Thinkpads Forum

I use mostly Windows 7/64, Linux Mint occasionally, on my T510. Currently Linux is installed as Mint4Win (within Windows, like Wubi) on the main disk. I want to install a bootable copy of Mint on an UltraBay HDD to replace the Mint4Win copy.

• Can I just use the Mint installer and specify the UltraBay disk? Will that keep my Windows installation safe?
• What's a good, simple partition layout for the 300 Gb UltraBay disk? I'd like separate partitions for Linux and for user data. Anything else needed/recommended?
• For compatibility, I'd like to format the user partition NTFS. Can I also format the system (and other) partition(s) NTFS? Or is extN required?
• Will the Mint installer automatically install some boot selector thing? Or will I hit F12 on boot to select the OS?
• Could this setup cause an unhappy or unbootable computer when the Linux disk is not in the UltraBay?

Thanks for any and all help!

Mike

The safest way is to install Linux on the hard drive in the Ultrabay with the main hard drive removed. That way Linux GRUB will not overwrite the Windows 7 bootloader. After Linux is installed and booting, shut down the computer and put the main hard drive back in. If you do nothing on boot up, Windows 7 will boot. If you press F12 at the Lenovo splash screen, you should get the BIOS boot menu which will allow you to boot either hard drive.

Mike02906 wrote:I use mostly Windows 7/64, Linux Mint occasionally, on my T510. Currently Linux is installed as Mint4Win (within Windows, like Wubi) on the main disk. I want to install a bootable copy of Mint on an UltraBay HDD to replace the Mint4Win copy.

• Can I just use the Mint installer and specify the UltraBay disk? Will that keep my Windows installation safe?
• What's a good, simple partition layout for the 300 Gb UltraBay disk? I'd like separate partitions for Linux and for user data. Anything else needed/recommended?
• For compatibility, I'd like to format the user partition NTFS. Can I also format the system (and other) partition(s) NTFS? Or is extN required?
• Will the Mint installer automatically install some boot selector thing? Or will I hit F12 on boot to select the OS?
• Could this setup cause an unhappy or unbootable computer when the Linux disk is not in the UltraBay?

Thanks for any and all help!

Mike

Hi Mike,

Mike here to answer some questions.

1. As Gomjabbar said, remove the main HD. Install the ultrbay HD. Boot your live Linux from USB and install the the ultrabay HD.

2. I generally go with what the installer recommends for partitioning, but will shrink the /home partition a bit. If it were me I would go with a 200GB NTFS partition for user data. Leave all Linux partitions as EXT4 or ReiserFS. Others here may like different partition types, but those 2 have worked well for me over the years. Just let the installer choose for you. Here is a decent guide to linux partioning:

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/35676/ho ... -linux-pc/

3. Yes, Mint will install GRUB on your ultrabay HD. As long as you removed the main HD, it will not touch your Windows HD.

4. I have been using Linux for about 15 years. During that time I have installed it on CF cards, external HD's, 2nd hard drives, etc. I have never really encountered a situation where it really messed up Windows. If anything I may have had to boot off the Windows DVD and do boot recovery, but TBH, it's not a big pain the butt.

Good luck. Let us know if you need anymore help.

Thanks Gomjabbar and Temetka for the tips. They were helpful!

After reading them, I tried something else, which worked fine. For the record:

I refreshed my image backup of the main HD. Then, after booting from the Mint DVD in a USB drive, I ran the installer. I selected "Something Else", to choose disk and partitions (created and made ext4 earlier with gparted). Linux was installed onto the Ultrabay HD, and the main HD was untouched. When the Linux disk is present, I can hit F12 during startup and boot to Linux. This works great for what I need.

(If I hadn't had image backups set up -- and recently tested -- I would have removed the main HD as you both recommended.)

Again, thanks! Very helpful to know others have done this and are willing to offer help. And the partitioning info was also a big help.

Mike

Glad to hear you got it sorted.

I have W7 on main HD and have Kubuntu on Ultrabay HD and it works wonderfully. It just asks me at start up which OS I want to boot with. This is on a T60. I installed Kubuntu on the UB HD while my main was intact and in the unit, no issues.