VOICE REQUEST
Tell us what’s going on
Describe the problem in your own words. We’ll ask a few follow-up questions so our team has the information they need.
Your microphone is used only during the voice request. Never share passwords, recovery keys, PINs, or payment information. We won’t ask for them.
Choose your operating system.
We handle the rest.
Drop the computer off in Katy. Most standard jobs are ready within two business days, and nothing is erased until you confirm it in person.
Four ways to start.
Pick one, or let the questions below pick for you.
Linux
Made for people who want a fast, private, quiet computer that stays theirs.
Why we recommend it
No licence to buy. No account required to use the computer. No Recall-style screen-history feature. Updates you approve rather than updates that approve themselves. And it keeps a five- or eight-year-old machine genuinely quick, which Windows 11 mostly does not.
The honest limit is software: a short list of programs only exist on Windows. The section below tells you in thirty seconds whether you are on that list.
Windows 11
Made for people who need one specific program, game or device that only runs on Windows.
When this is the right call
Desktop Microsoft Office, Adobe applications, competitive games with anti-cheat, and most industry-specific business software are Windows-only. If your work depends on one of those, staying on Windows is not a compromise, it is the correct answer.
We install it clean, apply updates and drivers, leave Recall disabled and set the privacy options conservatively.
Dual Boot
Made for people with exactly one Windows-only thing they cannot give up.
How it works
Both systems live on the same computer. A short menu appears when you turn it on and you pick one. Day to day you use Linux; the one Windows program is still there when you need it.
It needs free space, a storage layout we can divide safely, encryption handled correctly and a backup first. We check all four before accepting the job.
Help Me Choose
Made for people who would rather answer questions than read a comparison.
What it asks
Ten plain questions about what you actually do on this computer. It recommends one option, explains why in your own terms, and tells you the price. If your answers point at a hardware problem rather than a preference, it says that instead of selling you an install.
The whole decision is one short list.
Almost every switch succeeds or fails on a handful of specific programs. Read the left column. If nothing on it applies to you, Linux is the better computer — and it is what we would put on our own machines.
- You need the installed Microsoft Office apps, not the web versions
- You use Adobe Photoshop, Premiere, Illustrator or Lightroom
- You play competitive games with kernel-level anti-cheatValorant, Fortnite, Destiny 2, Call of Duty and similar. Their anti-cheat blocks Linux outright, so those games simply will not start.
- You run industry software — tax, dental, medical, CAD, point-of-sale
- A specialty device of yours only has Windows drivers or vendor software
- You would rather change nothing at all, and that is a fine reason
Any one of these is enough. It is not a weakness in Linux; those vendors simply never shipped a Linux version.
- Nothing to buy, and nothing to renew
- No vendor account needed just to sign in to your own machine
- No Recall-styleRecall is an optional Windows 11 feature on compatible Copilot+ PCs that can periodically save snapshots of on-screen activity. Microsoft describes it as opt-in and stored locally. Mainstream Linux has no equivalent by default. screen-history feature, and far less telemetry
- Updates happen when you say so, not mid-presentation
- A five- or eight-year-old machine stays genuinely quick
- Browser, email, documents, photos, video and most gaming all work
This is where most people land, and it is the setup we install most often.
The seven systems we install
Each one is a standard, repeatable job, which is what makes a two-business-day target realistic. Open any card for the detail.
Linux Mint
Made for most people leaving Windows. A menu bottom-left, a taskbar, a tray — it does not move your furniture.
More about Mint
Conservative and stable. Printers, media formats and everyday files work without a project. It is the one we hand to someone who wants a computer, not a hobby, and it is what we recommend to a household where more than one person sits down at the machine.
Worth knowing: very new hardware occasionally wants a newer kernel than the stable release ships with. We check yours before installing.
Ubuntu LTSLong Term Support. A release that gets security updates for years rather than months, so the computer does not need reinventing every six months.
Made for people who look things up. If you search a problem, the answer is usually written for Ubuntu.
More about Ubuntu
The safe institutional choice. Most tutorials, vendor instructions and support articles assume it, which makes help easy to find. Long-term-support releases get years of updates. Good for general use and for development.
Worth knowing: the desktop is a bigger visual change from Windows than Mint is.
ChromeOS Flex
Made for an older computer that mainly needs a browser, email and video.
More about ChromeOS Flex
The lightest, simplest option we offer, and the cheapest. Almost nothing to maintain or break. Excellent for a machine Windows 11 has left behind.
Worth knowing: it does not run Windows or Android applications, and only certain models are certified. We check your exact model before anything is erased. If it is a poor fit, Mint is usually the better rescue because it still runs local software.
Bazzite
Made for gaming machines — unless your games are anti-cheat locked.
More about Bazzite
Steam, ProtonValve's compatibility layer. It lets a very large part of the Windows Steam library run on Linux, often with no noticeable difference., graphics drivers and controller support are configured out of the box, with an optional console-style Game Mode as well as a normal desktop.
The deciding question: we check your actual game list first. Many single-player and older multiplayer titles run very well. Several competitive shooters are blocked by their anti-cheat and will not run at all — if one of those is on your list we will say so and recommend Windows or dual boot instead.
Fedora Workstation
Made for developers and very recent hardware.
More about Fedora
Newer kernels and drivers, a clean desktop with very little vendor customization, and excellent developer and container tooling.
Worth knowing: it moves faster than Mint or Ubuntu LTS, so updates arrive more often. Not the right first Linux for someone who wants the computer to change as little as possible.
Windows 11
Made for the one program, game or device that only exists on Windows.
More about Windows 11
The widest commercial software and hardware support of any desktop system, and the most familiar. We install a current supported edition, apply updates and drivers, check activation, leave Recall disabled and turn the privacy settings down.
Worth knowing: a licence is not included in the labor price, though machines that shipped with Windows normally reactivate on their own. Windows 11 also has firm hardware requirements — if your computer does not meet them we will tell you before you drop it off.
Windows + Linux
Made for keeping one Windows-only program without giving up the better daily computer.
What we check first
- Enough free space for a usable second system
- A storage layout that can be divided safely
- BitLockerMicrosoft's drive encryption. It has to be handled correctly before storage is resized, and you may need your recovery key. Most people do not know whether it is on; we check at drop-off. or device encryption resolved, with your recovery key available if needed
- A current backup, or our data service added to the order
If any of those is not met, dual boot goes to compatibility review rather than the standard two-day track. We would rather tell you that up front than halfway through resizing your only copy of everything.
+Software and hardware, in detail — Office, Adobe, games, business software, peripherals
Microsoft Office
The installed desktop apps are Windows-only. The web versions of Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint work fine in a browser on Linux, and LibreOffice or OnlyOffice open and save the same file formats for ordinary documents. Complex macro-heavy Excel work is the usual exception.
Adobe
No supported Linux versions. GIMP, Krita, Inkscape, DaVinci Resolve and Kdenlive are capable, but they are different programs with different workflows. If Adobe is how you earn a living, keep Windows.
Games
A large part of the Steam library runs well through Proton, often with no noticeable difference. The exception is competitive titles with kernel-level anti-cheat, which block Linux outright. We check your specific titles rather than guessing.
Business and industry software
Tax packages, practice-management systems, CAD, point-of-sale, dental and medical software are mostly Windows-only, though some have web versions now. Name yours during intake and we will check it before you commit.
Printers, scanners and peripherals
Common devices generally work on Linux. Vendor utility software, label printers, drawing-tablet driver panels and lab or shop instruments are where support gets thin. List anything unusual during intake.
When something is Windows-only
Four workable answers, in the order they usually go well: use a web version, use a genuine alternative, keep Windows in a dual boot, or run it in a virtual machine. We will not promise a compatibility layer for software you depend on.
Other well-documented distributions such as Debian can be installed as a reviewed custom job, from $169. We do not standardize Arch, Gentoo, Kali as a daily driver, obscure BSD variants, or macOS on non-Apple hardware.
Ten questions. One recommendation, with the reasoning.
Nothing here is submitted and no contact details are requested. Answer what you know, leave the rest, and the recommendation updates as you go. If your answers point at a problem rather than a preference, it will say that instead of selling you an install.
Seven packages, stated up front.
Starting labor for the installation itself, on compatible hardware. Keeping, moving or cloning your files is separate work and is priced separately — the order builder adds it and shows you the combined total before you commit.
Clean Linux Install
A supported distribution installed, updated and driven.
What is included
- Mint, Ubuntu LTS, Fedora Workstation or Bazzite
- Installation onto the storage layout you approved
- Updates, core drivers including graphics and wireless
- Media codecs and common components
- Hardware validation and a first sign-in that works
No operating-system licence cost. Specialized development stacks and servers are quoted separately.
Linux Switch — Ready to Use most popular
The one to pick if you are leaving Windows for the first time.
What is included
- Everything in the clean install
- A recommendation among the supported options, based on your hardware and what you do
- Browser set up, office suite opening your existing documents
- Media support and common everyday applications
- Privacy-conscious configuration
- A short orientation and written usage notes
Windows-only applications are identified before installation, not after.
Clean Windows 11 Install
A fresh supported installation, updated, driven and tested.
What is included
- Current supported edition selected for your hardware
- System updates and core device drivers
- Activation status checked and explained
- Recall left disabled and privacy settings turned down
- Hardware sanity check and post-install testing
A Windows licence is not included in this labor price. Machines that already carry a valid digital licence normally reactivate on their own; if a new one is needed we tell you the cost before installing.
Windows 11 — Ready to Use
The clean install plus the evening of setup you would otherwise do yourself.
What is included
- Everything in the clean Windows install
- Privacy settings reviewed with you, Recall left disabled
- Browser installed and set up, bookmarks imported where available
- A short list of common everyday applications
- Printing, updates and power behaviour configured
- A written note of what was installed and what was left out
ChromeOS Flex Conversion
For a compatible older computer that mainly needs a browser.
What is included
- Compatibility check against the certified-model list before anything is erased
- Installation and updates
- Hardware testing: wireless, audio, camera, trackpad, ports
Does not run Windows or Android applications. If the model is a poor fit we tell you and stop.
Windows + Linux Dual Boot
Both systems, a startup menu, and a storage plan made before anything changes.
What is included
- Storage and partition planning, free-space and encryption review
- Boot configuration and startup menu
- Both systems tested, not just the new one
- A plain explanation of how to pick at startup
Requires a backup first. If you do not have one we add the data service rather than proceeding.
Other Supported OS / Custom Layout
Debian and other documented distributions, or a custom partition layout. Reviewed by a person first.
How this works
- You tell us what you want and why
- We review hardware compatibility, documentation quality and maintainability
- You get a written scope and price before any work starts
- If we cannot support it responsibly we say so instead of taking the job
Custom systems are not part of the two-business-day track.
A clean install erases the drive. If your files have to survive it, that is a second service on top of the price above — from $99 depending on how much data there is. The exact figures are in the next section, and the order builder adds them to your total. Data Transfer, Migration & Backup
These are the same operating-system prices published on the main Circuit Craftworks pricing page. If the computer turns out to need different work, you review that scope and price before it proceeds.
A real difference, stated honestly.
Privacy is the second most common reason people ask us about Linux, after speed. It deserves a truthful answer rather than a scary one.
No Recall-style screen-history feature. No vendor account needed to use your own computer. Far less telemetry, and what there is can usually be turned off. Full-disk encryption on request, and you hold the administrator credentials, not us.
More account and cloud integration by default, and more telemetry. We turn what we can down: Recall left disabled, advertising ID and tailored experiences off, diagnostic data at the minimum the edition allows, a local account where your situation permits, bundled promotional apps removed.
+What Windows Recall actually is, and what we will not claim about either system
Windows Recall
On compatible Copilot+ PCs, Windows 11 includes an optional feature called Recall. When enabled, Recall can periodically save snapshots of activity on the computer so the user can search for things they previously viewed. Microsoft currently describes Recall as opt-in, with snapshots stored and processed locally and protected with Windows security controls. Circuit Craftworks can leave Recall disabled and configure Windows with a more privacy-conscious setup.
Most computers are not Copilot+ PCs and cannot run Recall at all. If yours can, we will tell you, and we leave it off unless you ask for it.
What we will not tell you
That Windows secretly uploads your screenshots to Microsoft for AI training. That is not what Recall is, and we are not going to sell a Linux install on a claim that is not true.
What we will not claim about Linux
That it collects no data or is completely private. Your browser, your applications and the websites you use still collect what they collect, on any operating system.
Installing a system erases the drive.
Which is why this is not small print at the bottom of a checkout page. You make one explicit choice, we confirm it with you again at drop-off — and if your files have to survive, that is a second service with its own price.
Erase the drive
You already have a backup, or the data does not matter. Nothing is copied off first.
What that means
We will still ask you once more in person at drop-off. After that, the data is gone. This is the only option where the price you see for the install is the whole price.
Keep my files
Preserved from this machine, moved from another, or the whole drive cloned. Priced by how much data there is.
Exactly what it costs
These are the canonical Circuit Craftworks data-service prices, not a second set invented for this page. Destination storage is not included — cloning needs a drive to clone onto, and if you do not have one we will quote it separately. The copy is verified before the original is touched.
I am not sure
Completely normal, and the right answer for a lot of people. Nothing is erased until we go through the drive with you.
What that means
Choosing this does not cost more by itself. It stops the machine being wiped on an assumption, and we agree the data price with you before any of it happens.
Worth knowing: OneDrive, iCloud, Google Drive and Dropbox are synchronization, not independent backups. Files shown as available may be online-only placeholders. We confirm what actually exists on the drive before it is erased.
+The five checks that unlock destructive work, and when we stop instead
Proceed with the approved install on the standard two-business-day track.
Work pauses until it is resolved. You are called, not guessed at.
An install is not a repair for a dying drive. Clicking, grinding or disappearing storage goes to diagnostics or a recovery specialist first, and the data price is quoted from what we find.
Ready within two business days.
That covers a clean install on its own, and a clean install with your files moved across. Two business days, counted Monday to Friday — a Friday afternoon drop-off is ready by Tuesday. Anything that turns out not to fit that, you hear about the same day.
- 01Order placed
- 02Drop-off received
- 03Compatibility confirmed
- 04Data secured
- 05Installing
- 06Testing
- 07Ready for pickup
Step 03 is the gate. Nothing is erased before it, and step 04 only runs if you asked us to keep your files.
AWhat fits inside two business days
- A supported operating system from the list above
- Compatible hardware that meets that system's requirements
- Functioning storage with no failure indicators
- A file transfer or clone of ordinary size, up to about 1 TB
- No custom or unsupported distribution
- Any required passwords, recovery keys or account information available if we need them
Business days are Monday to Friday. Weekends and holidays are not counted.
BWhat makes a job take longer
- Failing or unstable storage
- Overheating or intermittent shutdowns
- Encryption problems, especially a missing recovery key
- Very large data sets, beyond about 1 TB
- Hardware the chosen system does not properly support
- Unusual drivers or vendor-specific hardware
- Custom distributions and custom partition layouts
- Dual-boot complications found during the compatibility check
In every one of these the same thing happens: work pauses, you are contacted, and the revised scope, price and timing are agreed before anything continues.
Build your order.
Five short steps. Each one folds away when you are done with it, so you can always see where you are, and the panel beside the form keeps a running price — install plus data work, not just the install.
Send the plan to Circuit Craftworks
Everything you answered above is attached to this request automatically, including the package, the data service and the combined price. You only need your contact details.
This is a service request, not a payment. Submitting it does not authorize formatting, data deletion or partition changes — we confirm all of that with you in person before any work starts.
Pay securely by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal. Paying books the job and holds your place in the two-business-day queue; it does not authorize formatting, data deletion or partition changes. If the compatibility check fails we stop and contact you before any work or charge continues.
Twelve things people actually ask.
Everything else is answered in the sections above. Open only what you need.
01Can you put Linux on my current Windows computer?
In most cases yes, and older computers are often the best candidates. We check the hardware, your named applications and your storage health first. If something you depend on will not work, we tell you before anything is erased.
02Can I game on Linux?
A large part of the Steam library runs well, including titles never built for Linux. The exception is competitive games with kernel-level anti-cheat, which are blocked outright. Tell us which games you actually play and we will check them by name before you commit.
03Can you disable Recall?
Yes. On every Windows installation we do, Recall is left disabled and the rest of the privacy settings are set conservatively. You can turn it on yourself later if you want it.
04Can you save my files first?
Yes, and it is a separate charge on top of the install: $99 for up to 250 GB, $149 for 250 GB to 1 TB, $149 to clone a healthy drive, $119 if you also want ongoing backup set up. More than 1 TB is quoted. The order builder adds it and shows you the combined total, so the install price never pretends to cover it. Destination storage is not included.
05What if my computer will not boot?
Then an install is not the first thing to buy. A machine that will not start may have failing storage, failing memory or a hardware fault, and installing over it can make the data situation worse. That goes to diagnostics first, and to a data path before anything destructive.
06Do I need to buy Windows again?
Usually not. Most computers that shipped with Windows carry a digital licence tied to the hardware, and it reactivates on its own after a clean install of the same edition. A licence is not included in the labor price; if yours needs a new one we tell you the cost before installing, so it is never a surprise at pickup.
07How long does it actually take?
The install itself is a couple of hours of machine time. The reason the service is measured in days is updates, drivers, testing and the queue. Standard jobs are ready within two business days of drop-off, whether or not your files are being moved across. Business days are Monday to Friday, so a Friday afternoon drop-off is ready by Tuesday.
08What if my hardware turns out not to be compatible?
We find that out during the compatibility check, which happens after drop-off and before anything is erased. If the system you chose will not work properly on your machine we stop, call you, and recommend one that will. You are not charged for an install we did not do.
09Can you make an older computer useful again?
Very often, and it is one of the most satisfying jobs we do. A machine Windows 11 has left behind but which is otherwise healthy usually has years left under Linux Mint, or under ChromeOS Flex if it is certified and mostly used for a browser. Sometimes a storage or memory upgrade helps more than the operating system does, and we will say so.
10Do you install drivers and updates too?
Yes, in every package. Core drivers, system updates and post-install testing are part of the price rather than an upsell.
11Do you install macOS on normal PCs?
No. We do not install macOS on non-Apple hardware.
12Does this include unlimited future support?
No. Later updates, new applications, forgotten credentials, new peripherals, changes you make afterwards and unrelated failures are separate work. You leave with administrator control of your own computer and a written note of what was installed.
Choose it. Drop it off. Pick it up ready to use.
Tell us the computer, the system you want, and what happens to your files. You see the combined price before you commit, compatibility is confirmed before anything is erased, and standard jobs are ready within two business days.