Installation Instructions

Questions about Grub, UEFI,the liveCD and the installer
Forum rules
Before you post read how to get help. Topics in this forum are automatically closed 6 months after creation.
pcpunk
Level 5
Level 5
Posts: 976
Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:44 pm
Location: Florida

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by pcpunk »

I am hating Linux as there is no REAL instructiions anywhere! It is rediculous to not be able to install the OS in a simple matter. I don't know who is behind all of this LInux thing but they are surely not using there heads! I am only trying to Re-install LM17MQ32bit over my old corrupted 64bit of the same. I have scoured the internet and youtube to get answers but cannot find much of anything good. There are some good videos but most are not and don't address the particular issue that I am having. I am trying to do a dual boot with my xp system, that has LM17MQ64bit as stated above. So I need to leave the xp there and choose whatever to install new over the old. I have read that this is possible without even making a new partition, and just installing over the old?. I have been workingn on this for a long time now so it has become a waste! I could have just bought a Windows product and been on my way, really would it be that much of a task to just expand the Manual? Then at least people-and especially newbie's could do it on their own ya know. Here is my thread on this issue, I am getting some help from another forum but things are going so slow as people are obviously busy.
http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=173004
Thanks pcpunk
HP Compaq nx7400, Cinnamon 19.2
Intel R Core™2CPU, T5500@1.66GHz, 4GB Crucial RAM
Super Clean Runs Perfect
eRCaGuy

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by eRCaGuy »

Oscar799, I just wrote some detailed steps on how I successfully got dual boot on my AMD-based system, in case others have problems with similar installs and can benefit from my notes. Just thought I'd share: http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=177283. Two hurdles were: 1) not natively-supported graphics card (had to use "nomodeset" and then later install the linux driver, and 2) some strange UEFI boot problems that required some strange trickery and then an install of rEFInd.
pcpunk
Level 5
Level 5
Posts: 976
Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:44 pm
Location: Florida

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by pcpunk »

Thanks oscar, always good to have more solutions for everyone although this was not my issue.
HP Compaq nx7400, Cinnamon 19.2
Intel R Core™2CPU, T5500@1.66GHz, 4GB Crucial RAM
Super Clean Runs Perfect
prime-mass

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by prime-mass »

Need to add something about Rebecca which is VERY IMPORTANT / CRUCIAL:

When installing linux mint Rebecca (from Live USB in my case) there is a fundamental difference in how Mint 17.1 Rebecca installs.

My HDD was partitioned like this up until 10mins ago:
1.png
After installation of Rebecca, this is how my HDD looks:
2.png
Notice the difference?

That's right. Data Lost. Some brainiac forgot some options in the installation tool of Rebecca which allow one to mark which partition is primary and which is extended, etc. The partition tool just formats any partition after the primary system partition as extended by default.

Beware of this and defo make a backup unless you want to lose your data (in case you haven't backed up anything).

With Maya (Mint 13), one could just re-install the whole system without even touching the /home partition

Not a happy bunny right now
Cosmo.
Level 24
Level 24
Posts: 22968
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2014 7:34 am

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by Cosmo. »

In general: Backups are always essential, regardless of what you do. A common word here says, that data, that are not backed-up are unimportant or even senseless data.

In case of great changes - as installing a new OS or OS version, backing up should always be the most crucial part.

Besides of that, I am astonished, that the old system worked at all. Seeing an Extended partition tells me, that you have an msdos-partition table (in difference to gpt). And in a msdos-table there can never be more than 4 primary partitions inclusive the extended partition, but your first picture shows 5 in total. (An extended partition is a special usage of a primary partition.) Further more a extended partition, can not contain any data - also no swap, as shown in the picture - directly, but only logical volumes.

Again, I am astonished how this could ever work. And the Mint installer seemed to wonder about the same question and corrected the wrong partition table.

One other thing that makes me wonder is the point, that partition 3 (previously Maya) has before and after the new install exactly the same amount of used space. That may be correct, but appears to me as really strange.

The third thing are the 2.26 GB data in /home after 10 minutes of installing. Maybe a leftover from the previous /home-partition, but I wonder, if the data is correctly stored. I would backup the whole machine and would make a complete new start.
caezsar

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by caezsar »

hello! I've created an installation procedure for Linux Mint 17.1 Rebecca which I hope will come in handy for users who own a new system with UEFI firmware. The instructions covers Linux Mint installation along side Windows 10, although you can use this howto to install Linux Mint in dual boot with previous versions of Windows, such as Windows 7, windows 8 and 8.1. Also, the installation is done by creating two partitions for the system, the /(root) partition which host the system files and the /home partition, meant for personal users files. I recommend installing Linux Mint with two partitions, especially the /home partition, in case something goes wrong with the system (system crashes, you cannot boot etc) because you can then easily reinstall the OS and use your home data and, even, your previous settings.
Hoping that the procedure will help others, especially newbies, here is the link:
http://www.bytelinux.com/install-linux- ... i-systems/
pegasis
Level 4
Level 4
Posts: 470
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2014 12:56 pm

Re: Installation Instructions on laptop

Post by pegasis »

I have installed Mint Cinnamon on my desktop by booting to a USB

Now I am trying the same procedure on my laptop, with the boot sequence to USB first

it seem to boot right past my installed USB??

I can see the files on the USB using my PC.

why can't I boot to the USB, and install mint

can i put the files on the PC and install mint to it?
pegasis
Level 4
Level 4
Posts: 470
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2014 12:56 pm

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by pegasis »

Is there any way to install mint by loading the files directly on the laptop, and using installation process

my laptop is not booting from my USB
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by MtnDewManiac »

pegasis wrote:Is there any way to install mint by loading the files directly on the laptop, and using installation process

my laptop is not booting from my USB
If there is a solution to that one, I'd be interested in reading about it. I have a (currently unused) Mint Xfce 14 distro and a Mint Xfce 17 one on my laptop (both 64-bit). I'd love to place Mint 17.1 where the Mint 14 now resides, but the optical drive doesn't work and the mental voids who design/build Samsung laptops built this particular one to have no option to boot from USB.

Regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MtnDewManiac + pegasis

I've not done it myself, so I am a little short on detail and experience.. However you can use Unetbootin to do, what they call, a Frugal Install. Simply put it allows you to boot an ISO that is on your hard drive and then perform the installation via the usual route.

Link to Unetbootin wiki with info on Frugal Install:- http://sourceforge.net/p/unetbootin/wiki/installmodes/
Link to Unetbootin sourceforge page :- http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/

Hope this helps
WT
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MDM

I discovered this, in these forums yesterday, regarding using Grub2 to boot ISOs.. thought it may be of interest.
austin.texas wrote:
gtsfer wrote:This "frugal install" method looks really easy. Have to let gorselands look it over too. :)
Please note that I am offering that suggestion for someone who has Win XP installed.

For someone who has some version of linux installed there is an even easier solution
- This works great for me with Mint 16 Cinnamon.
If you want to install Mint to any usb drive or partition, install the grml-rescueboot program.
sudo apt-get install grml-rescueboot

Then make sure that the /boot/grml folder exists. If it does not exist, create it with the command.
sudo mkdir /boot/grml

Place your Mint ISO in the /boot/grml folder.
For example, if the ISO is located in the user's Downloads folder, the command would be:
sudo cp ~/Downloads/Mintfilename.iso /boot/grml/

Update GRUB
sudo update-grub

This automatically adds a menuentry to the GRUB menu for any ISO files located in the /boot/grml folder.
The created menuentry, when selected, provides submenu options on how to boot the ISO, including the "Try Mint" and "Install" options.

Now reboot, and choose the iso menuentry, and it will run just like booting the live DVD.

http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php?id=rescueboot

grml-rescueboot does not support lvm and md/raid devices
I have tested this method of booting and can confirm that it works :)

Link to original:- http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.p ... 03#p846103

Regards
WT

EDIT I've now tested doing an install from an ISO booted via the method I posted above and it worked perfectly.. with one caveat! Before the installer will run correctly you need to enter

Code: Select all

sudo umount -l -r -f /isodevice
into the terminal of the live system to allow the installer to unmount the ISO during installation. I found this last piece of information on the Ubuntu Help Wiki, here:- https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2/ISOBoot.
Last edited by WinterTroubles on Sat Mar 14, 2015 6:38 am, edited 2 times in total.
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

Re: Installation Instructions (Somewhat Lengthy)

Post by MtnDewManiac »

WinterTroubles wrote:I discovered this, in these forums yesterday, regarding using Grub2 to boot ISOs.. thought it may be of interest.
Yes, WinterTroubles, very much of interest.
WinterTroubles wrote:I have tested this method of booting and can confirm that it works :)
Thank you for finding this (and thank you, austin.texas) information. And for testing it.

So... If I understand correctly - which is by no means assured, lol - I can download/verify the 64-bit Mint Xfce 17.1 .iso, place it on the Mint Xfce 17 partition (which I am currently using), follow the instructions you posted above... And, if I don't manage to screw something up in the process, I will then be able to reboot my computer, select that .iso from the Grub boot menu as if it were a standard Mint installation, and then - after I reach the live desktop - choose to install it to my (not currently in use) Mint 14 partition? And, if all goes well, I will then have both Mint 17 and 17.1 installed?

I'll probably keep the .iso around just in case I need it again in the future, but I may (probably will) choose to move it to a USB device. Will it be possible, assuming I succeed with the installation, to remove the entry for the .iso from my boot menu?

I just checked the old Mint 14 partition. I had to shrink it down when I installed Mint 17, because I had originally set up this laptop to only have a swap partition and a Mint 14 one (which took up the rest of the drive). I was thinking that I shrank it down to nothing, but it turns out that it is a little over 140 gigs... So there is plenty of room for Mint 17.1 (yay!). I'll have to move about 40 gigs of data from it that I wish to keep, but then I can try this.

- - - - -

According to Disks (gnome-disk-utility 3.10.0 UDisks 2.1.3 (built against 2.1.3)), this is how my hard drive is currently set up:
750GB Hard Disk /dev/sda Partitioning: Master Boot Record
Volumes:

Filesystem
Partition 1
157 GB Ext4
Size: 157 GB - 52 GB Free (67.1% full)
Device: /dev/sda1
Partition Type: Linux (bootable)
Contents: Ext4 (version 1.0) - Mounted at: /media/{username}/{great big hexadecimal number with a few dashes in it} [EDIT: It only shows "Mounted at:..." because I opened it in Thunar to look around just before running Disks. Normally it would show "Not Mounted."]

Extended Partition
Partition 2
593 GB
Size: 593 GB
Partition Type: Extended
Contents: Extended Partition

Filesystem
Partition 6
577 GB Ext4
Size: 577 GB - 224 GB Free (61.2% Full)
Device: /dev/sda6
Partition Type: Linux
Contents: Ext4 (version 1.0) - Mounted at Filesystem Root

Swap
Partition 5
16 GB Swap
Size: 16 GB
Device: /dev/sda5
Partition Type: Linux swap
Contents: Swap (version 2) - Active

- - - - -

Comments/questions:

My swap partition is so large because I believe I once read that it should be at least 1½ times the size of physical RAM if one wishes to have the ability to use the "hibernate" feature; as this is a laptop, I felt that I might need it one day - and, although it currently has "only" 6 gigs of RAM, I wanted to have the ability to still do so even if I ever manage to afford to increase the size of my RAM.

I'm just guessing (please forgive my woeful ignorance), but it looks to me that, even though I don't use Mint 14, the partition itself is still technically in use because I think that is the location of my Grub boot menu(?). IF I am correct, will that cause any issues at all? That first partition is where I'm wishing to place Mint 17.1.

The partition is (quite a bit) larger than I had been thinking it was. Would it be possible for me to install TWO new linuxes(?) instead of one? Either Mint 17.1 plus "some random linux distro that I might wish to download/install/play with/remove" or - more likely - both a "standard" Linux Mint 17.1 Xfce AND an additional Linux Mint 17.1 Xfce to which I could add the Xfce 4.12 PPA in order to upgrade from the included Xfce 4.10 to Xfce 4.12? If so... How would you suggest I set it up (and go about it)? I suppose that I could simply install Mint 17.1 to the first partition - use it for a while and (hopefully) see that it is as stable and bug-free as my current Mint 17 - and then just choose the "in-place upgrade" to 17.1 that is offered via mintUpdate (aka "Update Manager"), and then add the Xfce 4.12 PPA to that one. Regardless, I have one worry that I might have an issue either way...

I have quite a bit of data on the Mint 17 partition that I am currently using. I'd REALLY like to keep it. I guess that I'd like it to be on whichever partition I end up considering to be my "active/current" one, which (I assume/hope) will eventually be that first partition if/when 17.1 shows itself to be stable (to/for me). That'd mean that I'd need to expand it greatly - but the rest of my drive is taken up with the big "Extended Partition" which contains the Mint 17 one AND my swap one. I... I'm not at all sure that I understand how this works, but I'm guessing that I can shrink my Mint 17 partition from the front, but only at the risk - if not certainity? - of destroying data. And, even if I do that, It'll just open a "hole" at the beginning of the extended partition, which I would not then be able to expand the first partition into(???IDK???). So... Err... "Help!!!" ("ARGH!!!).

And, no, I have no idea why my partitions are numbered (variously) 1, 2, 5, and 6. <SCRATCHES HEAD> Or where in the world 3 and 4 got to.

I guess that all this is pretty complicated. I HOPE that it is not nearly as complicated as it seems (to me) to be. But I am worried....

Regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MDM

First things first, I've now tested doing an install from an ISO booted via the method I posted above and it worked perfectly.. with one caveat! Before the installer will run correctly you need to enter

Code: Select all

sudo umount -l -r -f /isodevice
into the terminal of the live system to allow the installer to unmount the ISO during installation. I found this last piece of information on the Ubuntu Help Wiki, here:- https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2/ISOBoot.
So... If I understand correctly - which is by no means assured, lol - I can download/verify the 64-bit Mint Xfce 17.1 .iso, place it on the Mint Xfce 17 partition (which I am currently using), follow the instructions you posted above... And, if I don't manage to screw something up in the process, I will then be able to reboot my computer, select that .iso from the Grub boot menu as if it were a standard Mint installation, and then - after I reach the live desktop - choose to install it to my (not currently in use) Mint 14 partition? And, if all goes well, I will then have both Mint 17 and 17.1 installed?
That is what I did an hour ago to install 17.1 Xfce in a spare partition on my 17.1 Cinnamon box, so.. yes if you include the extra step prior to installation that I posted a few lines up and use the 'something else' option in the installer.. the default installation options will likely not be able to cope with creating a system that is capable of booting from a choice of multiple OSs and may even overwrite your current Mint 17.
I'll probably keep the .iso around just in case I need it again in the future, but I may (probably will) choose to move it to a USB device. Will it be possible, assuming I succeed with the installation, to remove the entry for the .iso from my boot menu?
My understanding is that removing the ISO from /boot/grml and running sudo update-grub again will remove the entry for the ISO from the grub menu.. I'm choosing to leave it there as that means I now have a 'read only' boot option to use as a rescue system should I break anything other than Grub on my system.
I'm just guessing (please forgive my woeful ignorance), but it looks to me that, even though I don't use Mint 14, the partition itself is still technically in use because I think that is the location of my Grub boot menu(?). IF I am correct, will that cause any issues at all? That first partition is where I'm wishing to place Mint 17.1.
I'm not expert when it comes to installations and file systems, so this my understanding only and not 'gospel'. Assuming you are not using UEFI on that machine then Grub should be installed to the MBR and it is usual that Grub is being 'controlled' by the most recently installed OS. If in doubt a quick search of the forums should turn up instructions on how to reinstall grub from your current 17 installation to ensure that it is being 'controlled' from the partition you wish to keep. Grub will be over written during any subsequent installs anyway, so knowing how to place 'control' of grub back into the hands of your current 17, should you wish, is probably a good idea.
The partition is (quite a bit) larger than I had been thinking it was. Would it be possible for me to install TWO new linuxes(?) instead of one?
The simple answer looks to be yes. Once you have safely backed up any data you wish to keep from the partition you wish to replace with the new install/s, you can use Gparted to delete the current partition and create one or more new partitions in it's place. As that partition is currently a Primary partition and it looks like the rest of the disk is an Extended partition containing 2 logical partitions, you should be able to replace partition one with upto 3 (if I recall correctly) new partitions without having to mess with your current extended partition.
I have quite a bit of data on the Mint 17 partition that I am currently using. I'd REALLY like to keep it. I guess that I'd like it to be on whichever partition I end up considering to be my "active/current" one, which (I assume/hope) will eventually be that first partition if/when 17.1 shows itself to be stable (to/for me). That'd mean that I'd need to expand it greatly - but the rest of my drive is taken up with the big "Extended Partition" which contains the Mint 17 one AND my swap one. I... I'm not at all sure that I understand how this works, but I'm guessing that I can shrink my Mint 17 partition from the front, but only at the risk - if not certainity? - of destroying data. And, even if I do that, It'll just open a "hole" at the beginning of the extended partition, which I would not then be able to expand the first partition into(???IDK???). So... Err... "Help!!!" ("ARGH!!!).
Now this is an area that I'm less certain of, however the way I have mine set up is that all my personal files are on a separate Data partition, so that I can have multiple OSs installed and access all my personal files from which ever I have booted. Maybe an option would be to, eventually, backup your data on the current Mint 17 partition and then reuse that partition as a Data partition to be used by any/all OSs you have installed to use or play with. You can find instructions for setting up a Data partition here :- http://community.linuxmint.com/tutorial/view/1609
And, no, I have no idea why my partitions are numbered (variously) 1, 2, 5, and 6. <SCRATCHES HEAD> Or where in the world 3 and 4 got to.
The reasoning for the partition numbering is that numbers 1-4 are reserved for Primary partitions (there is a maximum of 4 with a msdos partition table) and from 5 upwards and for Logical partitions within an extended partition.


I will state once again that I am no expert with installation, partitioning or disk management.. So please check around on the forums to confirm my offered information prior to making changes to the partitions on you disk and remember that all changes to partitions and/or installations carry a risk of data loss so backing up important data is highly recommended.. Not that I've encountered data loss myself while performing such tasks in Mint, but, a risk is a risk and better not to need a backup you have than need a backup you don't have :)

I hope this is useful information/thoughts.
WT
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by MtnDewManiac »

Whew. That's kind of scary about the Grub and the different partitions (and types of partitions), Grub being on the partition I'm wanting to overwrite but being controlled by the one I'm using now or whatever and all that. I KNEW I should have tried harder to make sense of all that stuff when I was attempting to understand all those threads which (apparently :roll: ) explained it all, but it just went in one ear and out the other after pausing to turn that day's migraine into a cluster headache. Things sure were a lot easier to understand before I went and got old; it must be true what they say about cognitive function dropping off noticeably after age 40 or so - when I was a kid, I'd read something and know it. I had a pretty good head injury back in 1989, but other than the aforementioned daily headaches and some trouble functioning when I'm frustrated (such as when having to deal with people :lol: ), and difficulty... Well, I could no longer simply read something once and understand it as if by magic, nor could I easily retain the information... but I never thought that it had done anything to my actual intelligence - until recently, when I started trying to actually understand things having to do with linux instead of just blindly trusting other people and copy&pasting my way through. I've really been lucky that Clem (et al) has put so much effort into making Mint an OS that doesn't generally have issues and one that people can use without having to spend much (or any) time in a terminal environment at all. My childhood was such that I never thought I'd be thinking this, but I sometimes wish I was a kid again.

It probably isn't helping that I've been awake for about 2½ days (I have periods of insomnia, too). I just downloaded the 64-bit Mint 17.1 Xfce .iso - twice - but both times, when I used Thunar to check the .md5sum, it failed to match the one that is listed at http://www.linuxmint.com/edition.php?id=182 , so I think I'll just put everything on pause until tomorrow. Maybe I can get a few hours of sleep tonight, and maybe I'll win at download roulette when I try for a third time to get a valid copy of the .iso.

You have been very kind in trying to help me. Especially since, although I try to help others when I can, I'm not very good at it ( :roll: ) and have been reliably told that, when I'm not consciously trying to avoid showing it, I generally have a "bad attitude" that tends to show. Or something like that, lol. IDK, I'm not tracking too well AtM. Anyway, I do hope that you'll not mind providing further help/advice/explanations (small words are a plus :wink: ) when I feel more able to try this thing.

Thanks and best regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MDM

There's no rush with this, as you know, so take your time and don't let it overwhelm you :)

Two quick points, before I wish you luck to continue when you are ready, Grub itself isn't installed to any partition on an msdos (MBR) disk, it's installed in the Master Boot Record at the start of the disk.. it's simply the configuration files that are stored on one of your Root partitions. Booting into your current Mint 17 and installing Grub from there to ensure there are no issues is relatively simple..
Reinstalling GRUB 2 from a Working System
If Ubuntu is operating normally, boot into the working installation and run the following command from a terminal.

X is the drive (letter) on which you want GRUB to write the boot information. Normally users should not include a partition number, which would produce an error message as the command would attempt to write the information to a partition.

sudo grub-install /dev/sdX # Example: sudo grub-install /dev/sda

This will rewrite the MBR information to point to the current installation and rewrite some GRUB 2 files (which are already working). Since it isn't done during execution of the previous command, running sudo update-grub after the install will ensure GRUB 2's menu is up-to-date.
source:- https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2 ... ing_GRUB_2

The second point is that you may try the torrent download option offered on the Mint download page, the torrent downloader Transmission is included by default on Mint (I believe) and torrent downloads verify the download and redownload any incorrect data packets while the download is in progress... I've never had a bad ISO file from a torrent download, although bad burns have still happened of course :lol:

All that's left is for me to wish you luck and remind you not to rush :)

If you have any further question I'll do my best to help, although it may be best to start a new topic as I'm not as experienced at this as you may like and a new topic is more likely to get others attention as well.

Regards
WT
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by MtnDewManiac »

WinterTroubles wrote:Grub itself isn't installed to any partition on an msdos (MBR) disk, it's installed in the Master Boot Record at the start of the disk.
Oh. Wow. I didn't know there was room for programs (well, one - Grub) on the MBR. I sort of pictured the MBR as just a list type thing.
WinterTroubles wrote:. it's simply the configuration files that are stored on one of your Root partitions. Booting into your current Mint 17 and installing Grub from there to ensure there are no issues is relatively simple.
Err... Bear in mind that my whole purpose for wishing to be able to boot into the live .iso which has been saved to my computer's hard drive is that I cannot boot from the USB or memory card ports and my optical drive stopped working. IOW, if something screws my Grub up, I won't have any way to boot into an OS to repair Grub. It's kind of like... My brother and his lady own a Ford Taurus. Their keys cannot unlock the doors, but it does have those new car remote control things that unlock the doors and trunk. So, for years now they've been able to unlock their vehicle, get in, and drive it. It occurred to me the other day to wonder... One of these days, their battery is going to go dead. And they will need to get into their car so that they can open the hood and install a new battery. Only... They won't be able to - because their battery will be dead. I was going to put that laughing head face at the end of that sentence, only I know he'll call me when that happens demanding that I come take care of it... And my reply will have to be, "Okay, I'll leave shortly. Go ahead and throw a rock through the driver's window now so that you can have all the bits of broken glass cleaned up by the time I get there." He won't be best pleased. A few years ago, my desktop (2002 or 2003 model :roll: ) was still working pretty well. I put linux on it. It was okay, but the wireless didn't work. So I had to stick the tower, keyboard, and mouse into my backpack, pick the monitor up, and walk to my local library and talk them into letting me make a wired connection to their Internet access. No big deal (it was Summer, so I didn't have a foot of snow like fell yesterday to deal with, lol), I did so and was able to use other people's directions to get it working once I got to the point (getting online) where I could see those directions. Screwing up Grub would be like that only worse, methinks.
Reinstalling GRUB 2 from a Working System
<SCRATCHES HEAD> (I do that a lot these days.) But... If you have a working system, that means that GRUB works, or you aren't able to get to that system in the first place (and, in that case, I'd think that your system would be classified as non-working :confused: .
WinterTroubles wrote:The second point is that you may try the torrent download option
I was going to, but tried one more time - and it worked. Step one is complete. I'm going to finish my coffee and take a nap. You shouldn't have to worry about being pestered (by me, at least) for a few hours, maybe for a few days.
WinterTroubles wrote:All that's left is for me to wish you luck
Thanks. I have so far managed to believe that there are, in fact, two kinds of luck and that the "good" variety is not actually merely theoritical.
WinterTroubles wrote:and remind you not to rush
Last time I rushed, I woke up flat on my back, staring up at my hat, which was stuck on the corner of a low roof (the... that thing that rain drains to before it enters the downspout, whatever it's called, actually) with my brother laughing until he realized I was conscious again (then he just told me off for laying down on the job and to get back to painting). Time before that, I ended up married. I figure if I try rushing again, I'll probably be talking to the angels. Well... One hopes, anyway :wink: .

Regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MtnDewManiac wrote:Err... Bear in mind that my whole purpose for wishing to be able to boot into the live .iso which has been saved to my computer's hard drive is that I cannot boot from the USB or memory card ports and my optical drive stopped working... ... Screwing up Grub would be like that only worse, methinks.
Yes screwing up grub will be really bad. However as Grub is installed as part of the installation of Mint by the installer that risk cannot be eliminated if you choose to go ahead and install a second OS. You can use the 'live' session to delete and then create the relevant partitions during the same session you perform the installation.. leaving you with Grub freshly installed by the new Mint. Either way Grub will be reinstalled though and any errors with Grub will leave you with a major headache, sorry.
MtnDewManiac wrote:
Reinstalling GRUB 2 from a Working System
<SCRATCHES HEAD> (I do that a lot these days.) But... If you have a working system, that means that GRUB works, or you aren't able to get to that system in the first place (and, in that case, I'd think that your system would be classified as non-working :confused: .
There are several reasons one would reinstall Grub from a working system, I did it myself today. As mentioned above Grub is installed afresh with each install, so once I'd installed 17.1 Xfce to my spare partition today I'd lost all the customisations to Grub that I'd performed on my main 17.1 Cinnamon installation ( not to mention that Cinnamon was no longer the default boot option). Now it is true that I could've modified Grub from Xfce, but, the simplest option was simply to boot into Cinnamon and reinstall Grub from there.. this returned Grub to the same configuration as before the additional install, except for the extra Xfce entries on the Grub screen.


I'll be honest now and say that if it were me in your situation I'm not sure I'd be considering installing any new OS to that machine until I really had to, due to the current OS becoming obsolete.. at least not until I'd managed to replace to optical drive or discovered another 'work around' in case of Grub becoming corrupt. That's me though, and it's not for me to say how big the impact of bricking that machine would be for you.

I'll leave you to ponder on your next step and join you in a new thread if you decide to go ahead and I'm able to offer any further assistance.

Regards
WT
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

It's Not Working!

Post by MtnDewManiac »

I was very pleased when I was able to boot to the Mint 17.1 Xfce (64-bit) .iso.

But I was unable to install it :sad: .

It won't let me format the Mint 14 partition. It keeps saying it's mounted - but it's not! The Mint 17 one must be, I suppose, because that's where the .iso file is parked. But even when I go to view the contents of the Mint 14 partition via Thunar, I have to mount it first (and I unmounted it afterwards). Mint 14 is... sda1 I think and Mint 17 is... sda5? Whatever I put in the post up there, I copied it right out of Disks.

I'm trying to put Mint 17.1 onto where the Mint 14 is now.

I thought about trying to format the Mint 14 partition from Mint 17 (where I am now, obviously) or at least manually delete every file/folder/directory on it. But I can't even do that, because from what Disks said (see post above), that's where my boot grub is... So if I do that, I pooch the computer. <ARGH!>

Regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
WinterTroubles

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by WinterTroubles »

MDM

Edit... which system did you install grml-rescueboot and which partition is your ISO file on, if you installed grml-rescueboot to, and have the ISO on, your Mint 17 partition then 17 must be controlling Grub, I believe. end of edit.

Did you remember..
WinterTroubles wrote:MDM

First things first, I've now tested doing an install from an ISO booted via the method I posted above and it worked perfectly.. with one caveat! Before the installer will run correctly you need to enter

Code: Select all

sudo umount -l -r -f /isodevice
into the terminal of the live system to allow the installer to unmount the ISO during installation. I found this last piece of information on the Ubuntu Help Wiki, here:- https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2/ISOBoot.
.. as without doing the above the installer will complain about mounted file systems (specifically /isodevice) and fail to proceed.
I thought about trying to format the Mint 14 partition from Mint 17 (where I am now, obviously) or at least manually delete every file/folder/directory on it. But I can't even do that, because from what Disks said (see post above), that's where my boot grub is
Do you mean this
Filesystem
Partition 1
157 GB Ext4
Size: 157 GB - 52 GB Free (67.1% full)
Device: /dev/sda1
Partition Type: Linux (bootable)
Contents: Ext4 (version 1.0) - Mounted at: /media/{username}/{great big hexadecimal number with a few dashes in it} [EDIT: It only shows "Mounted at:..." because I opened it in Thunar to look around just before running Disks. Normally it would show "Not Mounted."]
The above only indicates that that partition is bootable. 'Disks' isn't able to tell which partition hold the Grub config files as far as I know. As a rule the most recent install is the one that contains the Grub config files unless the user manually changes it (sorry if I didn't make that clear enough above). The step of reinstalling Grub from 17, that I suggested, was to make certain that Grub was 'controlled' from 17 as you can't boot from external media for recovery.

Regards
WT
MtnDewManiac
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1491
Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm
Location: United States

Re: Installation Instructions

Post by MtnDewManiac »

WinterTroubles wrote:First things first, I've now tested doing an install from an ISO booted via the method I posted above and it worked perfectly.. with one caveat! Before the installer will run correctly you need to enter

Code: Select all

sudo umount -l -r -f /isodevice
into the terminal of the live system to allow the installer to unmount the ISO during installation. I found this last piece of information on the Ubuntu Help Wiki, here:- https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2/ISOBoot.
That turned out to be the missing step that one needs. With that, couple with the quoted directions you posted previously, the user (even me :lol: ) can download a Mint .iso - and, I'd assume, any linux live/installation .iso - to their hard drive and then install it to that hard drive without having to worry about first burning it to DVD or "burning" it to a USB drive.

That information should be concisely presented in a sticky!

EDIT: BtW, the installation was fast. Knowing now what I do about how to do it, I can say that this will be my preferred installation procedure from now on (when the system already has a linux distro on it and I'm installing side-by-side instead of overwriting). Now I've got to finish my setup (I've already got the panels mostly set up). I'll need to figure out what I added to the panel (and how - it's not an Xfce "applet") that allows me to adjust my CPU frequency/mode and install the applications that I use. And then I'll have to decide which version (the new Mint 17.1 one or the old Mint 17 - and whether or not to "upgrade in place" it via mintUpdate to 17.1 first) to add the Xfce 4.12 PPA to.

Thanks again,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
Locked

Return to “Installation & Boot”