Warning: Windows 10 Anniversary Update might delete your Linux partitions

Sick penguin

Many people know that I am a Linux proponent. With that said, I am not a stereotypical Microsoft hater. While I regularly use operating systems like Ubuntu, Fedora, and Chrome OS, I also use Windows 10. Truth be told, I actually love the newest Microsoft desktop operating system -- Windows 10 Anniversary Update.

Folks like me that use both Linux and Windows will often setup multiple partitions on a single drive or across multiple drives. This method allows you to easily choose between various operating systems at boot. Unfortunately, there are apparently reports that upgrading to Windows 10 Anniversary Update could delete all Linux partitions in the process. Scary!

Over on Twitter, Alan Pope, Ubuntu Community manager at Canonical Tweeted the following.

Seen multiple reports that the Windows 10 Anniversary Update deletes other partitions (containing Linux installs) without asking. :S

This is hardly confirmation that Microsoft's operating system is deleting partitions, but it should give Linux users reason to pause. If you have important data on those partitions, and you have not yet upgraded to Windows 10 Anniversary Update, you might want to hold off. At the very least, before doing the upgrade, you should backup your Linux installs just to be safe.

While I would normally test this for you, dear BetaNews readers, I am currently traveling without the ability to do so. I will reach out to Microsoft, however, to try to get confirmation that the bug exists (or doesn't). In the mean time, if you have already upgraded to Windows 10 Anniversary Update, and you had Linux partitions at the time, please share your experience in the comments below.

Photo credit: arborelza / Shutterstock

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