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View Full Version : [ubuntu] 12.10 install can't recognize Windows 7



nathanajah
October 20th, 2012, 12:52 PM
I'm trying to install Ubuntu 12.10 on my Sony Vaio laptop, which already has Windows 7 on it, so I can dual boot. But, when I tried, "This computer currently has no detected operating system". I'm installing Ubuntu from my USB drive. Shouldn't there exist the option to install alongside Windows? Here's the Boot Info (http://paste.ubuntu.com/1289385/).

darkod
October 20th, 2012, 01:13 PM
As you can see in the boot info you are using uefi boot. First of all, when settinp up uefi dual boot you have to make sure you boot the ubuntu cd or usb in uefi mode. With the introduction of uefi there are two options for the same boot device, for example the usb stick. There is the standard bios mode, and uefi mode.

For uefi you have to boot the stick in uefi.

There is also something strange in they way the machine is set up. /dev/sda1 is an EFI system partition, but hidden, and then /dev/sda3 is also efi system partition. There should be only one. And it should be the first partition on the disk.

In your case, it seems sda3 is the actual efi partition and because sda1 and sda2 are hidden, for windows sda3 is considered as the first partition so it has no problems.
But linux can see the hidden partitions too, so this can make it very difficult to get a dual boot running on this machine. I have no idea why it's set up like that, I haven't seen more than one efi partition.

I don't have efi experience so I can't help you much with this. I am only telling you what I have noticed, and to be careful.

nathanajah
October 20th, 2012, 01:48 PM
According to this (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UEFI), I already booted the USB stick in EFI mode.

oldfred
October 20th, 2012, 07:21 PM
There is a bug where Ubuntu has trouble reading a gpt drive that had a unknown gpt type. That was related to a Mac, but you have a similar error in boot info script.

It may be that Sony has a new type registered that is not in Script nor Ubuntu or it just created one as it looks like it is labeled as a Sony partition??

Does Sony have any documentation on what that partition is. Is it like a recovery partition in MBR that you boot to restore system?

While it has the UEFI boot files it is not labeled as an efi partition and with UEFI only the efi partition is supposed to be used to boot.

nathanajah
October 21st, 2012, 04:32 PM
I think the recovery data is in a special partition, but I'm not really sure.

the0nion
January 12th, 2013, 04:02 PM
Hiiies..

This is interesting.
Even though mine could not detect my operation system, ubuntu installer still could see my windows partitions
Thats a relief.

So i simply did a normal install into the remaining space, did boot-repair
and BAMMM im dual-booting UEFI ><

Follow the instructions:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Boot-Repair

Automatically repairing the installation solved my issue, the only issue left is the names in the boot menu are very funny, but booting not an issue ><