Linux Mint Forums

hello all, first time linux mint user and new linux user. First off I want to let you know i tried the new Ubuntu 12.04 and hated it. I also tried LM Gnome and it was ok but really liked LMDE the best. The issue that i have is creating the proper partitions. This is what I have. I have three hard drives. A drive that is totally partitioned for windows 7, an SSD used as a caching drive for Win7 and a storage drive. I shrunk the storage drive windows partition and now have 200GB of un partitioned space.

Ubuntu and LM gome both recognize the windows storage partition and automatically partitions the rest of the drive. In LXDE it does not do that and wants me to make the partitions. Problem is that I have tried different partition combinations and I can't get it to work. Can anyone help me so that I can get the proper partitions made?

Can you run Live DVD and post the terminal output of these commands?

sudo fdisk -l

sudo parted -l print

mint@mint ~ $ sudo fdisk -l

Disk /dev/sdb: 1500.3 GB, 1500300828160 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 182401 cylinders, total 2930275055 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x50d21ec7

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 2048 2520643583 1260320768 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

Disk /dev/sdc: 640.1 GB, 640133946880 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 77825 cylinders, total 1250261615 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xef4f525c

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 * 2048 1250258943 625128448 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

Disk /dev/sda: 64.0 GB, 64023257088 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 7783 cylinders, total 125045424 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xc9000000

Disk /dev/sda doesn't contain a valid partition table

mint@mint ~ $ sudo parted -l print
sudo: parted: command not found

mint@mint ~ $ sudo parted -l print
sudo: parted: command not found

oop, LMDE did not have parted installed on iso,
nevermind, it is easy to install, on terminal type

sudo apt-get update

follow by

sudo apt-get install parted

You setup the partitions manually with gparted, I usually do an extended and inside it put the swap, / and /home (ext4)..

Hey all this is what I did,

I made an extended partition and followed these instructions. http://helpsite.org/linux-mint-debian-edition/

Then lastly I was not sure where to put grub so I did sdb5 but when I boot I get an error is says error file not found Grub Rescue

mint@mint ~ $ sudo fdisk -l

Disk /dev/sdb: 1500.3 GB, 1500300828160 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 182401 cylinders, total 2930275055 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x50d21ec7

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 2048 2520643583 1260320768 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
/dev/sdb2 2520643584 2930274303 204815360 5 Extended
/dev/sdb5 2520645632 2521694207 524288 83 Linux
/dev/sdb6 2521696256 2552416255 15360000 83 Linux
/dev/sdb7 2552418304 2567305215 7443456 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sdb8 2567307264 2930274303 181483520 83 Linux

Disk /dev/sda: 64.0 GB, 64023257088 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 7783 cylinders, total 125045424 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xc9000000

Disk /dev/sda doesn't contain a valid partition table

Disk /dev/sdc: 640.1 GB, 640133946880 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 77825 cylinders, total 1250261615 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xef4f525c

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 * 2048 1250258943 625128448 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

I could not do the last part because updating gets stuck at 22% and never moces.

You shouldn't have installed grub in any partition but in the drive.. like /dev/sda or /dev/sdb.
You might have to re-install grub now, I'm sorry .

that did it, I followed the article but with the extended partition instead of primary. Then I told grub to be installed in sdb not sdb5 and now it works right. Wow this has been a battle, only two days to get it working. Ubuntu was much easier to install that is sure but I think this is worth the battle to get it working right. Thanks for the help all.