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fazan avatar Ubuntu

How to remove gnu grub without booting into Windows?

in flag
fazan

I'm on edge of tears. I have a dual boot machine for Ubuntu and Windows 7. After POSTing, I get sent into the GNU Grub menu. And recently, my Windows boot broke, and I can not boot into it. However, despite changing the settings in the BIOS and even entering Windows' boot menu, I can not boot neither my recovery dvd's (I made 4 copies just in case) to fix my Windows installation, neither an utility usb (hiren bootcd 10.5). I can boot into Ubuntu on usb and into a Win10 recovery usb, but those are kinda useless. I checked on a seperate device that both of these options work. I found on forums a solution for making gnu grub boot into an usb by changing the root device, and this works on my other dual boot pc, but on this one it just hangs when I try to either list my drives and partitions or change the root blindly. I really need the Win7 on this pc to work since I have software tied to it. I'm okay with deleting both ubuntu and gnu grub from this device since I only ever really used it for internet banking. But all the tutorials I find online are about how to do it from windows. I'm not very tech savvy, I kinda know my way around python and c from school, but I'm really at a loss, no combination works. Please help.

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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@ChanganAuto I need to use software from 2016 that absolutely breaks on Win10. I'm not sure whether you expect me to just close up the shop just because I'm not an expert on PC technology. The point of forums is to pool knowledge from everybody and not to expect everybody to be 100% self-sufficient 100% of the time.
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
I'm not clear what this has to do with Ubuntu. The question is a bit ambiguous. Are you trying to fix your Windows installation? If so, you can ask about this on SuperUser. As mentioned above, stop using Windows 7. Nobody should be using this OS if it connects to the internet. It has well-known and frequently abused security vulnerabilities that will never get fixed. This opens you up to some nasty consequences-too many to list in a comment. Perhaps this is the nudge you need to use a secure, supported operating system.
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ChanganAuto avatar
us flag
ChanganAuto
Not a forum, it's a Q&A website exclusively dedicated to Ubuntu (and official derivatives). The Windows part of your dual-boot is irrelevant and off-topic. Using an unsupported OS like Win7 online is dangerous for you and everybody else. If you have some legacy commercial software then ask the vendor for a proper update. Anyway, not our problem, for reasons that are abundantly clear.
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
Windows 10 has a compatibility mode for older software. Windows 10 also came out in 2015, so any reputable software developer in 2016 would have made the software work in W10. If the software hasn't been maintained in that long, then it's probably wise to find different software. This is not a support site for Windows
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@Nmath my issue is primarily with gnu grub not allowing me to boot from a dvd or an usable usb. So i want to remove it. Fixing my windows installation is not even possible since I can not boot into anything because of gnu grub.
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
If you really really need legacy software, the best path is to install Windows 7 in a VM *without networking* - If the software needs an internet connection and doesn't work on an OS that gets security updates, consider the project abandoned-- and consider there's probably a replacement for all the other people who used to use that software who don't anymore because it's not safe
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
GRUB does not boot USBs or DVDs unless configured to do so- generally only if you actually installed an OS there. This is the realm of your motherboard firmware/BIOS and independent and unrelated to any operating system.
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@Nmath okay but it is interfearing. I have set usb and dvd booting with highest priority in my BIOS. I select the bootable media I want from the BOOT menu after POSTing, and I still get kicked back to gnu grub. I don't know why this happens, or why it happens only sometimes, but I need it to stop doing that. How do I configure grub to boot from dvd or usb? Or alternatively, how do I remove it altogether?
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
You need to have valid bootable media. If it doesn't boot, there is likely a problem with the media. Here are instructions to create bootable Ubuntu installation media on various operating systems: https://ubuntu.com/search?q=Create+bootable+usb. GRUB does not / cannot interfere with your ability to boot valid bootable media, as long as it is bootable and selected by your BIOS. GRUB is only showing presumably because the media failed to boot and GRUB its next on the list.
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@Nmath my ubuntu usb boots fine. My ubuntu installation also works fine. The other bootable media is working as well since I checked on the other laptop I have. My issue is not with the bootable media per se. Please, I just need help with removing gnu grub and ubuntu from my device. I'm aware of the risks of using win7 and making an informed decision.
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user535733 avatar
cn flag
user535733
You are asking an [XY Question](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XY_problem). You are asking about your preferred solution, rather than about the actual problem you have. That's why you are getting the comments telling you that your preferred solution is unwise. You can easily boot your Windows installer by selecting it in BIOS (not GRUB). However, that solution will 1) Install an unsafe, unsupported version of Windows, 2) Destroy your Ubuntu install, and 3) Erase all your data from both installs. Don't use "*I'm not very tech savvy*" as an excuse for willful blindness to the real problems.
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@user535733 no. I am asking how to remove a ubuntu and grub from my device. I think this is reasonably specific. I have tried the other things you describe in your comment. Just because you think that should work doesn't mean I'm lying when I say it doesn't.
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user535733 avatar
cn flag
user535733
If your Windows installer does not boot when selected from BIOS, then you have a corrupt or mis-made installer, or a hardware fault. Neither seems an Ubuntu-related problem. Again, your focus on a specific solution "*I just need help with removing gnu grub and ubuntu from my device*" is actually hindering you from getting good help.
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@user535733 that's fantastic. if it's a hardware problem then woe is me, but I wanna try removing the software that i've identified as causing issues before throwing everything away. and the software that's causing issues is ubuntu-related.
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
Now that I understand what you are actually dealing with, I am explaining that removing GRUB/Ubuntu will not solve your actual problem, being unable to boot installation media. I agree that this is an XY problem. But you are also caught in a loop, because in order to remove GRUB/Ubuntu, you need to be able to boot into *something* that isn't the Ubuntu installation, like a live session of Ubuntu. Once you do that you can format/erase drives and partitions. So you still need to solve your primary problem. The other option is to yank out the hard drive, hook it up to another PC and format/wipe
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
No, Ubuntu and GRUB are not preventing your motherboard from booting a bootable volume. This is a critical misunderstanding on your part that you must understand. When BIOS/firmware is booting your selection, it has nothing to do with Ubuntu or GRUB because nothing from Ubuntu or GRUB has been loaded yet
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@Nmath okay, the ubuntu live usb boots fine (the issue isn't that nothing boots, just that some things don't), how do i use that to remove the ubuntu and grub already on my ssd?
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Paul Benson avatar
us flag
Paul Benson
Neither Ubuntu nor grub should prevent you booting to Win7. What model is your computer?
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fazan avatar
in flag
fazan
@PaulBenson hp pavilion dv6 notebook pc
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Nmath avatar
ng flag
Nmath
There are many ways to do this. But you said you are a novice, so I recommend that you just format the hard drive and install whatever operating system(s) you want. Formatting will remove everything. This is very easy: Open "Disks" on the live session and choose the disk and click "Format". More complicated scenarios are explained here: https://askubuntu.com/q/133533
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user535733 avatar
cn flag
user535733
There are non-destructive solutions to your *actual* problem (Win7 won't boot anymore). For example, you can put a Win7 install in a Virtual Machine. I started doing that a decade ago, since most dual-boot setups eventually face your problem: Windows cannot be reinstalled non-destructively. This is Microsoft's decision --you paid them for that-- not ours. (Ubuntu CAN be reinstalled non-destructively). There is no non-destructive answer to your specific question of removing GRUB and Ubuntu, so be sure you have good backups of all data on both OS before you begin formatting your hard drive.
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Paul Benson avatar
us flag
Paul Benson
I believe for your machine the F10 key is the BIOS menu boot. Reboot. Just as POST starts (HP logo quickly splashes on screen) tap the F10 button several times, then choose F9 once boot device options appear. [See this](https://support.hp.com/sg-en/document/ish_3912651-2318005-16). When Windows shows as option, select it and hit Return. Does it boot, and if not what is the error message?
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karel avatar
sa flag
karel
Does this answer your question? [Unable to boot into Windows after installing Ubuntu, how to fix?](https://askubuntu.com/questions/217904/unable-to-boot-into-windows-after-installing-ubuntu-how-to-fix)
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Score:0
fazan avatar Ubuntu
in flag
fazan

I managed to resolve this myself by luck and trying out things. I'm writting out what I did so someone else might find it helpful. This is written under assumption that you don't care about Ubuntu working afterwards and just want it gone.

  • First I backed up my data through Ubuntu. Ubuntu should be able to see the windows partition unless you hibernated your session (then it locks the drive and you can't access it).

  • Now, you need to bypass gnu grub by getting into the post POST menu where you can manually chose boot device (this isn't BIOS, but you can enter BIOS from this menu, on my machine I get here by pressing Esc during the hp logo screen). Boot from flash drive.

  • Win10 recovery usb can also repair Win7, to a point. I entered the start up repair, and on the first try it failed, so try a couple times. Then your computer should attempt to boot into Win7. It might fail, get a blue screen, restart, get you back into grub and possibly into Ubuntu. Just shut down and try to restart. Now Ubuntu will see that something is wrong and have I/O issues, but try to force shut down to stop it from attempting repair. Probably because I used Win10 to fix Win7.

  • Now you should attempt to boot into Win7, it might work, if not, run start up repair from the Win10 usb again.

  • Once you successfully booted into Win7, delete the partitions containing Ubuntu. There were two in my case. Don't touch System or C: though. Windows will complain that it didn't create them and that another OS might need them, so you will know you're deleting the right ones.

  • Now we need to run bootsect. I'm not sure whether my Win7 installation was just so broken or if this is a command you can run from command prompt only on Win10, but this didn't wrok while I was in my Win7. However, the Win10 recovery usb comes packaged with it's own command prompt under advance options. So boot into the usb again with the method from before. If you fail, you'll end up in grub recovery, which is rather broken, at least was in my case, didn't recognise the boot command and such. Just restart and try again if you ended up there. Once in the command prompt, change directory so you're as far up as you can get by using the command "cd..". There, type in "bootsect /nt60 c: /mbr" . It might take a few tries. If that doesn't work, a kind redditor suggested using the bootrec command, but I'm not familiar and haven't tried it.

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