SOLVED! Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

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unmasked
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SOLVED! Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by unmasked »

looking at purchase used Dell/Lenovo laptops, former Windows devices.
Now scrubbed, no OS. These are 3-5 years old
Wish to install Linux Mint using USB. Have previously installed on Windows machines.

Will this work?

Thanks
Last edited by LockBot on Tue Aug 01, 2023 10:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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ajgreeny
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by ajgreeny »

Dell and Lenovo laptops are usually very good and most have apparently been very easy to install Mint or Ubuntu onto them.

Certainly that shouldn't offer too many difficulties.
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by unmasked »

I am concerned about the lack of existing OS; have not done this before.

Thus my hesitation.

Thanks.
Tosh
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by Tosh »

You will need to prepare a bootable USB stick with your chosen version of Mint on it.

You will then need to tell the BIOS in the Laptop to boot from the USB.

With the USB in the laptop when you turn it on you will boot into a live version of Mint and once into the live system you can install Mint on the HD/SSD in the laptop.

Once installed close down laptop and remove USB stick. When you next boot it will be from Mint on the HD. You can then set it up to your liking, install additional programmes, copy any files you need to your home directory etc, just like you would on a new Windows install.
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by unmasked »

very, very grateful for comprehensive and polite answer.

Finally, I can expect the BIOS to appear automatically when I turn on the device?

Thanks again.
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Moem
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by Moem »

unmasked wrote: Thu Feb 02, 2023 12:57 pm I am concerned about the lack of existing OS
It shouldn't make a difference, because in order to be able to install, the machine needs to be booted into Mint (from the USB stick) anyway.
unmasked wrote: Thu Feb 02, 2023 1:25 pm Finally, I can expect the BIOS to appear automatically when I turn on the device?
You may need to press a key. In most cases, you should see a (brief) message that tells you which key to press, as the machine is powered up.
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If your issue is solved, kindly indicate that by editing the first post in the topic, and adding [SOLVED] to the title. Thanks!
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Re:SOLVED Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by unmasked »

thank you much!
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Re: Linux Mint install on former Windows laptop having no OS

Post by linux-rox »

unmasked wrote: Thu Feb 02, 2023 12:57 pm I am concerned about the lack of existing OS; have not done this before.
Which is easier: Moving into an empty house or moving into a house already occupied? Installing where there is no existing OS is easier than what you did in the past. The only question is whether to use erase-and-install or partition manually. Erase-and-install is simplest. Will use the entire hard drive.
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