help installing Linux Mint?

[dmartn149]

I'm hoping I can get some advice on installing Linux Mint on my on my Dell inspiron as a dual boot with the win8 that came with it. I went into setup and turned off secure boot, changed boot option to legacy, and made cd/dvd the first boot option. This got me running linux from the dvd, but when I tried to install it to the hard drive, it didn't find any other OS so I didn't have the option to install on a partition leaving win8 intact. I know that I can partition the drive in windows disc management, but I don't know how to proceed from there. Where do I tell the pc to boot from the dvd to the new partition instead of the main partition? and what file system should it be formatted for NTFS, FAT, something else?
Anyone here done this? big_teee?

[big_teee]

There are two types of Partitioning, the old used MBR (master boot record).
It worked up through Win 7.
GPT Partition Table (GUID Partition Table).https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUID_Partition_Table
GPT is used by Win8.1 and Mint17.
Mint 17 can use either MBR, or GPT.
MBR used Legacy support, GPT does not.
So you will need to go back into bios and disable Legacy support.
Then You can move the ODD(Optical Disk Drive) up to boot first.
Then follow the instructions in this Youtube video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uhx1RFMKvI
The File type for linux will be ext4.
After you have Your Dual boot working and can boot into Windows, and linux?
I like to go back into bios, and re-enable both secure boot, and uefi support.
This gives added boot security to your computer.
GL,
T

[dmartn149]

Thanks T. I can get it to boot from ODD and I partitioned the HD but I'm still not getting the option to install along side Win. I thought maybe it was because I didn't format the new partition, so I went back to do that and The formatting options are NTFS or exFAT I Don't know what to do.

[big_teee]

If you can boot into mint in live mode, do this to look at your hard drive partition.
Open a Terminal console window, and run this command.
$ sudo gparted
Or pick gparted from the start button.
It should start the Gparted partition program and you can see what kind of partition formatting you have.
If it is a MBR hard drive it will look similar to this, but with win8 partitions, with no efi partition.
The one I show only has my linux partions.

If it is a GPT hard drive it will look more like this with the efi partition, yours will not have the linux showed in this example.
https://www.google.com/search?q=gpar...ed%3B777%3B532
The green fat 32 partition is the efi boot partition, if it has this it is a GPT Hard drive.
Determine which one you have so we know how to proceed.
T
**Edit
Windows does not have the capability to let you format the partition to ext4, that will have to be done by mint at the time of the install.

[dmartn149]

It looks like the second one.
"green fat 32 partition is the efi boot partition, if it has this it is a GPT"
Thanks for the help. Sorry it took so long to get back.

[big_teee]

So if you have the GPT drive, and you did the shrink volume to make room for the linux partition.
You should be all set to install linux mint.
When you boot to mint live, make sure you can get on the internet from mint live, that your internet connection works from mint.
If you have web access from mint, then click on the Install linux mint icon on the desktop.
On the partition options click "Something Else"
Then select the new unallocated area, that you made with the Shrink Volume command, to install the new ext4 Linux Partition.
If you have several gig of ram, then I wouldn't install the swap partition.
If you have lots of RAM, and you add a SWAP Space partition, you are just wasting valuable Hard drive you can use for something else.
When Mint installs, it will put the boot info on the existing EFI Partition.
Install and reboot.
If you can't access windows after rebooting, as long as you have web access from Mint, there are steps to take to reinstall the windows boot loader.
It is a quicker install, if you don't update while installing.
You can update later, after the install.
GL,
T

[dmartn149]

I'm not going to be able to finish this till later, but I tried to find the new partition on the screen that comes up after I click "something else" but I didn't find anything matching what I found in Sudo gparted. In gparted there was dev/sda6 97.66 gb I think it was labeled "new volume" Pretty sure that's the one. On the install screen dev/sda6 was 104856 mb. If that is the same partition shouldn't it be the same size?

Thanks

[big_teee]

Those will be one and the same.
It depends on how it is counted.
Bytes are counted in octal and hexadecimal.
Sometimes it is rounded off, and usually shows up on the short side.
http://www.howtogeek.com/123268/wind...rong-capacity/
Sounds like you are ready to install.
T

[dmartn149]

Okay looks like it's done. Thanks T. When I ran the installer it said that I should have another partition for boot, but that it should work without it, so I clicked the button to continue without that. So now it works, but not the same as my old machine with dual boot. To get it to boot into linux I had to hit F12 to go to boot options, but anyway it's working. Thanks!

[big_teee]

On all my multi-boot computers I get a grub boot screen after turn on that looks similar to this.
https://www.google.com/search?q=linu...2F%3B650%3B300
I don't have windows on my computers, so I just choose which Linux I want.
There seems to be several different ways different computers with different bios options react to the boot loader.
Here is a list of some of them, and your F12 was on the list.
Seven ways to set up multi-booting with Windows 8 and Linux | ZDNet
I always load the Boot Repair Software, it's handy to have on linux mint in case you want to change, or repair something.
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Boot-Repair
It shows you how and where to get it and run it.
It says it is for Ubuntu, which is what Mint is built from so it works fine.
On the needing the separate boot partition?
Windows 8.1 may not let linux share it's efi boot partition.
All of my Linux distros on the same computer share the same efi partition.
When you installed there was a screen that asked where to load the boot loader?
That would need to be directed to the efi boot partition.
Sometimes I have to install and load several times to get everything like I want it.
So feel free to keep beating on it, that is my method.
I do computing by the moto "Persistence prevails".
Hope you enjoy Your Linux Mint?
T

[dmartn149]

Linux is working just fine, fast and easy just like it did on my old laptop. I even got edge scrolling back which to me is a lot easier than two finger scrolling. I've found that if i have the bios set to UEFI I get win. If I change boot to legasy I get Linux. When I had a dual boot on my old laptop I almost never went to win. so I'll probably just leave it on legasy.
Thanks again.

[dmartn149]

Okay, just for kicks I installed boot-repair. It said that I have to be booted in UEFI in order for it to do it's thing. Problem is, I only get Win. if I boot in UEFI. Oh well, staying with Linux.

[big_teee]

Hey martin:
What version, and which desktop of Mint did you load?

[dmartn149]

it's Mint 17.1 I think Cinnamon but maybe Mate. I don't remember now. I downloaded it months ago.

[gui_tarzan]

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