Overcoming Linux Anxiety

[FellowEsin]

Hello! So, in my old computer I had installed Linux Mint and I loved it. A LOT. But when installing it in my new computer I encountered an error which made me install Grub manually... None of my data was lost but this was enough for me to be scared of doing anything Linux on "bare metal" hardware.

How can I overcome this anxiety? I don't feel anxious when installing Linux in a VM but I get so scared when I actually try to do it in my computer that I've 'postponed' replacing my Linux Mint partition with the new version of the OS.

Thank you!

[Pierre]

Hi FellowEsin ,
welcome to our forum.


if your machine, has the ability,
then you can try using an VirtualBox solution,
as test bed, for you to get more used to Linux Installations,

you just need an bigger drive and at least 8Gb memory,
- to be able to try that idea.

[Hoser Rob]

Making sure all your data is backed up is a big help.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

The best advice I've seen for starting up with Linux came from Joe Collins on Youtube. He recommend getting a cheap, used laptop and fooling around with Linux on it before committing to installing Linux on one's daily driver. That certainly eased my anxiety.

[Pjotr]

How can I overcome this anxiety?

With a stiff drink. Nothing under 35 %. Cheers!

[MurphCID]

How can I overcome this anxiety?

With a stiff drink. Nothing under 35 %. Cheers!

LOL!!! Irish Whiskey works well.....

[The Muffin Man]

What gets me over the anxiety is that I have laptops (or desktops) with conventional SATA SSD or HDD drives. If I to where I cannot boot, then I pull the drive out and put it in an enclosure an boot the dvd/usb then read/copy my data off the enclosure drive.

[rambo919]

Linux does not scare me... it p-s me off. Can't be scared of something you are angry at it's incompetence.

But seriously, just keep a LM USB drive around and use it to fix something when needed. No need to be scared of anything.

But then again I am used to the OS just stopping working for no apparent reason having cut my teeth on win9X and winXP so..... I am used to loathing and raging rather than crying. LM today is much easier to fix than those glorious frustraters were.

It's just funny that it literally took decades for M$ to get to Win10 for proper self fixing. Linux on the other hand generally does not consider self fixing systems any kind of priority so be glad LM does as much for you as it does. Now if only someone would be smart enough to make a GRUB fallback interface that normal people could use easily..... I have given up even trying to understand that thing and just use the Boot Repair program on the USB drive.

[Dan-cer]

Hello! So, in my old computer I had installed Linux Mint and I loved it. A LOT. But when installing it in my new computer I encountered an error which made me install Grub manually... None of my data was lost but this was enough for me to be scared of doing anything Linux on "bare metal" hardware.

What you mean by "an error which made me install Grub manually..."?
If you are doing a clean, new fresh install without having dual boot with another system (Windows i.e.) there should not be a problem.
Have you tried "another" option (3rd install option) to be able to put /home on another partition? And then set Grub on the wrong place?

[rambo919]

Hello! So, in my old computer I had installed Linux Mint and I loved it. A LOT. But when installing it in my new computer I encountered an error which made me install Grub manually... None of my data was lost but this was enough for me to be scared of doing anything Linux on "bare metal" hardware.

What you mean by "an error which made me install Grub manually..."?
If you are doing a clean, new fresh install without having dual boot with another system (Windows i.e.) there should not be a problem.
Have you tried "another" option (3rd install option) to be able to put /home on another partition? And then set Grub on the wrong place?

GRUB seemingly randomly stopping working is a more widespread problem than you might think. My guess is something went wrong with software installation and filesystems got corrupted and GRUB got confused or something like that.

[Ivy_Pool]

I have never overcome linux anxiety. I vurp in my mouth every time I upgrade.

[half-word]

After all these years using Linux I'm also anxious if my machines would boot properly and how to restore them if they don't. But it used to be much easier for me a long time ago!

The thing is, I'm not anxious about Linux but about GRUB, the monstrosity whose workings I never fully understood and which differs between distros and versions.

In the days of old there was LILO. If the OS wouldn't boot, all I had to do was boot from an appropriate install medium, get a root shell and fix everything by issuing a few commands like this:

Code: Select all

# mount /dev/sda1 /mnt
# lilo -C /mnt/etc/lilo.conf
# reboot

Voila! After the reboot I was back home.

With that grubby monster after I boot to a recovery shell, I always have to read something to be sure how to make it work again on that particular system and it is often hit and miss.

I've always liked the ease of configuring it for chainloading other OSes, so I'd always install it to MBR and use it to chainload foreign OS bootloaders, for example for Windows or FreeBSD. Of course, with LILO in MBR it was also very easy to restore them too in case they go belly up.

On certain non-desktop machines i still try to use LILO if it's possible. Not only that I know I can restore the system back to a bootable state quicker and easier, I've also found LILO is more resilient to some problems, making it somewhat less likely to fail than GRUB. Not surprising if you compare their complexities though.

Too bad LILO is effectively on its way to extinction. It would be so great if someone in the future created such a simple and effective EFI bootloader.

[SMG]

Moderator note: One post has been removed from the topic because all posts in this section of the forum (ie. not in the International section of the forum) must be in English.

[cptnoblivious]

Making sure all your data is backed up is a big help.

This. Along with a list of any software you added after the initial install.

Knowing that if it all 'goes sideways' you have good, tested backups of your data and a roadmap for what to add back to the system should make it less stressful.

[Moem]

Mod note:
Some posts removed. Please stay on topic. This is Chat about Linux, not Open Chat. Thanks!

[FellowEsin]

Thanks for the tips, fellows! I think I gained the courage... I'm going to try to (re-)install Linux Mint in my computer tomorrow!

[FellowEsin]

UPDATE: I DID IT! I successfully re-installed+upgraded the Mint partition of my computer. Both Windows and Mint work fine. But there's still this uneasiness inside me... I feel like my computer could malfunction anytime. Can someone help me with that?

[Moem]

I feel like my computer could malfunction anytime. Can someone help me with that?

Well, that is true. Things break, it happens. The remedy is simple:
- Make sure your important data is always, always backed up.
- Make sure you create Restore Points in Windows, and System Snapshots in Mint.

Then no matter what happens, you will never lose your data and you will generally be armed against malfunction.

[FellowEsin]

Noted! Thank you!

[RollyShed]

But there's still this uneasiness inside me... I feel like my computer could malfunction anytime. Can someone help me with that?

Worry about your car breaking down or something falling out of the sky on your head. You might trip going down some stairs and kill yourself.
Life is dangerous, you will end up dead... and so will computers.