- A Windows-To-Linux migration tool has been revealed
- It’s still under development but looks very promising and provides a trouble -free way of switching to Linux
- Only a Distro is supported but there is the possibility of more options in the future
Those whose PC don’t support Windows 11 – or people who just don’t like Microsoft’s latest OS and don’t want to leave Windows 10 for it – at some point at some point could have another option in terms of a way to switch to Linux instead.
Neowin picked up a project that is a Windows -To -Linux migration tool that allows you to switch over all your files and settings -as well as installed apps -from Windows 10 to Linux.
Now there are a few warnings for this concept and I will lead with the most notable, namely that this is not a finished product yet. The software is still under development in an “early” form and all we can see of it now is a demo on YouTube.
The tool, called Operese, is composed by ‘Technoporg’, an engineering student at the University of Waterloo (in Canada) and the tool has been under development for some time.
Another significant catch is that it only allows Windows 10 users to switch to a particular Linux Distro, Kubuntu (which is based on the popular Ubuntu, so it’s far from a bad choice -and I’ll be back to this soon).
Otherwise, you can see how the process works in the ‘Program Demo’ section of YouTube clip below. The app takes care of the entire migration, extracts the relevant data from Windows 10, then installs Kubuntu and applies the right settings again, your files and so on (achieve this using some smart trickery with drive partitions).
Look at
Analysis: On -site upgrade to Linux
Essentially, Operesis is an on -site upgrade, the same as you might appear to switch to Windows 11, except in this case, you go from Windows 10 to Linux. It’s a very smart idea in that regard for those who are intimidated by the idea of migrating to Linux – you can do it right from your existing Windows 10 -PC, without anything, just sit back and let the tool do all the hard work.
I’m not sure how the transfer of apps will be relieved and it can of course be difficult where software is not available on Linux (or not working on the platform). In fact, the program migration aspect remains unfinished in Operese at this time, as the developer tells us in the YouTube clip, so this is still pretty up in the air.
Another question is that given that we are told that it is still relatively early in the development, will this app be ready for Windows 10’s end? Technoporg says it will be full steam in front that is working on Operesis until October, suggesting that Dev is trying to hit that deadline when support for Windows 10 ceases. He may need help for that purpose and talks about making the code open source too (not a bad thing about security, either).
Although this deadline is missing out on, remember that Windows 10 users can get an extra year of support just by syncing PC settings via the Windows Backup app (not a high price to pay in my opinion). The app could still be very useful, even as a late arrival as the penetrating space. And while this project is not realized, it shows that this kind of streamlined Linux migration is perfectly possible – and that it may emerge in some form, hopefully before rather than later.
For those who are griming that there is only one choice of distro, Technoporg observes that Kubuntu was chosen for some good reasons. Its stability, third-party driver support and KDE Plasma Desktop environment get those who are used to Windows Desktop feel something at home. Ubuntu also offers a fantastic set of tools for automated installations, apparently, making this project nicely.
All that said the developer indicates that supporting some of the other best Linux-Distros is a possible long-term goal and that “based on the overwhelming community-feedback, I will do the internal [of Operese] More distro -magnoic “. Meaning of other options except Kubuntu – hopefully alternatives suitable for Windows users – could be in the cards in the end.
