Windows Forum

Ask something
Question Locked

Unable to clean install

0 helpful
13 replies

by k861974

Closed to new repliesThis discussion is closed. It stays readable, but it takes no new replies.

Oflate my system started giving lot of troubles. Like my monitor upon waking from sleep or hibernate mode goes haywire. Hanging, takes lot of time suddenly to open windows explorer. I tried to do a clean install of my system using Windows 7 boot disc. Problem is when i enter the BIOS setup i couldn't set the dvd as primary. Neither the F12 option of choosing boot order works. Can somebody help how I can get rid of my current version and reload it again freshly? Or is it advisable to use Ubuntu alone without Windows? Am not an expert on UNIX or commands. Any help ...?
And by the way the monitor suddenly going haywire ...is it driver problem or hardware?

13 replies

by peconet tietokoneet

What make is your system?
It does help to give out the make of the machine so the we can Help you. :)

by k861974

Am using Toshiba Satellite M200 laptop. After installing Windows 7 it was working fine but once i had to format and make a clean install win 7 again for there was some malware got embedded thro yahoo chat. Now since i couldn't use a dvd to load win 7 i did it with USB by setting the priority to USB. Now its working fine, but not sure what made the sys behave spookily earlier. Also am seeing some partition now with around 100MB of space which i have not allocated. It can neither be formatted nor deleted. Anyway thanks for the reply. If anyone know how i can get rid of windows once and for all and install in the place Linux, am thinking of Ubuntu. Can the ISO bootable image making could have been the reason for the DVD boot not working? Any thoughts?

by 93961

You have to not make the DVD drive as primary but make it the first bootable drive.

by prrethish

Which is chipset in ur system
It could be the problem from driver itself
check whether u r cd drive is detecting in the bios if not change ide or sata cable or port.change the setting for sata in the bios
I hope this will solve u r problem

by k861974

Thank u for the suggestion, but my laptop screws are tough to pry out. Since i loaded win 7 from USB as of now the issue is settled. If you know how i can remove windows n totally go for Linux please let me know, ofcourse in detail...lol...am not an expert at these. Is it a good idea to go for Linux from windows?

by oh smeg

Not the Primary Drive as this is set by the Hardware long before the BIOS Starts to work.

You may however not get the DVD Drive itself listed just a generic CD Drive as an Option which is what you should select. If you have a floppy drive you can always use a Boot Floppy like a Windows Boot Disc to erase the Partitions on the HDD and then boot with the 7 Install Disc in the drive. As the system will not find any bookable HDD it will them keep looking till it finds something it can use. But if you can select the CD or Optical Drive in the Boot Order Preferences remember to [b]Save the Changes as you exit the BIOS[/b] or the changes will not be saved.

if this is a Net Book with a USB DVD Drive connected you need to set the Boot Order to USB before HDD and [b]Save the changes as you exit the BIOS.[/b]

Col

by smartacew0lf

You may very well have a faulty DVD drive. In the very recent past I have encountered 3 different situations that proved to be quite troublesome in troubleshooting, all of which involved Toshiba DVD Drives in 3 different manufacturers laptops. I don't have the time nor the inclination at this moment to get into great detail about the symptoms, but I will say that all three were very unusual and replacing the drive was done as a last ditch effort on all but the last one.
On the video issue, can you give a little better description of what you term, "haywire"?
Also, regarding your question about Ubuntu, from what I have read "into" or "between the lines" in your post I am apprehensive in suggesting Ubuntu might be a good option in your case. The reason I give pause is in the installation of the Operating System. That is not to say that I discourage your switch to Ubuntu, just that I am not sure your installation of it will be any less worrisome than what you are currently experiencing. Given that your heart were set on the switch, I would recommend hiring someone to install it or enlisting the aid of a knowledgeable friend.

by k861974

Thanks for your reply billy. I guess you are right about DVD drive. The drive all of a sudden started working oflate from months of dysfunction without any correction or remedial measure.
Coming to the issue of monitor going "haywire" ....what i meant was abruptly while working my laptop monitor gets stuck and i see only coloured, chaotic lines instead of my desktop or whatever am doing. It appears like the scanner lines which one can see in old TVs. Tried updationg the driver, no use.
My opinion on the whole is I made a mistake of going in for Toshiba which has been troublesome from the beginning. Many issues with this model, too much heat is generated, DVD drive gets stuck, monitor defuncts, etc.. Just waiting for a day when i can get rid of this and go for a Ubuntu pre loaded system.
As of now am using Ubuntu 10.4 concurrently and though i have no idea of commands in UNIX it has been a smooth sailing with this version of Linux which is as user friendly as Windows, only thing is it doesn't cause any head ache.
And for the expert's advice on installation it is way too expensive here if i take my sys to authorised centre. Whatever let me try even if it has to be at the cost of system. (Then will have an excuse to junk this..lol)
Thank you dude. Please send me a detailed how to on ubuntu clean install, if it is not too much of a workload. Take care.

by seanferd

Doesn't that sound good? :)

Download and burn an Ubuntu ISO, and stick it in the drive. Follow the prompts - it will always be a clean install when installing over Windows, just allocate all disk space to Ubuntu when prompted.

Generally, you can run quite a few Linux ISOs as a Live OS from CD or Flash before you install. Don't like the feel? Don't install it, and get a different distro, even a different Ubuntu (Kubuntu, Xubuntu - they have different desktop managers).

If you cannot use your optical drive at all, use the USB Flash drive method. http://www.pendrivelinux.com/create-a-ubuntu-9-10-live-usb-in-windows/
It is really just too easy. And Ubuntu has their own support Wiki and Forum for anything you might need.

edit: Hibernate is an iffy proposition with any OS, especially any OS that did not ship with the computer. Do not count on it to work any better in Ubuntu (but it might, who knows?).

If some of your problems are caused by heat, ensure the laptop is on a hard surface so it vents properly. You might also consider a good laptop cooler (Antec makes quality stuff, not sure about any others) http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&q=laptop+cooler .

Otherwise, you may have several independent components failing - optical drive, graphics card, whatever. I hope not. But if it overheats regularly, it is more likely things may start to fail.

by oh smeg

Whenever I sell a NB I supply a Antec NB Cooler one of these actually

http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=NzI=

And other than a single DVD Drive Ribbon Cable coming unglued on the bottom of the tray and breaking it's internal wires I have never had a problem with any NB failing from anything but a lightning strike. And there was no way that I was going to be able to prevent that from happening. ;)

Col

by k861974

Thank you dude. I heard of this suggestion earlier but was of opinion I don't need one.Will definitely check on Antec. Thanks n regards.

by k861974

I appreciate that detailed instructions. Yday after i posted my earlier question I went about installing Ubuntu 10.04 using USB. Had some difficulty in making out partioning the drives as it is not legible for lesser human being like me..;-). Still managed to go ahead and got my Linux installed. PERIOD. Installed updates. Now what i need to learn is how do I enable JRE? Since it is asking me to do some work around in Terminal. I downloaded the Self Extracting package of JRE for Linux but unable to move it or do not know what and how to go further. This is where Microsoft made millions remain fools..lol..by making it easier for people to just go on clicking. Anyway, need help on how to install JRE downloaded, how to get my RhythmBox working ( I tried playing some mp3s, but to no avail, some error message while downloading the components for mp3 playback), Skype could not be installed; during live CD run it worked but not after installation. Some error message again. I tried running Mediubuntu still not able to find skype in the list in repository.
LOL...Sean am giving a lot of workout more than your class teacher would have, during your school days, workout and please be kind enough .....

This discussion is closed to new replies.