About to install - it wrongly says "no other operating system" ...

[SimonF]

I am hoping to install Mint on a Dell desktop that is currently running Windows 10 - this will probably be in place of Windows rather than a dual boot. I have the ISO on a bootable usb for which I have completed the integrity and authenticity checks so all good to go but ...

... when I start the install process it says "this computer has no detected operating system" which kind of worries me given that Windows is already on the computer. When I did this once before it gave the options of wiping the existing operating system or installing it alongside. I am just concerned (in my ignorance) that this is in some way flagging a problem.

Thanks for any guidance.

[Pjotr]

Exactly which iso?

[SimonF]

Hi

Linuxmint - 21.3 - cinnamon - 64bit.iso

Thanks

[zcot]

The reason why it says that is because the mint iso is booted using a different boot mode than the existing Win10 system.

Show us the system info output from that live session.

[SimonF]

Ok ... and sorry for this ... but how do I "Show the system info output from that live session"

Thanks

[Moem]

Ok ... and sorry for this ... but how do I "Show the system info output from that live session"

This can be found in the system reports application, on the tab system information. You can copy it from there and paste it into your next post.

[SimonF]

I am sorry about this - probably seems like I am a dummy but then this is all foreign territory to me.

I have two pc's - I am using a KVM - one I am typing on now in Windows and another which will be dedicated Linux - so having found a report (that maybe the correct one) I had no way of attaching it to this post as it was on the other computer. I have had to resort to taking photos of the screen then pasting them here

Hope they are readable and somebody can help.

What msytifies me is that when I had a shot at installing Linux once before I used a bootable disk but when I went to install it still recognised that I was installing on a Windows computer. Anyway, here are the shots:

[SimonF]

Although I searched the forum before posting, I subsequenly decided to Google "this computer has no detected operating systems" and results lead me back to posts on this forum. Clearly I am not alone, as one post put it "this seems to likely say that Windows was installed in UEFI mode and you booted the Mint installer in legacy mode or vice versa?".

Although UEFI et al is a bit beyond me, I think this message [no detected operating systems] is not flagging a problem per se if you are not wanting to dual-boot. I don't, I simply want to see if I can use Mint as my main OS as Windows 10 nears the end of support. I will draw breath then perhaps proceed tomorrow to install obliterating Windows on that pc.

[zcot]

The first disk(/dev/sda) shows a GPT partitioning scheme(opposed to old legacy method MBR).

The info shows that with this installer usb, mint, it shows you are booting in UEFI-Legacy mode, which would mean a legacy BIOS mode and that mode will look for boot records in the disk MBR, -and this is why it is not finding the Win10 entry since Win10 is almost certainly installed using an UEFI/GPT setup.

So, you can boot the stick with the UEFI option, perhaps check in the boot selection menu, you will probably see 2 modes to boot that usb device. Otherwise you need to force it, so probably dig into the UEFI(BIOS) system and find the setting that's letting it or forcing it to use that Legacy mode, and change that option. -this is only in consideration if you want to do the dual boot and get mint to set it up for you during the installation.

[SimonF]

Thank you for taking the time and looking at this zcot.

So, if I am unconcerned about dual-booting and just wish to proceed to install Mint (wiping out Windows) I am good to go?

Thanks in advance.

[AndyMH]

As long as the installer can see your system drive, yes.

You can check how you are booting, boot the install stick open a terminal and efibootmgr, if it says EFI variables are not supported you are booting legacy, anything else is UEFI. Mint will install in the same mode your stick booted in.

[SimonF]

Many thanks - the Dell and the USB are booting UEFI. Something of a stretch for a non-technical person so appreciate everyone's help.