I have a Acer Chromebook Spin 11 R751TN-C0CG and I want to Dual Boot the existing Chrome OS with Windows 10, Can anyone guide me the steps to install Windows 10 successfully - Acer Chromebook Spin 15 CP315-1H-P1K8.
In late 2018 I made a video about how to install Windows 10 on a Chromebook. The video was popular, but it missed several things and caused a fair amount of confusion. I made follow up videos that ended up leading people on a wild goose chase. I want to apologize for that so I created this new tutorial. It is more in-depth and, hopefully, easier to follow along with. The new video shows, again, hopefully, all of the steps to make this process as easy as possible.
Acer Chromebook 15 (CB315) BLUE CR50: Acer Chromebook Spin 15 (CP315) BRUCE CR50: Acer Chromebook Spin 11 (R751T) ELECTRO CR50: Acer Chromebook 514 EPAULETTE CR50: Acer Chromebook Spin 11 CP311 LAVA CR50: Dell Chromebook 11 5190 NASHER CR50: Dell Chromebook 11 5190 2-in-1 NASHER360 CR50: Lenovo Thinkpad 11e/Yoga 11e (G4) PYRO CR50. Installing Windows 10 on a Chromebook is difficult, and the end result may not be great. For starters, manufacturers select specific components that complement Google’s lightweight, web-centric OS.
With all that being said, let’s jump into this.
Timestamps
Step 1.
Watch this video in its entirety.
I cannot stress this enough. Please watch the video all the way through before starting for yourself. Also, read the description. This is equally as important. If you get stuck half way through because you didn’t read the description, that’s on you.
Step 2.
Make sure your Chromebook is compatible
Look up the processor that your Chromebook has. Flip your Chromebook over and look at the sticker on the bottom. The sticker should tell you the exact model of Chromebook you have. Use that information to search on Google to see what processor your Chromebook has.
In order for this to work, you MUST have an Intel processor. If you don’t have an Intel processor, this tutorial will not work and is NOT for you.
Once you have determined that you have an Intel processor, make sure it is compatible with this process:
Go to https://coolstar.org/chromebook/windows-install.html
Select your Chromebook Manufacturer
Click Next
Select your Chromebook’s CPU*
Click Next
Select your Chromebook
Click Next
*If your Chromebook processor is NOT listed, then STOP. This will not work with your Chromebook.
Another way to see if your device is supported is to take a look at this link on MrChromebox’s website: https://mrchromebox.tech/#devices
Also, you need to make sure that you have at LEAST 32GB of hard drive space on your Chromebook. This is the minimum requirement per Microsoft. If you have less than that, you most likely won’t be able to install any of the updates when/if you get Windows 10 installed. Again, you need AT LEAST 32GB of hard drive space to install Windows 10.
Step 3.
Gather your supplies
Chromebook with supported Intel processor
Charging Brick
Internet Access
USB Mouse – (Affiliate Link)
USB Keyboard – (Affiliate Link)
USB with Windows on it – (Affiliate Link)
Empty USB to backup firmware – (Affiliate Link)
Step 4.
Create your Windows bootable USB
Insert an 8+GB USB drive into your computer**
Go to https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
Under “Create Windows 10 installation media”, click “Download tool now”
Open the “MediaCreationTool****.exe” file that you just downloaded
Read the license terms and click the “Accept” button
Select “Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC”
Click Next
Make sure that the Language is your language.
Make sure the Edition is Windows 10
Make sure the Architecture is 64-bit (x64)
Click Next
Select “USB flash drive”
Click Next
On the “Select a USB flash drive” screen, select your 8+GB USB drive
Click Next
This process will take several minutes
Once the process is complete, click “Finish” and remove your USB drive
**This process will remove EVERYTHING from your USB drive
Step 5.
Put your Chromebook into Developer mode
This will remove EVERYTHING from your Chromebook
Power on your Chromebook and immediately start tapping CTRL+D
Press Enter to put your Chromebook into Developer mode
This process will take several minutes to complete. Mine took nearly 20 minutes
When it completes, your Chromebook will reboot automatically
Go through the setup process enough to connect to the internet
You don’t need to sign in. You can “Browse as Guest”
Start Converting Your Chromebook
Open Chrome and then press Ctrl + Alt + T to open a terminal screen
Type: shell
If you get a message saying that “shell isn’t a recognized command” then you aren’t in developer mode. Go back to step 5
If you don’t get an error, then proceed by typing the following:
cd ~; curl -L -O https://coolstar.org/chromebook/setup-firmware.sh && sudo bash setup-firmware.sh
Please note that it is a ~ NOT a –
If you get the error message, “Firmware download checksum failed; Download corrupted, cannot flash.” then use the Alternate Method below
YOU DO NOT NEED TO INSTALL CURL. IT IS ALREADY INSTALLED.
You should get a screen that says “ChromeOS Firmware Utility Script” at the top
Press 1 to Install/Update Full ROM Firmware
Read the Standard disclaimer. If you wish to proceed, press Y and Enter
Read the next disclaimer. If you wish to proceed, press Y and Enter
When you get to the “Create a backup copy of your stock firmware” press Y
Insert your second/empty USB drive and then press Enter
Press the number that corresponds to your empty USB drive and press Enter
When the backup is complete, it will tell you to remove the USB drive and press Enter. Do that
The script will now download and install the Full ROM Firmware
When you see “Full ROM firmware successfully installed/updated” you can press Enter
You should be back at the “ChromeOS Firmware Utility Script” page
YOU DO NOT NEED TO INSTALL CURL. IT IS ALREADY INSTALLED.
If you use this script, you’ll still want to “Install/Update Full ROM Firmware”. This should be option 3 instead of option 1.
Installing Windows
At this point, 1 of 2 things will happen. Either the Windows 10 installer will start or you’ll get a screen with a lot of text on it that has a cursor blinking at you from the bottom.
If the Windows installer starts automatically, go to step 5a.
If the blinking cursor screen comes up, go to step 5b.
Step 5a
Installing Windows Normally
Select Your language, time, and keyboard settings and click Next
Click “Install Now”
Enter your Windows 10 Activation Key or click “I don’t have a product key” if you don’t have a product key
Select the version of Windows you would like to install
Click Next
Read and accept the terms
Click Next
Select “Custom: Install Windows only (advanced)”
Delete each of the partitions listed on your storage drive
Click Next
It will think for a while and then take you to a screen to select your region
Select your region and click Yes
Select the appropriate keyboard layout and click Yes
Either add an additional keyboard layout or click Skip
Select your wireless network and connect to it
Click Next
Windows will download any necessary updates at this point
On the next screen, you’ll probably want to select “Set up for personal use”
Click Next
Next you’ll create a user account. You can either sign in with a Microsoft account or with an offline account. I use offline accounts, but the choice is yours.
After your account is setup, you’ll be asked a series of questions to personalize your Windows 10 experience. Go through each of those steps and make the selections that best suit your needs.
Acer Chromebook Spin 11 Troubleshooting
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Post Continues Here: The installer will go through the process of setting up Windows and you should land on the Windows 10 desktop. At this point, you can remove the Windows 10 USB drive from your Chromebook.
Write Protect Screw Issue
Windows media player 11 free download softonic. Your Chromebook may or may not have a write-protect screw. My Acer C720 had one, but I’ve received multiple comments from people saying that their Chromebook didn’t have one. You’re going to have to Google whether or not yours has one.
Step 5b
Installing Windows from the blinking cursor
If you get this screen, you’ll need to reboot your Chromebook and start tapping the ESC key to get into the BIOS screen.
Select “Boot Maintenance Manager”
Select “Boot From File”
Select the USB drive from the list
Select efi
Select boot
Select bootx64.efi
Your Chromebook should then boot from the USB device and you can begin in the install process by going to Step 5a.
Step 6
Installing Drivers
Next, you’ll want to go back to the coolstar.org website to download the necessary drivers for your Chromebook.
Go to https://coolstar.org/chromebook/windows-install.html
Select your Chromebook Manufacturer
Click Next
Select your Chromebook’s CPU*
Click Next
Select your Chromebook
Click Next
On this page, you should see a list of devices that have drivers available for your Chromebook. Download the .zip files and/or .exe files. Extract and/or run the files as necessary. After you’ve installed all the drivers for your Chromebook, be sure to reboot so that they can be correctly loaded into memory.
That’s it. Windows 10 should be installed and working appropriately at this.
Going Back To Stock
If you want to go back to stock, here’s a video about that: