Access your Linux partitions under Windows

You can’t call yourself a computer expert if you haven’t tried at least once one other operating system on your own computer. Bonus points if you tried multi-booting. Either way you want to take it, I am going to share a few suggestion regarding the most popular combination of dual-OS systems. Windows and Linux. A pleasant combo, but accessed separately. By default you cannot view your files from the Linux partition while booting Linux for example.

While Windows uses NTFS or FAT(32) as a file system, Linux uses EXT 2 or EXT 3. Definitely not compatible. However, I have searched and found the following two applications that are meant to do this process way easier for the end-users.

Ext2 Installable File System For Windows
It provides Windows NT4.0/2000/XP/2003 with full access to Linux Ext2 volumes (read access and write access). This may be useful if you have installed both Windows and Linux as a dual boot environment on your computer. The “Ext2 Installable File System for Windows” software is freeware.

If you currently have Windows running and you realize that you need some files for your work which you have stored on an Ext2 volume of your Linux installation, you no longer have to shut down Windows and boot Linux. Furthermore, Windows will now be able to handle floppy disks which have been formatted with an Ext2 file system. Linux Ext3 volumes can also be accessed. Isn’t that nice?

Freeware Linux Reader for Windows
This program plays the role of a bridge between your Windows and Ext2/Ext3 Linux file systems. This easy-to-use tool runs under Windows and allows you to browse Ext2/Ext3 Linux file systems and extract files from there.

There are a number of evident merits of the program, which you should know. First of all, DiskInternals Linux Reader is absolutely free. Secondly, the program provides for read-only access and does not allow you to make records in Ext2/Ext3 file system partitions. This guarantees that the interference in an alternative file system will not affect the work of Linux later. Apart from this, it is necessary to note, that it gives you an opportunity to use common Windows Explorer for extracting data. A preview option for pictures is one more pleasant point, which is worth mentioning. While saving, it ignores file security policies. It means that it is possible to access absolutely any file on a Linux disk from Windows. The program can create and open images of Ext2/Ext3 disks.

Hope at least one of these two programs suit your needs.