Thursday, 30 April 2020

Install Ubuntu Dual Boot on Dell with SATA Harddirve

I was installing ubuntu on a new Dell machine with SATA. I booted into the Ubuntu Live USB but at the partitioning part I could only see /dev/sda which is just my USB drive. Where is my hard drive??!!

Here is the fix or prevention...so that you won't just change the SATA setting and lose windows. Then it will be a bit hard to fix.

  1. In Windows, run Command Prompt as admin
  2. Invoke a Safe Mode boot with the command: bcdedit /set {current} safeboot minimal
  3. Restart the PC and enter your BIOS during bootup.
  4. Change from IDE to AHCI mode then Save & Exit.
  5. Windows 10 will launch in Safe Mode.
  6. Right click the Window icon and select to run the Command Prompt in Admin mode from among the various options.
  7. Cancel Safe Mode booting with the command: bcdedit /deletevalue {current} safeboot
  8. Restart your PC once more and this time it will boot up normally but with AHCI mode activated.