Hi guys, basically as the title says I want to make external SSD drive with “Windows to Go” for the stuff that I really need Windows for unfortunately (proprietary CAD software) but there is no software for making this on Linux that I can find
Edit: typo
Someone already told you to use a vm. They’re right, but if you insist on booting to actual bare metal windows instead, consider devoting a handful of gigabytes to a dual boot setup. It’s really easy to do and will be much more reliable than the way out of service windows to go.
If you have a specific piece of software you need to run I may could help you figure out the vm setup for it. Windows VMs are my solution to running cad packages.
I want to dual boot but not on the same SSD it’s just trouble. Separate disk and efi partition for windows is the way but my device has no more spare connectors inside. That’s why I want to run windows in a external SSD connected via Thunderbolt.
As a longtime user of windows and linux dual booted from the same disk, former user of windows to go and current user of the windows pre installation environment who uses virtualized cad programs and has moved away from bare metal windows in the last two years: It sounds like you could be moving down the wrong path.
Windows to go will absolutely be more trouble than it’s worth. I used it for years before moving to vms and the pe or just dual booting for when I absolutely had to have bare metal (as it turns out on haswell + chips this is almost never). It was a headache then and it’s only gotten worse. If you’re not completely confident that you can be your own tech support without the help of the internet and successfully force device driver installation then I don’t recommend it.
You really don’t need to worry about windows causing problems because it’s installed on the same disk as linux. The bootloader is extremely easy to repair and there are very few windows updates that caused that problem in the past.
If you will not dual boot, give serious consideration and the ol’ college try to kvm virtualization. If you have thunderbolt then the device you’re using absolutely supports the x86 extensions to make kvm work perfectly.
Again, I have done what you’re doing and I think you could be making an error by pursuing usb boot over bare metal dual boot or virtualization.