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Installing Ubuntu on a laptop with a broken monitor

cn flag

I have a Lenovo laptop with a broken monitor (don't ask!) that worked well with a HDMI cable connected to a Dell monitor. Of late, the laptop won't boot once I have entered the hard disk password. The HDMI output does not come at this point. So, I don't know what is going on.

I want to wipe off the current installation (18.04) on my laptop and install current LTS - 20.04. I can burn the .iso to a disk and used the DVD drive or use USB. However, with a broken monitor but working HDMI, I don't know if/how installation can be done.

Can you please advise?

24601 avatar
in flag
is [this resource](https://www.tenforums.com/graphic-cards/93997-computer-keyboard-shortcut-switching-between-hdmi-laptop-screen.html) any help?
galexite avatar
pk flag
Are you having trouble booting the disk, because you can’t see the boot device menu in the BIOS to select the disk?
cn flag
@24601 That link is for a working installation. My question is around installing Ubuntu on a laptop with a broken monitor.
cn flag
@galexite Actually, I should have mentioned that, I able to select OS from the menu. But, the booting is stuck beyond that point. And, I can't tell why because I don't have a display uint.
galexite avatar
pk flag
Now I see, the problem is with Ubuntu itself booting from the drive, not the firmware.
galexite avatar
pk flag
Does the purple accessibility screen appear after selecting the boot device? Can you press a key when it appears, and see the advanced boot options?
guiverc avatar
cn flag
I QA-test installed Lubuntu/Xubuntu/.. using a non-working laptop monitor (a number of releases though only up to 19.04/disco; then I *recycled* that laptop), however for most it wasn't necessary as most *enterprise* geared laptops contain keys to toggle internal/external/internal+external.mirror/internal+external/etc in different combinations so it generally made no difference if the laptop display worked or not (dell, lenovo etc provided a key so it didn't matter)
galexite avatar
pk flag
@guiverc Most consumer-focused laptops have a dedicated monitor key too. But I think the issue here is, correct me if wrong, the OS is not booting far enough to receive the keystroke. The firmware is able to use the external monitor fine, but the OS has changed the display mode and killed the external monitor.
guiverc avatar
cn flag
Assuming the ISO was validated (https://tutorials.ubuntu.com/tutorial/tutorial-how-to-verify-ubuntu#0) I'd verify the media on another device (*better two*) to ensure the ISO was written correctly to the media (*I did as I couldn't rely on reading laptop display*) and ensure you wait long enough.. 20.04 does a verify of media before it boots.. some ISOs even provide audible beep before the "Try/Install" question (no specifics were given, no mention of desktop/server/what ISO etc)... but another option maybe an ISO that is easier to install then adding packages later to get what was wanted..
cn flag
@galexite I recall seeing the `fsck` command running and then the "stuck" point is `initramfs` prompt(?). Nothing moves from that point onwards.
galexite avatar
pk flag
Could you verify your ISO download using the SHA hashes on the website? Can you try another USB drive, or DVD disk? It’s a bit strange to not be able to pass through to mounting the root filesystem.
cn flag
The current installation was done years ago and was working fine until recently. I will not be able to verify. In any case, since I will be reinstalling the image, I will keep an eye on hashes. Thanks, @galexite
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