was the case but the reassurance is comforting.
    – A.E
    Commented Sep 29, 2014 at 19:39
0

256 gigs on an SSD is more than enough. I dunno if you have a laptop or what. What I did is install Arch and run windows in a virtual machine which is probably healthier for the drive. Make sure to mount with Trim enabled and run it on occasion.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .