How to use Windows software on Linux – Fastweb.it (Blog)

Several roads punishable: Wine from the virtual machine, here’s all the solutions to be implemented in each case

Compared to a few years ago, the situation has changed radically . If you install a Linux distribution meant having to give up most of the available software for the Windows platform, this is no longer so. On Steam, just as an example, there are more than 1,000 compatible games with the most popular Linux distributions and distribution of web based applications – such as Office Online, just to make a name – further reduced the gap between the two operating platforms.

Nevertheless, for many software available for Windows – see Photoshop – have not yet been developed working versions Linux platform. In the event you need to have to use one of these programs installed on your PC and a Linux distribution, do not worry: thanks to some tricks you can use Windows programs on any Linux distribution.

Wine

Acronym (recursive) of Wine is not an emulator (Wine is not an emulator), Wine is a software developed for Linux (now also available for other operating platforms) in the early 90s with the purpose of using Windows programs without the need to install on your computer the Microsoft operating system.

Project open source , Wine implements within its distribution all the elements necessary for the installation and operation of a normal Windows program. As the name implies, therefore, is not an emulator but a real operating platform that implements software packages Windows inside Linux.

It is the only solution that allows you to use native Windows software without having to install the Microsoft operating system. All this, of course, is not without downsides : Wine, in fact, no perfectly supports any type of Windows software and you might encounter quite a few bugs in the case of programs and videogames very recent. If you decide to use Wine for a software or video games a few years ago, however, you should not encounter major problems: many gamer exploit this solution to play World of Warcraft on Linux, with all results Overall acceptable. To get an idea of ​​what software to use thanks to Wine, you may consult the database applications on the portal of the project.

Virtual Machine

The second way that you can travel to use Windows software on Linux is that of virtual machine .

A virtual machine is a program that replicates in every way the operation of a computer, but on a software level. The operating system that will be installed inside the virtual machine will use a portion of the hard disk, send requests to the processor and access the RAM, but not directly: will the virtualization software to make these requests in its place. Given these characteristics, the virtual machine are used to test software and potentially dangerous, in fact, install operating systems that you rarely use.

With more powerful processors and RAM ever more capacious, the virtual machines are capable of offering performance more and more similar to those of a real PC. Use virtualization software offers several advantages over Wine: since you will use a copy of the “real” Windows, you will not have problems with bugs and other software malfunction. If the computer is not very powerful, though, it might record delays due to work overload, which is why you should use a virtual machine only for productivity software (such as Microsoft Office, for example) and other programs that are not too demanding on the side hardware (a version a bit ‘dated Photoshop, for example, can run perfectly on any virtual machine).

Dual boot

In any case the two previous solutions meet your expectations, there remains only one way to go: the dual boot . It is a technical solution that allows you to install two operating systems on the same hard drive and then choose, at boot the computer (the boot , to be precise), which to use.

With two operating systems installed on your own PC you should not have any more problems at all: every time you have the need to use a Windows software, simply reboot your system and choose to “go” with the system Microsoft operating. With both Linux and Windows do not have more bugs or slowdowns Any program would be to function as a “natural environment”, without forcing whatsoever. For this reason it is the preferred solution by gamer , while using Linux daily, do not want to give up the “comfort” to play on the Windows platform.

The best way to set a dual boot is to install the operating system from Microsoft and, later, to install a Linux distribution “along side” the version of Windows already being used.