Quick Answer: You can install Linux without USB by using a tool that copies the ISO onto a small FAT32 partition on your internal disk, shrinks or uses free space beside Windows, and adds a one-time startup entry. The Linux installer then runs from that partition. hop, a free Windows app from the hop project on GitHub, automates these steps for Ubuntu-based systems, elementary OS, Linux Mint, and Pop!_OS.
The traditional way to dual boot is to flash an ISO onto a USB stick, reboot, and work through the installer. That works, but it adds a stick to find, a flash to verify, and a reboot into the wrong device when the BIOS boot order is wrong. Most guides treat that friction as unavoidable. It isn't. The USB stick is just a FAT32 partition with the ISO's files on it, and your internal disk can hold the same thing. Here's how that works and where the trade-offs sit.
What a USB Installer Actually Is
A bootable USB installer is a FAT32 volume containing the ISO's contents: boot loaders, the kernel, and the installer's filesystem image. When you pick the stick in your firmware's boot menu, UEFI reads the EFI System Partition on it and hands control to the Linux boot loader.
The same layout works on an internal disk. The disk's partition table determines where that partition goes. On a UEFI PC with a GPT (GUID Partition Table) disk, which covers nearly every Windows PC sold in the last several years, you can add a small FAT32 partition after C: and point a boot entry at it. That's the entire trick.
Here's the layout hop produces, based on its README:
Before [ EFI ][ C: Windows ][ Recovery ]
After [ EFI ][ C: Windows ][ Installer ][ Linux ][ Recovery ]
Your Windows partition shrinks or stays put, a small installer partition holds the ISO, and the Linux partition sits in the free space the installer will fill.
The Steps, in Order
Most of the value in a tool like this is in the order of operations. hop follows five steps:
- Download and verify the ISO. It fetches the image from the project's own server and checks the published checksum where one exists. You can also point it at an ISO you've already downloaded.
- Make room after C:. It uses unallocated space first and shrinks C: only if it has to.
- Copy the ISO's files onto the FAT32 installer partition and check each file.
- Add a one-time startup entry using the ISO's signed boot loader. It applies to the next restart only.
- Restart into the Linux installer, which installs into the space hop created.
The sequence matters because hop doesn't change anything on disk until its pre-checks pass. Ordering checks before writes is what keeps a failed attempt from leaving you with a half-partitioned drive.
Here's Where Most Guides Go Wrong
Most walkthroughs tell you to shrink C: in Windows Disk Management first, then boot a USB stick. That's the lazy advice, and it skips the part that causes the most trouble. Shrinking is the step with the highest risk, not the installer. Windows can only shrink a volume around its immovable files, so the amount you can reclaim depends on where the page file, hibernation file, and system files sit. People often shrink to a size they picked from a guide, find Windows won't go that small, and end up fighting the partition tool.
The better order is to check your free space and disk layout first, then shrink only the amount you need. Recovery partitions and a system EFI partition sit in the way on many machines, which is why the layout diagram above includes them.
There's a second counter-intuitive point. A USB stick is also your rescue disk. If the on-disk installer fails halfway, a USB stick lets you boot an independent Linux environment and repair the boot loader. Without one, you rely on the Windows recovery environment or a second machine. The on-disk approach removes a dependency, but it doesn't remove the need for a fallback.
Requirements and Supported Systems
Before you start, check that your machine matches what the tool supports. For hop, that means:
- Windows 10 version 1803 or newer, or Windows 11
- A UEFI PC with a GPT disk
- Administrator access (Windows will prompt for it)
- A supported distribution
Supported systems are elementary OS, Ubuntu and its flavours (Budgie, Xubuntu, Lubuntu, Cinnamon, Unity, Edubuntu, and Studio), Linux Mint, and Pop!_OS. Other Ubuntu-based ISOs should work too, but they aren't tested in the same way. Kubuntu, Fedora, and Arch aren't supported. That's a deliberate scope choice, not a limitation hidden in the fine print: each distribution's installer and boot layout differs, and a tool that claims to support everything usually fails on the edge cases.
Check your firmware mode before anything else. If your PC boots in legacy BIOS mode, or the disk uses MBR, this approach won't apply, and you'll need a different method. Windows' System Information panel shows the BIOS mode, and the disk properties dialog in Disk Management shows the partition style.
Comparison: USB Installer vs. On-Disk Installer
| Method | Needs a USB stick | Partitioning | Rollback path |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard USB installer | Yes, 8 GB or larger | Manual, inside the Linux installer | Reformat the stick; boot Windows normally |
| hop (on-disk installer) | No | Automated: free space first, shrink C: only if needed | Undo returns the space to Windows |
| Manual partitioning in Disk Management | No, but you need an ISO on a separate drive | Fully manual, error-prone | Delete partitions and extend C: yourself |
The table makes the trade-off visible. hop removes the stick and automates partitioning, but it isn't a replacement for a rescue medium. If you're working on a machine you can't afford to lose, keep a USB recovery stick for Linux or a Windows recovery drive on hand.
When It Goes Wrong
Failures tend to cluster in three places. First, the installer partition can fail to mount or boot if the firmware is set to Secure Boot with an unsigned boot loader. hop uses the ISO's signed boot loader for this reason, but a misconfigured Secure Boot policy still blocks it.
Second, BitLocker. If device encryption is active, Windows may ask for your recovery key after partition changes. Make sure you have that key saved somewhere other than the disk before you start.
Third, the restart. If the PC boots straight back into Windows, the one-time entry didn't apply. hop handles this case: reopening the app explains why and can restart into the BIOS so you can select the Linux entry manually. That's useful because the failure is usually a boot-order issue rather than a broken install.
Back up anything important before you touch the partition table. That advice is boring, and it's still the most useful sentence in this article.
Undo, Uninstall, and Cleaning Up
Removing the Linux install is where many dual-boot setups become a mess. Partitions get left behind, the boot menu keeps listing a dead entry, and the space never returns to C:. hop's undo reverses its own changes: the space returns to Windows, and the app can also remove another Linux already on the drive.
Two cautions apply. Undo only reverses changes hop made, so if you installed Linux manually or with another tool, check the partition layout afterward. And removing a Linux install doesn't reclaim the space automatically in every case; confirm C: has grown in Disk Management before you assume the cleanup worked.
Most people stop here, but the real test comes a few weeks later, when you update Windows and confirm the boot menu still shows both systems.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an on-disk installer for Linux?
An on-disk installer is a FAT32 partition on your internal drive that holds the Linux ISO's files and boot loader. It replaces a USB stick, so the Linux installer can start from your own disk. It's a one-time boot entry, so Windows still starts normally on later restarts.
How do I install Linux without USB on Windows?
Use a tool that creates the installer partition, makes room after C:, and adds a one-time startup entry. hop does this from a single Windows app: pick a supported system, choose the space, and click Install. You need Windows 10 1803 or newer, or Windows 11, on a UEFI PC with a GPT disk.
Why does my PC boot back into Windows after installing?
The one-time startup entry may not have applied, or your firmware may be prioritising the Windows boot manager. Reopen the tool, which can explain the cause and restart into the BIOS. Choose the Linux entry from the boot menu, then check the boot order in firmware settings.
Can I install Linux next to Windows without a USB drive on any PC?
No. The approach needs a UEFI PC with a GPT disk. Legacy BIOS PCs, or disks using MBR, need a different method. Check your firmware mode and partition style in Windows before you start, so you don't begin a process that can't finish.
Start With One Small Test This Week
The most useful takeaway is simple: install Linux without USB only after you've checked your firmware mode, partition style, and free space, and kept a recovery path. Those three checks catch most failures before anything on disk changes. If you want to try it, download hop from its Releases page, run the pre-checks, and read the results before clicking Install. Pass this to anyone wrestling with a dual-boot setup that's been stuck on a USB stick for too long.