hello everyone;

i have two machines, an Asus Eee PC1001PX notebook and a HO dx5150 on which i want to install Linux in partitions i created, sized and labeled using EaseUs Partition Master. I also made (in each machine), two of those partitions Primary to enable selection at booting instance. Both machines are running Windows 7 Home Premium.


this is what i want:

desktop: i want to install Ubuntu v. 15.10 in the empty primary partition: and to have (when i boot), the option to SELECT which OS to use.
recalling the "good old times" of XP, i downloaded from Ubuntu site their iso file which i burned into a DVD.
through F9, i changed the booting source into DVD drive, placed the just burned DVD, and got option to explore or install.
selected to install, but this time, Ubuntu DOESN'T (or seems to me it does not) give me the option to DIRECT IT into which partition to reside.
furthermore, it appears to me that it tries to overwrite the whole HDD, and have W7 as a virtual drive (just an impression, so pls correct me if i`m wrong).
iirc, 5 or 10 years ago i explored Ubuntu and i WAS ABLE to achieve this "dual booting", and i recall i had the CHOICE to select the OS to operate.
if i'm right in this assessment, could please someone help? (either by indicating WHAT to do, or pointing me to OTHER Linux distro which would do this (would Linux Mint do the job?)).

notebook: same expectations as above, only difference is that being this an Eee, i would install Easy Peasy, which seems created for this type of machine.

further exploring the web, i saw that using winrar to open the .iso file might help.
downloaded the evaluation copy, extracted the iso at the (empty) partition, got an install folder, but NONE of the files there are executing anything.

i believe that there is SOMETHING I IGNORE or are missing.............


PLS.,any suggestion, recommendation, alert will be greatly appreciated.

TIA,


danielr2.

Hi and welcome to Linux Questions!

Check out step 4 of the installation instructions and pick the "Something Else" option which will allow you to pick the partition you want to install Ubuntu on. It sounds like you may have initially selected the "Erase disk and install Ubuntu" which will zap everything on the disk, i.e. Windows, and do the Linux install.

I've got an Asus EeePC 1001HA on which I've recently stuck Mint 17.3 Cinnamon, for an older bit of kit it works surprisingly well!

Play Bonny!

I had a similar problem installing a debian OS onto a prepared partition. The installer wouldn't install to the partition.
I then used a partitioning program to delete the partition. When I ran the installer again, it saw the space as 'free space' and allowed me to create a primary partition, choose its size and format it (I chose ext4). The installer then installed the OS into that location.
I'm guessing the reason why the installer won't install a new OS into an existing partition is because it doesn't want people to overwrite existing file storage space or an existing OS (like a Windows OS).

You will need to familiarise yourself with the installer menu and its options. Once you're clear on how to abort the install at each stage, you can then select each option offered by the installer to see what it's trying to say. You can then find out where the option is to create a new partition in free space and use that as a target location for your new OS.

With my new debian OS, I was surprised the installer was a partitioning tool as well as an installation tool. It may be the same with Ubuntu.

If you want dual boot from the grub menu (i.e. the linux bootloader), then you'll need to allow it access to the MBR. This option should appear near the end of the install.

Downloading a .iso file into a partition isn't going to work. You're copying not installing.
Are you able to start an Ubuntu installation? If that is the case, then your problem is about how to navigate the installer menu so it does what you want.

Edit: I've just read Soadyheid's reply and it seems he is far more familiar with Ubuntu.

I would leave the partitions as free space and let the install find that...

and, not that an upgrade won't work but:

From windows, resize (shrink) the windows partition so that you have some unallocated space on which to install Ubuntu. You can't create a proper Linux filesystem from windows. It is also unnecessary to have a primary partition on which to install Linux although you can do that, obviously. As suggested above, use the manual (Something Else) option to install so you can see what is happening. If you go to the site below and scroll down the page, it gives explicit instructions on doing a dual-boot install. It also has a lot of useful information on installing Linux including naming conventions and info on the bootloader.

http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/u...all-guide.html

hello everyone;

thanks for your replies, and suggestions.
after hardly looking in the web, this site and others, downloaded and run Wubi.exe, which installed Ubuntu 13.4 in a pre - configured and accordingly sized partition. it asked me for a password, and entered a simple one.
Ubuntu started OK, i navigated the applications.
when trying to access a spreadsheet which in another partition, it asked for password for authentication, but rejects what i had entered before, and gives an error (/dev/sda6).
any ideas / suggestions how to solve this hurdle?

TIA,

danielr

Wubi which stands for Windows UBuntu installer installs Ubuntu inside a windows system partition as a program and according to the Ubuntu site, was never meant to be used as an installed system but simply as a method to "try" Ubuntu. It hasn't been supported for several years, is not currently being developed or supported. Also, if you are actually using 13.04, that isn't supported either as it has reached End Of Life.

What other partition and what filesystem on that partition? You haven't posted any specifics on your partitions.

Was that the user password you set? You need a root one for administration as well, try:in a command prompt, if not try without "sudo" or put:maybe?

hello everyone;
thank you VERY much for all your replies, suggestions and recommendations.
I’d like to ask for your patience while i describe activities, motivations/assumptions and results:
initially i wanted to install Easy Peasy or Lubuntu in netbook, but when installing they gave errors and make life difficult. As indicated here, they’re not supported and EOL.
so i came to the idea that the best way to “enter the Linux world” would be in the conventional way, namely, UBUNTU!!!.
videos i saw showed at Ubuntu installation (at the time of allocating WHERE to be installed) a possibility of sliding onscreen the boundary between windows and Ubuntu partitions, so i assumed that it would require for starters a NON partitioned HDD.

for me, it’s a MUST to have all my work in a separate partition; and the OS (whichever i’m using) in another.

I backed up all my work to an external Western Digital [WD] passport HDD, and using Partition Master [PM], merged to get a unique partition.
downloaded version 15.10 iso file, burned DVD, placed in external Samsung External DVD and booted (booting source sequence already changed accordingly).
Installation carried smoothly, at moment of partition allocation, i squeezed ubuntu’s to 27 GB (left side of screen). Strangely, it created another two partitions (?), leaving to windows rest of 250 G hdd.

did run Ubuntu and I liked it. No problems WI-Fi connection. Everything smooth and intuitively consistent with my (limited) knowledge.

shut out, rebooted and then it came (what i thing it is, and pls. forgive me if wrong), the grub screen, offering choice of which OS to run. As known, Ubuntu is at the top and Windows bottom (more on this later).
confirmed access to windows, then run Partition Master (which has given me EXCELLENT results), and resized C: by sliding on screen the right side left, thereby creating a non allocated between C:, and the two other created during installation. confirmed the 27Gb allocated to Ubuntu.
I didn’t even get close to this partition!!
bear with me folks, i’m almost there:
second task was to assign a partition in the new non allocated space; with intention to lodge there my work from the WD later.
for tasks involving C: PM closes W7 and works from (as i was told) a shell outside, notifying completion of tasks, and rebooting afterwards.
after it closed, grub came in, so i selected windows and then the shell came as usual.
at rebooting, now i get:
grub rescue>
long story short:
web search let me to a video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1QpN9IWSoc
with the advice i applied and PARTIALLY works. So, i typed

set boot=(hd0,msdos6)
set prefix=(hd0,msdos6)/boot/grub
insmod normal
normal

after hitting return after (last) normal line, the grub screen FLASHES FOR A SECOND, then it opens ubuntu.
If then try to shut off for reboot, , the grub screen FLASHES FOR A SECOND and displays AGAIN
grub rescue>
tried to boot from rescue disk. No good. Repair OS doesn’t help. The alternative it offers is to reinstall W7 again.
so, i am appealing to your HELP to achieve the goals i did list above.
question: if i find i need reinstalling W7 and create the two partitions (for W7 and my work), would Ubuntu install? (will i be able again to slide the partition’s boundary to allocate to ubuntu 20 or 30 Gb).

Thanks again for you help, and assistance.

danielr2

Ahah! I don't think you mentioned this initially when you were re-sizing partitions to install Ubuntu.

The EeePC has BIOS (rather than UEFI) which, if I'm not mistaken will allow you to have up to four partitions on your disk. From your statement above you want at least three partitions; Windows, Ubuntu and your data which will be accessible from either OS.

The data partition would therefore have a FAT32 file system allow it to be accessed from Windows which would probably see it as D: (No CDROM on an EeePC ) You'd have to sort out your Windows programs to save anything to D:

In Ubuntu you'd need to mount this partition as /home. You need the custom partitioning option to set this up, the most important bit being to uncheck the box which would format the /home partition if you've just moved all your Windows data to it!

If you've backed up everything (which you should have done!) to your external disk it's maybe not such a big deal, just stick it back on your D: drive in Windows.
Note that when Ubuntu then sees it as /home it will add its own user system and application config files prefixed with a "." and usually hidden under Linux, i.e. .local, .mozilla, etc

You could set the fourth partition up as Linux swap, size equal to the amount of RAM you have. These days it's not really necessary as you rarely run out of RAM memory space though if you wanted to set up hibernation, this is where your main memory would "leave" a copy of the running contents.

So... Can you show us what your present partitioning is? A screen shot of gparted or something?

Play Bonny!

NTFS is more commonly used, rather than FAT32.

The way I do it is to not mount it as /home, but instead mount it as a /data partition. Which is done after the installation is complete.
HOWTO: Create & Use a Separate DATA Partition

EDIT: That link for community.linuxmint.com is still offline, so try this one >
http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/mountwindowsfstab

It might be better if you posted and image of your drives/partitions which you can do by booting the installation medium of Ubuntu which contains the GParted partition manager. Post the image of the drive in question here or a link to it. Another option is to run the boot repair script which you can get at the site below. Instructions on use on the page. Do not try to make any repairs but select the option to Create BootInfo Summary and post it or a link to the site here.

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Boot-Repair

Grub is your bootloader. When you installed Ubuntu, the installer also installed grub.
At that moment, the grub bootloader saw 2 operating systems and everything is ok.
After that, you created a new partiton on the hard disk through your Windows OS.
The problem is, once you did that you then need to run the command 'update-grub'. But you can't do that anyway because you're on a Windows OS.
So on re-booting, grub does not expect to see a new partition or any changes to the Ubuntu partition. Consequently, it brings up the 'grub rescue' prompt (because there's a new partition on the disk which isn't supposed to be there).
Does it have an error message saying 'No such partition'?

What I did when I encountered a similar problem was to create a new linux OS onto the disk. This means grub will be installed to the new OS and take control of the master boot record.
Once this happens, grub will see all the OSs and the partition you created. You should then be able to reboot to a normal grub menu.
You can then delete the first Ubuntu OS you installed from the second Ubuntu OS. Of course, you'll need to run 'update-grub' from a terminal and when you reboot, grub should show only 2 OSs.

hello Soadyheid, TXLonghorn, yancek and Higgsboson,

thank you very much for your replies.
i came to realize that although i share the language with you (the Bard's one), WE DON'T SHARE the semantics...
that meaning i have to understand your semantics to benefit from your help.
therefore, i downloaded and pdf'ed

Linux Introduction To Filesystems; which i intent to read and DIGEST before any recommended action.

will keep you posted, perhaps with my STUPID ASKING [SQ] you to confirm or correct some of my understanding(s).


danielr2

hello gentlemen;

tried to read and understand the FileSystem, but i found it a bit confusing; so i run to the closest library branch and got Linux for Dummies.
it happened to be an old version and confused me even more.

so, i went ahead and tried some of the links suggested above.
created the mentioned USB and tried to boot from there, but didn't work.

so, i retreated to a dialog with my pillow.
she said that i had to use my Windows background, that if a file is missing or corrupted in a OS installation, the best thing is TO REINSTALL all over again.

my pillow knows A LOT about me, and she's proven to be the BEST adviser in many occasions.
and right she was!!!

during re-installation, it offered me the option of "deleting (the detected) old OS and reinstall it", which i obviously chose.
again, during process, it created (or modified?) two ghosts partitions, as i got the message:
"following partitions to be formatted
#7 of scs12 (0,0,0) as ext4
#6 of scs12 as swap"

also, it connected to WIFI, set time zone, language and password.

finally, gave me BACK grub, from which i was able to access w7, and verified the WE doesn't see the anything else than C:\ and D:\ data. ; BUT PM displayed all of them.

re-started, opened Ubuntu [U] and via LibreOffice, accessed a spreadsheet in D:|. modified ,saved as xls and later confirmed it done.

the beauty of having the desktop nearby, is that by googling "how to XXX in Ubuntu", the site comes wit answer / suggestion.
like MS (sometimes) does.

so, dear fellows Linux HELPERS:

lemme express ONCE AGAIN, my appreciation for your assistance, as i consider this INSTALLATION issue solved.
there are, nevertheless, some other things still remaining to configure, but i believe they don't belog here. if the U site doesn't help, i'll be back with another post.

danielr2