Frequently Asked Questions

No, only automatic partitioning is supported, which takes the entire drive.

Image the entire Windows hard drive beforehand using a tool like Clonezilla.

No problem: as soon as you boot up this ISO you're in Linux Mint and can connect to the Internet as well as automatically transform your PC from Windows into Linux Mint permanently. Download it in the library if you have to.

No, the thumb drive the ISO is on, needs to be separate.

No, it replaces the entire hard drive with Linux: it’s the standard automatic partition installation of Linux Mint install.

Either. Setting it as the copy drive is fastest as it only requires copying once. It also leaves you with another backup of your data.

Select a large enough install drive to consolidate the data from all of the Windows drives. Then set C: drive as copy drive so other drives can be found from there. Otherwise, only Users directory will be copied (without following links to other drives).

The exact same username as Windows. Only in lowercase with underscores in place of spaces. Otherwise, you will end up with an additional user. If there are multiple Windows users, any one of them is fine.

Probably not, yet. Many cloud-based apps (e.g., email, software suites) work in browsers. Linux Mint includes LibreOffice which is reliably compatible. Additionally, there is an option to install Steam through Lutris and Protonup-rs: community-maintained installers for games, etc. Just say yes in post-install script. Say no if you prefer purchasing annual support for thousands of Windows programs via CodeWeavers: CrossOver Linux is $74.

Only standard browsers are supported by the post-install script. Not dev, testing or other versions. But the Windows browser profiles are all copied over (because they are user files). Look in /home/username/.AppData/Local/ directory.

It’s moved to the hidden jackjump directory in users home directory (/home/username/.jackjump) along with backups of other things the script affected.

No, this is a completely replace Windows with Linux solution. Other Linux Mint install options besides automatic partitioning option support dual boot, if you want to pursue that avenue on your own afterwards for another computer.

Yes, check your drive’s health in Windows with wmic diskdrive get status. If it doesn't pass with no issues, install a new drive for Linux and select the old drive as the copy drive. Also, run chkdsk /f. See Hard Drive Health.

No, disable BitLocker in Windows (Control Panel > System and Security > BitLocker Drive Encryption) before using the tool or else it won't work.

Yes, image entire Windows drive or back up all data with a service like Backblaze to protect against hardware failures or power outages.

Probably because both install drive and copy drive have Windows.

Probably because you need to format it. Or rename jackjump directory from prior use.

Probably because a directory has NTFS compression enabled in which case it needs to be disabled and contents need to be decompressed in Windows as demonstrated below.

Email a copy of /var/log/syslog file as well as a screenshot of error message to support@jackjump.com before restarting the computer.

No, NTFS compression must be disabled on all directories (and subdirectories) to be copied. If it was ever enabled on any directories, then they must be decompressed in Windows beforehand. For example, to decompress AppData\Local directories for all users open Command Prompt as Administrator and run: compact /u /s:"%LOCALAPPDATA%" /i /q.

Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, Vivaldi, Opera, and Chromium bookmarks, history, cookies and web data are migrated. Run the post-install script to install and configure them automatically. Note: Many browsers use third-party repositories.

If saved in Pictures/Wallpaper it'll definitely work. The post-install script sets the Windows wallpaper for each user it can find it for.

Yes, the post-install script converts .URL desktop icons to Linux-compatible .desktop files.

Yes, run the post-install script first for main user, then for each additional user.

Depends on hardware speed and amount of data to transfer. USB drives copy at ~300 Mbps; internal drives are faster.

Linux Mint 22.3 Cinnamon, a user-friendly, secure desktop supported until 2029.

Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10, and 11 (after disabling BitLocker). Windows XP and Vista are not supported.

You're either in the wrong section or on the wrong ISO. Either way without having to select a copy drive you're just installing Linux Mint. Which will mean having to reimage install disk from backup after.

Launching a game once is necessary to generate directory structure before previously saved games can be copied there from /home/username/.Saved Games.

It may have been hidden (has a . in front of name now). Or, it may have been a duplicate (symlink): go to the source (which may also be hidden).

No, only Windows to Linux Mint is supported.

No.

Post publicly on social media (r/migratepc on Reddit, @migratepc or @jackjumpinc on X, etc.).

No, only the main user (who installed Linux Mint with this tool) can run it.

Ventoy for its ease and reliability.