Install Hangs at Prepare Partition

[zeusoid]

First...Complete newbie to Linux. Trying to install Mint 9 on a old Win2000 computer. P4 1.6ghz 512MB The LiveCD works great. Even able to use a old PCI wireless card. When trying to install, the installation hangs at prepare the partition. I did much searching here and on google and found "solutions". Do not really understand them. Is there a basic/step by step/easy to follow guide somewhere that might help me? Any help would be appreciated.

[oobetimer]

First...Complete newbie to Linux. Trying to install Mint 9 on a old Win2000 computer. P4 1.6ghz 512MB The LiveCD works great. Even able to use a old PCI wireless card. When trying to install, the installation hangs at prepare the partition. I did much searching here and on google and found "solutions". Do not really understand them. Is there a basic/step by step/easy to follow guide somewhere that might help me? Any help would be appreciated.

If a computer is old, ext3 filesystem works better than ext4. Choose advanced choice (experienced user) and make the partitions. My suggestion:

/ root partition --> primary ext3 --> 10 GB

swap partition --> 1 GB

/home partition --> logical ext3 --> big enough = 10 GB +

[zeusoid]

I do not get far enough along in the install to get to the advance options. After I choose keyboard and click forward the next window says prepare partition but everything is grayed out and stays that way. Any other suggestions? Thanks for the help.

[oobetimer]

I do not get far enough along in the install to get to the advance options. After I choose keyboard and click forward the next window says prepare partition but everything is grayed out and stays that way. Any other suggestions? Thanks for the help.

"
sudo dmraid -r -E /dev/sda

"

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1506552

http://translate.google.fi/translate?js ... 3msg274761

[zeusoid]

Thanks for the link. That looks just like my problem. Do you think this would affect my win2000 install? I would like to keep it if possible.

[oobetimer]

Thanks for the link. That looks just like my problem. Do you think this would affect my win2000 install? I would like to keep it if possible.

No influence to win2000, I think. It only enables partitioner to see the partitions, what is a good thing ..

[zeusoid]

Thank you. That worked. I appreciate your help. Finally figured out the advanced install. Only question is I did not see a "/root" to install as primary ext3 per your suggestion only a" /" so I did that. Will that be a problem? I can always do over.

[boriquajake]

I am having the same problem on a little Dell Mini 9. I get to the select keyboard page (I guess the next step would have to do with the hard drive partition?) and it just hangs there. I entered

Code: Select all

sudo dmraid -r -E /dev/sda

and I was told that there were no raid drives or something. I think this computer has a little solid state drive that has never been part of anything else. I don't plan on dual booting or anything, I just want to install linux.

[nyktovus]

when i try to install.. the "allocate drive section comes up.. and has nothing in it..


when i try that dmraid command.. heres the output

sudo dmraid -r -E /dev/sda
Do you really want to erase "ddf1" ondisk metadata on /dev/sda ? [y/n] :y
ERROR: ddf1: seeking device "/dev/sda" to 81919999737856
ERROR: writing metadata to /dev/sda, offset 159999999488 sectors, size 0 bytes returned 0
ERROR: erasing ondisk metadata on /dev/sda



... what gives? i already have XP on the first partition.. i've dual booted tons of machines like this.