Help me, I'm stuck in the Linux jungle!

Draceus · December 10, 2017

Hello,
so to start by explaining my situation, I have one computer which runs Windows 10 but that I want to be able to plug in an SSD, installed with Ubuntu and being boot from that any time I want to.
I have been looking around the internet for solutions but I have to say I don't really understand how this works.

I've read in a lot of places that dual booting Windows and Ubuntu has some problems, but then I don't understand if that is if I were to have Windows and Ubuntu on the same SSD or if they are still present on separate drives.
I would also like to know if there is any way at all for me to somehow install Ubuntu on my second SSD straight from my Windows desktop or if I need to create a bootable USB and install it that way.

So that'ts why I'm asking you guys. I don't feel any smarter trying to figure this stuff out by myself so I would LOVE some advice.

Thanks!

g el · December 10, 2017

The issue as you describe it seems to be related to bootloaders. If you are planning to unplug an SSD and plug in another then you need a bootloader installed on both, or you need to setup Linux with the Systemd bootloader and just load it using the F8 menu (That will also be an option if you install a normal bootloader)

If you are planning to keep the windows SSD plugged in. You can also use F8 to switch, just don't install anything into the EFI partition on your windows disk. You can also, of course, add an option for your Linux system directly in window's EFI partition and rely on the Windows bootloader to figure it out.

Just to give you a short intro to booting on EFI systems. You usually have a small (500MB) partition that is formatted in FAT32 called the EFI partition. This is where BIOS will look in to boot your system. In there you will usually find your windows bootloader. If you install Linux on the same SDD or you use this specific EFI partition to set up the bootloader then you will also get the GRUB installation in there along with the Linux kernel images required to load the system.

By unplugging your SSD completely while installing Ubuntu, it will create your EFI partition for you on the second drive. This should ensure that your UEFI will be able to find it as soon as the disk is plugged. When both disks are plugged, the first in the boot order will win, or you choose what you want from the Boot menu (usually F8)

Regarding installing from windows, it is theoretically possible as installing Linux is just a matter of extracting your files in the correct directories (It is for Ubuntu anyway) and adding your users which could be done through a chroot so I guess the new Linux subsystem on windows can do that. But it is just hard to do, you have to get drivers for your filesystem types and learn about chroot and what it takes to configure a system, it would be much easier to and simpler to boot a USB drive and do it.

To get more understanding of how to configure your bootloader or system in general, I would recommend reading some of these articles on the Arch wiki. It is Arch oriented but it usually includes enough of the basics to teach you about a certain topic regardless of the system you have. Also, consider joining the Ubuntu forum they are (or were when I was active there) very helpful. Another source of information is the ##linux and #ubuntu channels on Freenode on IRC if you would like to try that old technology