I want to install my first Linux distro running from a pendrive in dual boot using Windows. The question is: there is a risk GRUB will installed too? How can I avoid this?
Many thanks in advance.

1 members found this post helpful.

Grub installs because most of the distro have automatic installation feature.

To stop installing grub best is to use manual installation method.
This involves booting the installer into bare bone command line.

Or

Use distro having partially automatic install GUI like Debian, where you can chose to install or skip grub/lilo.

1 members found this post helpful.

It is fine, OK and needed in some cases.

What I do is use one of two ways to prevent borking a working install.

#1, Disconnect the internal hard drive. No way to make a mistake then.

#2, Use a virtual machine.

1 members found this post helpful.

Thanks for all answers.

I agree with Jefro. When I installed to a flashdrive, I opened my case up and physically pulled the power cable to my HDD. If you have a laptop and don't want to rip it apart, you could try disabling the drive in the BIOS, though the Linux might still find it. I would highly advise you not to crack open your BIOS unless you know exactly what you are doing. The BIOS is probably one of the easiest ways to screw up your computer if you mess up. Then boot from the install disk, plug in the flash drive, and install to the only drive available.

As for GRUB, I don't see any way around that- then again, I'm relatively new to this as well. Out of curiosity, why don't you want the GRUB?

Seems to me that grub remains in the BIOS being very difficult to uninstall

Grub is not in the BIOS, never has been and never will be. It is installed in the master boot record of a hard drive, on a root partition of a Linux system or a boot partition of a Linux system. Your post isn't really clear. It seems as thought you want some Linux distribution on a pendrive to have a choice to boot that or your windows system. Is that what you want? Software like pendrivelinux doesn't use Grub to boot but isolinux/syslinux.

Or are you wanting to install some Linux distribution on the same hard drive as windows? You need to clarify exactly what you want.

1 members found this post helpful.

if this is fedora 20 ( i used fedora 19 a bit back) the installer AUTOMATICALLY ( rather nice for the new installer) installed grub to the usb i was installing fedora to

just put grub ON THE USB !!!!!! and not the drive with windows

Hello yancek...sorry my delay.
Just run Linux Mint from a bootable usb pendrive.
Thanks.

If you are running windows you can just use PendriveLinux. Go to the link posted above and follow the instructions.

Thank you very much, yancek and happy new year to you and everyone who helped me in this matter.