At long last! It is now possible to dual boot two of the most popular desktop operating systems around on Chromebooks. Windows 11 and Chrome OS can now exist in parallel on these devices.
At least, on select devices.
At the moment, only three models support dual booting these two distinctly unique operating platforms. And they are all powered by AMD Ryzen 3000 series CPUs. Even then, certain Windows 11 features remain unavailable on these machines.
Why is this significant, you ask? More so, when many of the best Chromebooks are already available as Windows laptops? It all comes down to purchasing one device instead of two.
This is why this project from a developer who has managed to dual boot Windows 11 and Chrome OS onto a few laptops holds significance. The deal also holds true for Windows 10, in case you want to stick with the older OS.
The three models currently capable of running both operating systems are the HP Chromebook 14b, HP Chromebook Pro 645 Enterprise, and Lenovo Yoga C13. The ASUS Chromebook Flip CM5 can also be supported with a little extra effort.
The key factor here is that the device requires an SSD to boot. And many Chromebooks, owing to their budget nature, have eMMC drives. This particular storage format can be read/written to from Windows, but UEFI is not able to boot from it yet.
As for the Windows 11 features that work without a hitch, there are plenty.
The operating system boots, NVMe SSDs are bootable and functional, keyboards and keyboard backlight functions, trackpads too, touchscreen, graphics acceleration, HDMI and USB-C video output work well, as does brightness control and sleep/wake and power management.
Audio territory is well covered too, with support for speakers, headphones, and microphones. Webcams are accounted for, too. WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity is a go, as are USB-A and USB-C ports to go with SD card slots.
The only thing major thing missing is the ability to use a fingerprint reader to sign in to Windows Hello on one of these supported Chromebooks.
Do note that while the ability to dual boot Windows 11 with Chrome OS is there on these machines, this functionality is not officially supported. And likely will not be for the foreseeable future unless the involved companies have a change of heart.
Still, if you want to dive in, you can follow this how-to guide to get started.
