Score:0

Solving "Kernel Panic - Not Syncing: Attempted to Kill Init!" Error During Ubuntu Installation on Old PC

gh flag

I am currently using Windows 7 on my PC and I am trying to install Ubuntu using a USB drive that I flashed with Balena Etcher. However, when I insert the USB into the port on my old PC and try to install Ubuntu, I encounter a "kernel panic - not syncing: Attempted to kill init!" error and the installation process is paused.

I have tried the same USB drive on other PCs and it works fine, but I am unable to install Ubuntu on my desired PC. Can anyone help me solve this issue?

Thank you.

Other Information

  • Lubuntu 22.04.1 LTS (Jammy Jellyfish) 64 bit (AMD64)
  • old pc with 2GB of ram Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E7200, 1 TB Hard disk
  • HP compact dc5800 desktop
  • USB 3.0 32GB Samsung (copy not original)

Note: I have tried installing various operating systems such as Ubuntu 22.04, Linux Mint 21.1 Xfce, Zorin OS 15.2 Lite, and Lubuntu, but I encountered errors with all of them. Only Windows was successfully installed.

karel avatar
sa flag
Does this answer your question? [Why Doesn't a Bootable USB Boot](https://askubuntu.com/questions/1190764/why-doesnt-a-bootable-usb-boot)
JOHN avatar
gh flag
As I am not a professional or tech-savvy user, guidance on how to perform certain tasks would greatly assist me
JOHN avatar
gh flag
Checksum result is ok, I think I have some problems in BIOS setting or hardware
guiverc avatar
cn flag
Thanks; it looks like it's **not** related to ISO... I'll re-add the links from prior comments https://manual.lubuntu.me/lts/1/1.1/retrieving_the_image.html. I also suggested booting & performing checks on other box(es) as per https://askubuntu.com/questions/993407/is-verifying-isos-downloaded-from-the-official-website-worthwhile/993409#993409 (looking at my answers; esp. media check one) .. but I'll look for my Lubuntu *jammy* thumb-drive, boot it & look for the message I look for & provide another comment/suggestion when I find it...
JOHN avatar
gh flag
I have verified the Lubuntu ISO file according to the instructions provided in the manual link you gave me, using the sha256sum command in the Ubuntu terminal. The results I obtained matched those specified in the manual and did not reveal any discrepancies
guiverc avatar
cn flag
FYI: I'd expect your 22.04.1 ISO to match this http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/lubuntu/releases/22.04.1/release/SHA256SUMS ; the manual still shows the ISO checksum for 22.04 (not 22.04.1 you have). Boot your thumb-drive on another box; let it idle a few minutes, then open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) & type `journalctl |grep "Check finished"` where you want to see the line also report "Check finished: no errors found". If it was me & you have two other boxes; I'd do it on both; if both are "no errors found" it's specific to your current hp5800 box...
JOHN avatar
gh flag
yes, my 22.04.1 ISO is match with this cdimage.ubuntu.com/lubuntu/releases/22.04.1/release/SHA256SUMS. No, any errors in it. ISO file is ok no any problem as I already told you, I think the errors in my bios setting or hardware related.
guiverc avatar
cn flag
Did you boot your ISO on another & confirm the media validation check completed as per my prior comment? I write hundreds of ISOs to media in a year, and find 5-8% of ISO writes fail because it's cheap made made to cost (that's with Sandisk; other brands have a worse failure rate). The next likely could be how you write the ISO (you should CLONE if possible) as I'm not familiar with *Balena Etcher*; but am aware you can write ISOs so they'll boot on specific types of hardware but not others (CLONE avoids this); you didn't specify what other hardware & types you were using.
JOHN avatar
gh flag
I was able to successfully boot the ISO on a Lenovo ThinkPad T430 without encountering any issues. However, when I tried to install it on my HP DC5800, I encountered a kernel boot error. This seems to be a problem specific to my older PC, and I am currently unsure as to what is causing the issue. i am using usb samsung 3.0 32 GB (copy its cheap)
guiverc avatar
cn flag
Unless the hardware is identical; booting the ISO on another box is not a complete test (*the different hardware can cause different parts of the thumb-drive to be used!*), which is why the command I gave you is used (scanning logs for the *Check Finished.. no errors*). You've so far verified the thumb-drive will boot on another Thinkpad T430, so use one of them (*or test it on another HP 5800 if you don't want to check for the media verification message*). The ISO write can also be involved (does the T430 boot the same as your HP?, ie. BIOS vs uEFI vs Secure-uEFI etc) thus use CLONE writes.
guiverc avatar
cn flag
I'm not familiar with your box (have hp dc7700, 7900, 8200, & others but no 5800) so I've concentrated on tests I'd perform to rule out factors I'm aware of... So far the most likely cause I see is MEDIA write which you've not ruled out with testing (booting it on other boxes with identical or almost-identical hardware is useful; but I had 5x dell optiplex 755's that were actually 3 different machines due to different hardware used by dell during the machine's life). If you believe it's *firmware* (ie. BIOS setting) you'll need to check that; as *firmware* is unique to boxes
JOHN avatar
gh flag
Thank you for your assistance. As I mentioned before, I am not a technical expert and I am not very familiar with these kinds of things. However, I tried some commands and found a solution. I will be selling my old machine as it is too outdated and hangs frequently ( 15 to 20 years old). I was simply curious to see how the Ubuntu operating system would perform on this old machine, but unfortunately, I was unlucky. I have decided to purchase a new machine from the market and install Ubuntu on it. Again, I apologize for my lack of understanding of the commands and I appreciate your help
guiverc avatar
cn flag
The *hangs* frequently would make me want to open the box up & perform a *cap-check*, ie. visually check how clean the box was (*vacuum up any dust/fluff etc*) and visually confirm there are no swollen capacitors (*the top of the 'caps' should be smooth & perfectly flat; no swelling*). If the *freezes* are actually locks (ie. it won't resume & you need to restart to get it going), swollen caps on motherboard is what I'd look for, then RAM test; as Windows & Linux allocate RAM from opposite ends they'll *crash/lock* at different times, then PSU (*even good components foul-up with poor power*)..
Xandel avatar
cn flag
Did you ever find get an answer to this issue? Having the exact same problem while trying to install Ubuntu Desktop 22.04 on an older Dell laptop.
Score:1
om flag

Update Firmware and problem solved

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