Installing Ubuntu on a Toshiba laptop with Windows 8

[Jim Byrnes]

On 10/07/2013 02:37 PM, Liam Proven wrote:
> On 7 October 2013 20:14, Jim Byrnes <jf_byrnes at comcast.net> wrote:
>> Which is why I came here seeking help.  The partition figures I posted came
>> from the Ubuntu installer screen.  Earlier when I had Ubuntu running from
>> the live dvd I looked at it with gpartd and all the partitions I listed
>> where displayed next to each other across the top of the screen.
>>
>> My goal is to leave Windows 8 on the disk, not setup and unactivated so if I
>> need it in the future I could just set it up.  Maybe that is not even
>> possible, I couldn't find any info about that by googling, but then I am a
>> poor googler.
>
> OK. Well, it's a 64-bit machine with EFI, we can tell that. And the
> fact that it has 5 primary partitions means it /can't/ be a standard
> MBR-partitioned hard disk.
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_boot_record#Disk_partitioning
>
> MBR is the old PC and DOS partitioning scheme. It is the one with the
> 4-primaries limit.
>
> So I think it must be GPT format, although one generally only sees
> that on disks over 2TB in size.

Yes it is GPT, my bad, I was going to include that bit of info and forgot.

> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUID_Partition_Table
>
> With GPT you can have as many partitions as you want.
>
> So, first question. Boot off the Live DVD, pick "try" not "install."
>
> Now, look inside those partitions. What's in the root directories?
>
> There are 5 - as I read it:

Using Files I cannot open any of them and sda2 is not shown as a device. 
The error basically says they cannot be mounted and the file system is 
unclean.

 From GParted:

>
> /dev/sda1      ntfs      ~1GB

FS=ntfs Label=System Size=1GiB used=357.72MiB Unused=666.28MiB 
Flags=hidden,diag

> /dev/sda2      efi       1/4 GB *leave this alone - vitally important*

FS=fat32 Label=blank Size=260MiB Used=51.43MiB Unsued=208.57Mib Flags=boot

> /dev/sda3      ntfs      ~ 1/8 GB - Windows System Reserved I think

FS=ntfs Label=blank Size=128.MiB Used=13.98MiB Unused=114/02MiB 
Flags=msftres

> /dev/sda4      ntfs      ~5 3/4 GB - that's your C drive
>

FS=ntfs Label=Tl10664800H Size=453.33GiB Used= - Unused= - 
Flags=msftdata Note this is the partition that carries the warning about 
being unreadable

> /dev/sda5      ntfs      ~11 GB - that's interesting. What's in there? Anything?

FS=ntfs Label=Recovery Size=11.06GiB Used=10.21GiB Unused=862.65MiB 
Flags=hidden,diag

> I would suggest, depending on what's in there, this:
>
> If #5 is empty, remove it. Shrink #4 down so that it is about 50% full.
>
> In the remaining space, make new primaries for Ubuntu. I'd suggest:
>
> 16GB ext4 for "/" i.e. root
>
> On the end, one about the same size as your physical RAM for swap.
>
> And in between, give all the remaining space to /home.
>
> Because it's GPT - I am guessing this because it seems to have 5 on
> its already and it's a modern EFI PC laptop - then all the
> old-fashioned primary/extended/secondary/logical stuff goes in the
> bin. It's just primaries all the way on GPT.


Thanks,  Jim