Score:0

Can't install Ubuntu Server, or any other OS on my laptop

gm flag

I wanted to repurpose my old HP laptop from 2017 as a simple home server, and had planned to run it on Ubuntu Server 22.04 LTS. I did do a test install and it completed without issue and was running fine. However upon reinstallation, it ran into an error on 'probing for block devices'. I thought by just restarting the process it would be fine, but this time there was a crash at 'Use entire hard disk'. I kept restarting the installer multiple times and it just would not install. I tried Ubuntu Server 20.04 LTS and this time it went all the way to the final logs part of the installer but nothing showed up, and it remained blank for hours before I eventually killed it. I thought installing another distro and repartitioning by hard drive before going back to Ubuntu would work, and I tried installing Debian 12 but it wouldn't install. I then tried the desktop version of Ubuntu, wouldn't install. In a last ditch effort I tried installing Windows 11 back onto the system and it doesn't install either. No OS I've tried has managed to install. What should I do?

mchid avatar
bo flag
Probably buy a new hard drive. I would suggest an SSD instead of an HDD as an SSD is much faster and there is a significant gain in performance when compared to an HDD.
mchid avatar
bo flag
Alternatively, you could [try to repair the existing disk using `fsck`](https://askubuntu.com/a/241951/167115) commands or [as a last ditch effort, you could use `dd` to completely overwrite everything on the disk to start from scratch.](https://askubuntu.com/a/765440/167115) **Only use the dd command if you want to completely overwrite all data on the disk! You will lose everything.** Replace `/dev/sdX` with the actual drive, e.g., `/dev/sda` or `/dev/sdb` , etc. The context of the linked question is kind of unimportant (bad sector) but your goal to repair the disk is the same.
mchid avatar
bo flag
So, dd will overwrite the entire drive with [a bunch of zeros](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%2Fdev%2Fzero) so you might need to set up partitions again as these will also be wiped. Another thing to consider is if the system is trying to install legacy bios style instead of EFI. If this is the case, then setting the BIOS to use legacy BIOS style boot may be an option.
waltinator avatar
it flag
STOP THRASHING! Pick a single release; struggle to Victory, done. Replace your disk - it's unreliable
guiverc avatar
cn flag
You've provided no actual clues as to what the issue is; did you look? Before I perform any install I verify the *installation media* using the methods used appropriate for the OS/release/media you're using (Ubuntu Server for *modern* releases will self verify; thus you need only wait a little then can confirm it succeeded; did you do that?) or you can read logs as to problems (again did you do that?) You appear to not be doing any checks, or at least didn't report doing any; just repeating the same steps with something different & ignoring your actual issue yet expect different results?
hzq23x avatar
gm flag
I haven't provided a clue because I have absolutely no idea what the issue is. There are no logs to provide potential errors, it just crashes and says 'generating crash report' without any output. I'm not really well versed into Linux and Ubuntu that much, so I don't really know where to be checking for the issue. However my first suspicion was that it might be a hard drive issue.
hzq23x avatar
gm flag
I'll try what mchid said to see if it was indeed a HDD issue
guiverc avatar
cn flag
Look at your system logs for clues.. We don't have access to your machine thus can't look for you, being limited to only what you provide. It's a GNU/Linux system thus use system logs; eg. for media verification its identical regardless of ISO used and thus installer (ie. release specific and not installer related), for install issues the installer matters (Ubuntu has 5 different installers available depending on ISO selected for ~recent releases) thus where to look can vary; but system clues are still detectable via text terminal & exploration (*ie. it's a PC; general OS theory is good*)
guiverc avatar
cn flag
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Smartmontools for SMART and exploration of drive health; this is generic theory, with only the actual command varying *slightly* between OS (be it POSIX, BSD/Linux/GNU or even windows)
hzq23x avatar
gm flag
I found out how to run the startup diagnostics on the laptop. I did the quick hard drive check and surprisingly nothing was wrong. Currently doing a memory test. I know logs are very helpful in identifying the error, but I can't access them. The installer just stops working and is stuck on 'generating crash report' and doesn't show anything. Upon retrying, the crash still happens but somewhere else in the install process like 'probing for block devices'. Once again, it says it's generating a report but nothing is actually generated.
user535733 avatar
cn flag
Classic behavior of faulty hardware. Most commonly a dying had drive. Maybe a bad motherboard. Ubuntu is not designed to work on faulty hardware nor compensate for hardware faults. Get your hardware working properly, then the installer will work.
hzq23x avatar
gm flag
Did a quick hard drive check, an extensive hard drive check which took 4 hours, a memory check, all tests passed without issue, weird.
Score:1
gm flag

No idea how, but I fixed the problem. Changed by boot order settings and moved the boot USB below the boot manager before using the boot menu to boot into the USB. Ubuntu Server installed fine, SSH and all are working. Thanks for the help, it's my first time asking on this website, will learn as I go on.

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