If you’re like most people, your computer is probably running Windows 7 or 8.1. But if you’re like some people, you might want to go back to Windows XP or Vista. Here’s how to do it. First, make sure that your computer is up-to-date: Go to the Windows Update website and check for updates. If there are any available, install them. Next, make a backup of your computer: Copy all the important files onto a USB drive or another storage device. You can also create a restore point before you start reinstalling Windows. This will help you if something goes wrong during the process. Next, download and install the appropriate version of Windows XP (or Vista or 7), depending on which version of Microsoft Windows your computer is currently running: If your computer is running Windows 7 or 8: Download the 64-bit edition of XP (or Vista) from Microsoft’s website . If your computer is running 32-bit versions of XP (or Vista): Download the 32-bit edition of XP (or Vista). If your computer is running 64-bit versions of XP (or Vista): Download the 64-bit edition of XP (or Vista). After downloading and installing WindowsXP, restart your computer so that it can take advantage of all the new features in the operating system. If you want to use Ubuntu instead: First, make sure that Ubuntu 14.04 LTS or later is installed on your computer . Next, download and install Ubuntu Desktop 14.04 LTS from Canonical’s website . After downloading and installing Ubuntu Desktop 14.04 LTS , restart your computer so that it can take advantage of all the new features in the operating system ..


This guest article was written by Ryan Dozier from the Doztech tech blog.

With a small piece of software called iReboot we can skip the above step all together and instantly reboot into the operating system we want right from Windows. Their description says:

“Instead of pressing restart, waiting for Windows to shut down, waiting for your BIOS to post, then selecting the operating system you want to boot into (within the bootloader time-limit!); you just select that entry from iReboot and let it do the rest!”

Don’t worry about iReboot reconfiguring  your bootloader or any dual boot configuration you have. iReboot will only boot the selected operating system once and go back to your default settings.

Using iReboot

iReboot is quick and easy to install. Just download it, link below, run through the setup and select the default configuration. iReboot will automatically figure out what operating systems you have installed and appear in the taskbar. Go over to the taskbar and right click on the iReboot icon and select which operating system you want to reboot into.

This method will add a check mark on the operating system you want to boot into.

On your next reboot the system will automatically load your choice and skip the Windows Boot Manager. If you want to reboot automatically just select “Reboot on Selection” in the iReboot menu.

 

To be even more productive, you can install iReboot into each Windows operating system to quickly access the others with a few simple clicks.

 

iReboot does not work in Linux so you will have to reboot manually.

Then wait for the Windows Boot Manager to load and select your operating system.

 

Conclusion

iReboot works on  Windows XP, Windows Vista,  and Windows 7 as well as 64 bit versions of these operating systems. Unfortunately iReboot is only available for Windows but you can still use its functionality in Windows to quickly boot up your Linux machine. A simple reboot in Linux will take you back to Windows Boot Manager.

Download iReboot from neosmart.net

Editor’s note: We’ve not personally tested this software over at How-To Geek, but Neosmart, the author of the software, generally makes quality stuff. Still, you might want to test it out on a test machine first. If you’ve got any experience with this software, please be sure to let your fellow readers know in the comments.