Moving to Linux

[Refugee]

Linux only asks you what to open an .EXE file with once if you check the remember box the first time.

[Mike Watterson]

Linux only asks you what to open an .EXE file with once if you check the remember box the first time.

Depends on Distro. Some versions will automatically run an exe or msi in WINE the first time.

Also why it's important to not download / copy random windows programs or Autorun. Also noScript /uMatrix/uBlock in Firefox or Waterfox is important as is turning of auto-opening of PDFs, Word, Excel, Java, ebooks etc in the Browser Applications settings. Save and open PDFs etc in the proper application.

DOSbox (as on WinXP, Vista, 7, 8 & 10) is the best way to run DOS programs and DOS games (even some that claim to run on Win9x or XP are really DOS!). Win3.x can be installed in DOSbox and then takes about 2s to load. So about 3s to get Word 2.0a for Windows open!
DOSbox can be installed from the Software Manager. Don't install the DOSbox for Windows but the one for your Linux Distro & CPU type!

[ppppenguin]

Having successfully installed Mint on a couple of PCs (a couple of old laptops that I was giving away) I'm struggling to get it installed on the PC I want to use as my Linux testbed.

1: Mint Cinnamon on USB stick
2: Set BIOS so it will boot from USB
3: Live Linux boots with no trouble
4: Install Linux Mint
5: Choose language and localisation
6: Install 3rd party software
7: I then get a screen with the attached photo (1)

I don't understand this and searching online hasn't helped. The HDD (actually a Crucial 512GB SSD) has a windows system on it at present which I want to erase, as if starting with a brand new HDD. 

The PC is an HP minitower from about 2011 with a Sandybridge series G630 CPU and 16GB RAM. I've been through the BIOS settings, disabling UEFI, not that it made any difference. Boot order is USB, then HDD. BIOS can see my SSD. Live linux can see my SSD and its contents.

My main reference is: https://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea...index.html

In previous instals I got the 2nd attached photo.  I understand this and chose "Erase disk and install Linux Mint". I didn't use it on previous instals but I suspect that LVM is a good thing as it allows easy re-partitioning.

[ppppenguin]

PS: If I create a new partition table, it appears to be trying to do it on the USB stick. As evidenced by the maximum size of 2122MB, about right for a 2GB USB stick.

[Mike Watterson]

Make sure if the BIOS /EFI has a setting for Legacy, UEFI and both. That you select "both" and Boot UEFI first. This insures the USB stick is in EFI mode and that an unsigned install will work.

If the USB stick isn't booting in EFI mode, then the install won't use EFI and the HDD/SSD won't boot.


Don't use LVM. Linux lets you change partitions and sizes even when running, like Partition Magic on XP did.
Just pick the simplest erase everything and install.

[Mike Watterson]

Screenshot of my HDD

The first partition is EFI and has the boot code, instead of the legacy code on the booting partition
Second is Maybe MS Win7 Diagnostics
Next (3) is I think what used to have Win7, it was reduced to allow Linux dual boot. The NTFS partition with Win7 was changed to EXT4 and always had my data in Mike_Files when it was dual boot.  I backed up & restored the user files.
There is a gap because these things go on weird boundaries (5)
Then there is (6), the original Linux OS when dual boot, now sole boot
Then there is Swap partition (7)
Last are stupid waste of space Lenovo utilities (4).

[Mike Watterson]

Ist HDD or SSD is usually SDA (if SATA), 2nd is SDB etc.

[Mike Watterson]

So what is LVM for? It's for Mirrors, Stripe With Parity etc. Managing set of drives as if a single (or more) drive. Logical Volume Manager. Pointless with individual drives used separately. Mirrors or other RAID systems need a HW controller for decent performance and either the Cache need a battery or entire computer needs a UPS with auto shutdown as unexpected power loss trashes SW RAID, or even HW with volatile cache.

[ppppenguin]

Here's my boot order which shows everything is enabled and USB comes before HDD. With the USB stick inserted I then get a GRUB screen as shown. The line that's all white is "Start Linux Mint 19.2 MATE 64bit" and it's what I selected. Makes no difference if I use compatibility mode.

Result is as I described earlier with installation type where I can't seem to install a partition on the HDD. It only seems to be able to see the USB stick.

If I try to instal on /dev/sdb it says not root file system defined. I can't seem to instal on /dev/sda

[Mike Watterson]

The Linux USB stick is "magic". Depending on BIOS Legacy/EFI settings it EITHER boots as legacy mode (old small code at start of OS boot partition) OR UEFI mode (code loaded from an EFI partition separate from the OS partition).

You need to have the PC set so that the USB stick boots in UEFI mode, not legacy.

Also the signing etc needs disabled by enable EFI & Legacy modes in Boot. The Boot order of EFI then Legacy then allows bypass of security and repartition of the SSD/HDD. Nothing to do with DEVICE boot order (USB, SSD, DVD, Network etc).

if /dev/sda isn't accessible to Linux live, then you can't install.
SATA0 should be /dev/sda, I don't understand why it's missing from EFI boot list.