Grub issue (i think)

[wary lava]

Wanting to dualboot Linux and Windows, somehow deleted my mint partition and now have this, can't reinstall Linux either for some reason

[fervent ember]

youll have to delete grub from your EFI partition (usually 200 mbs)

[sick copper]

Your BIOS is booting to grub, but as you said, you deleted your mint partition, where grub data were stored... so...
At this stage, you either have to configure your BIOS to select the Windows Boot Manager as defaut, or reinstall Mint using USB key.

[wary lava]

and uh

which is easier

i have a windows bootable USB but can make it mint

[sick copper]

If you have another computer to make Mint USB live, I think it's you better chance.

[wary lava]

Rufus should work right

[fervent ember]

@wary lava you can go into the quick boot menu or change the boot priority in BIOS

thats the easiest way if you have windows installed

[wary lava]

i have nothing installed

thats the issue

well one of em

1 of my two drives aren't picked up by my BIOS now so

[fervent ember]

you could also get windows since you already have a bootable usb for one

[fervent ember]

thats quite common with dual booting with two drives

[wary lava]

it was a bootable for windows 7, so it;s getting re imaged to mint

[fervent ember]

do you ahve another computer?

[fervent ember]

nice

[wary lava]

on one rn, slow as hell

its so slow hold on

[fervent ember]

ok so, DONT install grub on the drive you wont have mint on

[fervent ember]

since you have two

[fervent ember]

eh, its usable

[wary lava]

this thing is literally dying as we speak, forcing win11 on it was not smart

[fervent ember]

just dont get windows 11🙏

or even windows 10 i would suggest

[wary lava]

my windows 10 PC is currently dead.

and my old laptop has no OS on it

hell i dont even think it has a drive in it now

[fervent ember]

btw, get mint xfce rather than cinnamon

although you prolly already know that

[wary lava]

fck

[fervent ember]

....

[wary lava]

we pray

[fervent ember]

its just gonna be slower

[wary lava]

how slow could it be on a laptop from 2024

[fervent ember]

and you can get xfce after getting cinnamon

[fervent ember]

i dont actually know

btw, if your experienced, i would reccomend getting arch, the performance boost would be night and day

although you probably are kinda new

[wary lava]

i am not

like yes i've used linux since 2020 but i still suck with anything related to linux

i mean my 2011 macbook pro had arch on it

[fervent ember]

then why not get it on your current laptop?

[wary lava]

reason i say had is because the OEM HDD is currently in my 2012 PC while i wait for a replacement drive to arrive

and my 2012 PC is dead.

PSU decided it would die again

4th one it's on

what was that bios thing again

[wary lava]

im asking for alot right now but im stupid as hell so yea
what do i do now

just boot to the USB?

[fervent ember]

got the mint usb ready?

[wary lava]

yes

[fervent ember]

btw, youll have to change the boot priority if you havent already

the rest is the same

[wary lava]

ah yes

USB didnt USB

[fervent ember]

if i didnt boot, thats normal unless youve changed the boot prority and have secure boot turned off

[wary lava]

Finally

Top one right?

im assuming it was because its doing stuff

[sick copper]

yes, the first

[wary lava]

Do i need to connect to a wifi network orr

[sick copper]

Nop, but, you said you wanted a Dual-Boot, are you sure you have proper partition setup ?

[wary lava]

Nope

Not sure at all!

My 2nd drive has windows files on it

[sick copper]

So, exit the installer (not the Live session) and got Menu > Administration > Gparted

let see what's your current configuration

[wary lava]

Hold on, let me go make a coffee

[sick copper]

Usual messed-up Microsoft partition setup... well, if you want to dual boot, you'll have to shrink the main partition, to have some space for the Linux partition

[wary lava]

huh

so wipe the 1TB Drive (2nd drive)

and partition the 2tb Drive (Main drive)

[sick copper]

Depend what you want yo do

[wary lava]

Dual boot 11 and mint

[sick copper]

Do you have a working Windows installation on that main (big) partition ?

[wary lava]

no

only on the secondary drive

[sick copper]

Ok, so you plan to Install Windows later ?

[wary lava]

yes

after mint

[sick copper]

Ok... It is better to install Window then Mint, but it is better to use Mint for partition

[wary lava]

i can run just mint actually

all ill be loosing is roblox, which i've played once this year

[sick copper]

So you want to erase everything and make proper setup for dual boo ?

[wary lava]

nah, just do mint

[sick copper]

The final project, my question, is, the final project

[wary lava]

FYI System Specs are: i7 12650H, 32GB LPDDR4 @ 3200MHz, 4050 Mobile, 2TB NVME & 1TB SATA

[sick copper]

because you have to create partitions BEFORE installing systems

OKAY, you have two SSD

So again, it's for confirmation, do you plan to dual-boot Mint Windows on that computer ?

[wary lava]

the 1TB drive isnt showing in gpart

[wary lava]

in the future yea, now, i just want mint

[sick copper]

Ok, but, even in the future, you have to make room for Windows right now, or you'll struggle later

That's why I ask

[wary lava]

also windows partition only needs to be a max of 256GB if it helps

[wary lava]

okay, so partition the main drive to the size i need for both OSes and install windows whenever

[sick copper]

Yes, on your main NVME, you must have at least :

• 1 EFI Partition (300MB)
• 1 Linux Parition
• 1 Windows Partition

[wary lava]

what format do i do the windows partition

fat32?

[sick copper]

no, NTFS, but it's not important now

First, the better is to crate a new partition table on that disk

Create EFI partition Manually

and then, create room partition for Linux installation, room partition for Windows installation, and maybed additionnal partitions to store and share data.

[wary lava]

actually

[sick copper]

You have 2TB, you should create some partitions where you can store data, so you can reinstall the system without loosing everything

[wary lava]

ill just run windows on my old laptop in favour of more storage on my current one (if its easier)

[sick copper]

Everything is "easy", the question is : what do you want...

[wary lava]

i dont care if i loose my current data on any of the drives, i have a mini server i back up to almost monthly

last backup was Jan 14th

[sick copper]

Ok, so, on GParted go to Device > Create new Parition table... select GPT

Then, add a new Partition 300MB, formated in FAT32, label it "EFP", name it "EFI System Partition"

[fervent ember]

that partition is most probably already there, no need to make another one

[sick copper]

I made him creating a new partition table

I wiped out everything

[fervent ember]

oh, k

[sick copper]

@wary lava you Ok ?

[wary lava]

done

i may have done a slightly larger partition by accident

its somehow 312 MB but that's fine

[sick copper]

Ok, now you have to create the two partitions, one dedicated to Linux system installation, the other for Windows system installation

[wary lava]

linux in ext4 and windows in uh

ntfs

[sick copper]

So let's create a new 150GB (150000MB) parition, formated EXT4, label it "Linux", name it "Linux System"

[wary lava]

i need larger for linux

windows only needs 256 max for what i do

[sick copper]

You may use secondary data partition

But if you want more, make it larger

[verbal pivot]

7 gigs of ram isnt that bad and you also have an ssd

[wary lava]

i can just extend it right

[sick copper]

Not a good idea

You better planify, resizing and moving partition take LOONNG time, require many read/write operation, not good for SSD...

[verbal pivot]

Def not a good one. My mint installation is slowly dying

Drag-and-drop just failed today

[wary lava]

got the linux one done

[sick copper]

Ok, so now you create room for future Windows isntallation let add 250GB NTFS parition, label it Windows, etc.

[wary lava]

Done

[sick copper]

Now, since you have plenty of room, you can add additionnal partitions where you can store data

[wary lava]

install mint now?

[sick copper]

No, you have to configure the EFI first

so in Gparted Apply changes

[wary lava]

already did that

[sick copper]

once done, right click the EFI partition, select Manage flags

check Boot and ESP flags

Apply, and you can go for installation

[wary lava]

installing

once installed and in mint i can then persue windows installing?

[sick copper]

Wait, during Mint installation it will ask you what to do, either erase all and install or "something else", you select "something else"

[wary lava]

no root file system is defined

[sick copper]

yep

you must select the partition for linux, assign it "/"

It's like "Usage" or "use it as"

and tou can select /

[wary lava]

what

[sick copper]

Show me what you see

(I don't remember exactly the layout and buttons)

[sick copper]

Ext4, check "format", and Use as : select /

/ mean "Root of Linux system"

[sick copper]

yep, it simply tell you that you ara about to loose data on formated partiition

[wary lava]

installing

[sick copper]

When you will install Windows, you'll have to select the proper partition for installation, it will not touch Linux partitions, but it will change the BIOS boot order to set its boot loader as default one

So you will see Windows booting automatically... Don't panic, Linux is not lost, you usually simply have to go to the BIOS and back the Ubuntu (Mint) boot loader to default one

[fervent ember]

@wary lava havent you been using linux for the past five years?
somebody with that much experience(not knowledge neccasarily) should be able to do the stuff your asking help for

although im not saying you shoudnt ask for help

its nice to do things the safe way if your unsure

[wary lava]

I don't do OS reinstalls etc often enough to know my way around Linux like that

I've always had a windows device with me

[wary lava]

Also mint seemingly went well during install

[fervent ember]

maybe i do stuff i dont know, experinmnt and now im pretty good with linux

like i tried to make hyprland from scratch

that was a hell hole

[wary lava]

time to install a heavily debloated windows

[fervent ember]

which one?

[wary lava]

Tiny11

[sick copper]

I recommand windows 10 22H2...

But, you do what you want 😄

[wary lava]

No drivers for my laptop for win10 iirc

I'll check hold on

[sick copper]

I am pretty sure the Win11 drivers works on Win10

[fervent ember]

8 gig ram is not rlly enough to run windows 10 smoothly

[sick copper]

I did that on my Win11 laptop

[wary lava]

That's my backup machine

[fervent ember]

win11 drivers always work on win10

[sick copper]

But you may try this later, let try with Tiny 11

[wary lava]

Main devices specs here

[fervent ember]

i have tried it for my thinkpad which is designed specifically for windows 11

[wary lava]

Is there a win10 version of tiny11

Because there are drivers for win10 anyway so

[fervent ember]

windows 10 LTSC

[sick copper]

My advice is to install Windows 10 22h2, OFFLINE (unplug everything), then disable Windows Update for reste of your life

[fervent ember]

there are no further updates for win10

[wary lava]

i hate wired hotspot

the machine im on for making bootable USBs has no built in wifi!

[sick copper]

It may back some shit and parameter once a while... we are never too carefull with Microsoft...

[fervent ember]

Windows 10 IoT Enterprise (LTSC) has zero microsoft apps and offers only security updates(neccasary) till 2032

[wary lava]

actually, is there a rufus alternative for linux

[fervent ember]

how big is your usb?

[wary lava]

8gb

[fervent ember]

you could have ventoy in there, can store multiple iso files, just need to copy and paste the iso file in there, linux mint specifically reccomends it

[sick copper]

(I'm surprised soo many people have only one or two 8GB USB key, while 32 or 64 GB key are so cheap)

[fervent ember]

ik, i have a 64 gig and it was a few dollars

for me

[wary lava]

im looking at getting a 32GB soonish

aka whenever im in town next

[sick copper]

I advice you take 2 or 3 32 or 64 GB, so you have stuff to play with)

[wary lava]

ehh

depends on pricing

[sick copper]

32 GB USB 3.0 key may be... $5...

Check for Kingston DataTravelers... not the most performants, but usually durable and cheap

[fervent ember]

hes probably not gonna distrohop and he has a server

[wary lava]

anything tech related here is stupid exspensive

[fervent ember]

so one 32 gig is probably enough

[fervent ember]

not rlly, usb drives are not expensive at all

[wary lava]

39 AUD for a 128GB

not too bad

[fervent ember]

dont get 3.2, they are stupdly more expensive and well, you woudnt need more than 3.0 tbh

[sick copper]

It's better to have 3 x 32GB than 1x 128GB.... With 2 or 3 USB you can make some Linux and Windows ISO ready for use without rewriting it all the time

[wary lava]

wahoo

[fervent ember]

oh ye, if your gonna get 32 gig, use ventoy instead of using rufus everytime

trust me, youll love it

and you can also store any data other than iso files

[wary lava]

where do i get LTSC from omg

[fervent ember]

windows 10 LTSC?

https://buzzheavier.com/yhggy3l1e5oq

if so, then go over here and download this

its windows 10 IoT Enterprise 2021

which is windows 10 LTSC basically

[sick copper]

You don't need specific lisence to install that ?

[fervent ember]

if your gonna do a clean install, no
if your gonna do it over an existing install, yes but youll js have to change the editionID to "IoTEnterpriseS"

[wary lava]

whats a good flashing software for linux lmao

[fervent ember]

its gonna be unactivated but you can easily activate it for free using massgrave

[fervent ember]

like rufus?

[wary lava]

yes

[fervent ember]

ventoy

you wont have to "flash" the iso file into your drive everytime

just have to copy paste in the drive

[sick copper]

It seem USB creator do the trick

Menu > Accessories > USB disk creator (something like that)

(My Mint is in french, sorry, I don't know the exact English translation)

[wary lava]

USB Image writer

time to wait 12 mins for the ISO to download

issue

my steam aint working

[sick copper]

where did you installed steam from ?

[wary lava]

website

[sick copper]

And what happen, what does it tells you ?

[wary lava]

nothing happens

[sick copper]

hmm... strange

Did you updated Mint and installed (if available) proprietary drivers ?

[wary lava]

yes

[sick copper]

So you downloaded the steam .deb file from the websit, installed it, and... when you launch it, nothing ?

[wary lava]

yes

[sick copper]

open a console and simply type steam then return to see if we have some output

[wary lava]

it opened when i typed it so uh

[sick copper]

maybe it's the link on your desktop that is bad

you may try using the one in the menu > games

[wary lava]

now

for the windows 10 install

[fervent ember]

so, everything going good?

[wary lava]

can i just install win10 or

[sick copper]

or ?

[wary lava]

Do i gotta do anything else

[sick copper]

If Mint is working properly, you can install Windows right now

[wary lava]

Perfect

I shall make a usb

[sick copper]

I personnally prefer using Rufus to create Windows USB, since it has options to get rid of some annoying installation process.

But if you have no choice...

[wary lava]

Exactly why I decided to do it on my HP thin client