this post was submitted on 14 May 2025
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Linux Mint

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Linux Mint is a free Linux-based operating system designed for use on desktop and laptop computers.

Want to see the latest news from the blog? Set the Firefox homepage to:

linuxmint.com/start/

where is a current or past release. Here's an example using release 21.1 'Vera':

https://linuxmint.com/start/vera/

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How can I switch to Linux Mint with a clean install and keep my 300GB of data (with metadata) safe? (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 1 month ago by kingpepe8006@sh.itjust.works to c/linuxmint@lemmy.ml
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cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/37943447

Hi all, I'm planning to do a clean install of Linux Mint on my laptop and completely remove Windows. I have about 300GB of personal data on the system and only one SSD, so everything is currently stored on that single drive.

Here’s what I want to do:

  1. Back up all my data safely, without losing any metadata (timestamps, folder structure, etc.).
  2. Wipe Windows and do a clean install of Linux Mint.
  3. Restore my data with everything intact—timestamps, folder structure, and metadata.
  4. Be able to open or run file types that are only supported by Windows, like certain .exe, .msi, or specific file types.

I don’t have a second internal drive, so I’ll probably use an external hard drive or cloud storage.

What i want to know is:

1.What’s the best way to back up and restore my data safely while preserving all metadata?

2.What tools or methods should I use for backup and restore?

3.How can I access or use files that are only supported by Windows once I’ve switched to Linux? Are there workarounds or compatibility layers?

I’m fairly new to Linux, so beginner-friendly advice would be awesome.

Thanks in advance!

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[–] jrgd@lemm.ee 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

For backing up files, you can plug in an external hard drive or ssd and clone your Users folder either directly from Windows, or open a Linux Live USB and clone the files 1:1. A simple copy in the file manager of either choice would work, but the command line tool rsync -avX <source> <destination> can be used instead to ensure as much of the file metadata is cloned as possible (accounting for differences in filesystems if you are transferring across from NTFS to Ext4 for example).

In Linux Mint, there is a built-in backup utility which will let you create and restore backups from external media or cloud sources. Other backup tools like Timeshift, Snapper, BTRFS Assistant also exist, but may require additional configuration and/or specific configuration on OS installation if you intend to use some of these tools specifically.

If you cannot use different applications for opening various file types and need a Windows-only software, the WINE translation layer does exist for general-purpose software, though it isn't guaranteed to work with everything. Proton also exists for playing most Windows games on Steam.