{"id":370,"date":"2015-10-27T14:02:21","date_gmt":"2015-10-27T14:02:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.the-internet-guy.com\/?p=370"},"modified":"2015-10-27T14:02:21","modified_gmt":"2015-10-27T14:02:21","slug":"how-to-turn-an-old-laptop-into-a-chromebook","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.the-internet-guy.com\/?p=370","title":{"rendered":"How to turn an old laptop into a Chromebook"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nAre you interested in the idea of a Chromebook but unwilling to take the plunge? With ChromeReady, you can test out the OS on an old system to see what all the fuss is about. It\u2019s a great tool for anyone who\u2019s thinking about purchasing a Chromebook but wants to take it for a test drive ahead of time. However, it\u2019s also a rather interesting diversion for the user who\u2019s simply curious about the world beyond Mac OS X and Windows 10. The process is simpler than installing something like Linux, but by the end of it you\u2019ll have a system quite different to the one that you started out. Who knows \u2014 you might end up broadening your horizons a little bit. Getting Started First, you\u2019re going to need to gather your materials \u2014 a couple of pieces of hardware and a couple of pieces of software. You should also be aware that if you\u2019re going to install CloudReady rather than just run it from a USB stick, it\u2019s going to completely wipe everything on your computer. CloudReady is a full OS, and that means that it needs a blank canvas to be installed upon. For that reason, it\u2019s best to use an old PC if you\u2019re just looking for a test drive, to ensure that you don\u2019t love important content on your primary system. As of the time of writing, dual booting is not supported. You can only run the CloudReady version of ChromeOS alongside another operating system by installing each on entirely separate hard drives and choosing which to boot to through the system UEFI\/BIOS. In theory, you might be able to install to a virtual drive from within another OS, but we\u2019ve yet to try that option. Related:\u00a0Google\u2019s OnHub router is actually a Chromebook in disguise Once you\u2019ve considered the dangers of the process, grab an 8GB or 16GB memory stick and head to the CloudReady website.\u00a0 There, you\u2019ll be able to download the correct install package for the type of system and OS that you\u2019re running at the moment \u2014 make sure you make note of where the downloaded .bin or .bin.zip file lands on your hard drive. Next, download Google\u2019s Chrome recovery tool from the Chrome Web Store. Once it\u2019s downloaded, launch it directly from the same page to ensure it installed correctly, and you have everything that you\u2019ll need to create the CloudReady installer for your system. Creating an Installer From the Chrome Recovery App, use the cog icon in the top right corner to access the settings menu and select Use local image. Navigate to the location of the package we downloaded from the CloudReady site earlier and select that file. The app should ask you if you\u2019re ready to clear the contents of your USB stick, if you haven\u2019t done so already (it most format the disk, and that means deleting everything on it). With that done, it should be ready to start creating your recovery image, leaving you with an installer that you can use to run CloudReady. One formatted and installed with Chrome OS the disk won\u2019t be able to hold additional data compatible with Windows or OS X until it\u2019s formatted once more, so we recommend using a drive that you don\u2019t need for other purposes. However, to use that installer, you\u2019re going to need to enable USB Boot on your computer. The method will change depending on your system. On older systems, you should be able to select the USB drive as a boot drive easily through the UEFI\/BIOS. Newer systems with Secure Boot enabled may require that you turn the feature off. Systems that don\u2019t let the user remove Secure Boot won\u2019t be able to use CloudReady. Once that\u2019s done, make sure your flash drive is inserted into an appropriate port and boot the installer from USB. You\u2019ll now be able to use CloudReady from your USB stick, or alternatively begin the installation process if you want to make things more permanent. This will wipe all data currently on your computer, so think carefully about whether or not you really want to do so before taking the plunge. The next steps are relatively straightforward \u2014 just follow the wizard. But it\u2019s well worth keeping a close eye on all stages of the install process so you know exactly what you\u2019re doing to your system. Once you\u2019re done, you\u2019ll have the closest thing to a ChromeBook that isn\u2019t actually a ChromeBook. Pitfalls to Avoid For the most part, CloudReady is an easily installed OS \u2014 but whenever you tinker with a device\u2019s operating system, there are things that can go wrong. Make sure that you\u2019re clear on the method of installation ahead of time, and understand that accidents can happen. If you\u2019re wondering whether the old PC hanging around in your closet can run CloudReady, the answer is likely yes.\u00a0Most hardware from the last eight years or so should be supported, but\u00a0you can also refer to Neverware\u2019s list of approved systems here. That said, we tried CloudReady on several systems, and found that it did not install on one (an Asus Transformer Book Flip TP200A). There\u2019s no apparent reason why \u2014 so the fact your system should work doesn\u2019t mean it will. Related:\u00a0Discover your Chromebook\u2019s hidden features with these 5<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Source: How to turn an old laptop into a Chromebook<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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Are you interested in the idea of a Chromebook but unwilling to take the plunge? With ChromeReady, you can test out the OS on an old system to see what all the fuss is about. It\u2019s a great tool for anyone who\u2019s thinking about purchasing a Chromebook but wants to…<\/p>\n

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