Hopefully someone can help. When installing Ubuntu-Mate 20.04 on the Z90D7 i get a 'grub-install/dev/sda' error. Ive been looking through forums for the last couple of days but nothing i have tried seems to work.
Im trying to install from a live usb to a 8gb ssd. The ssd has been formatted using GParted.
IM getting the same problem with 18.04 and 20.10
Any help would be much appreciated.
Might not be supported on your device
Hi and welcome to the Ubuntu MATE Community, thanks for giving Ubuntu MATE a try.
I had that error a while ago while performing an install.
I don't remember precisely how I fixed it as it's been a while (and I broke my principles as I usually note workarounds I deal with) but remember it had to do with the EFI boot partition.
I think I had created an EFI partition on the drive (512MB should be enough) using the disk manager in a live session. Then I chose «something else» during the install when you have to select how you will install Ubuntu.
Generally, you have to create a partition (ext4 or whatever) for / (let's say minimum 20GB), a partition for home (your files) and then down below you select the EFI partition you created earlier in the dropdown menu for the boot stuff.
Then, it shoud install correctly.
Hi Utsuro, thank you for your reply. I only have a 8gb SSD so have gone for the below configuration with a minimal install.
The attempt to mount a file system with type vfat in SCSI1 (0,0,0), partition#(sda) at /boot/efi failed.
You may resume partitioning from the partitioning menu.
The installer then crashes if i carry on.
I did have some luck installing Ubuntu-Mate by setting a /boot partition is ext4 following a legacy guide . The problem was then that i was unable to boot from the ssd.
You're welcome ! Sorry, I thought you were using the 8GB drive as the one the ISO was flashed on. My mistake !
sudo mkfs.vfat /dev/sda1 before installing.
Thank you for the link. Ive formatted the EFI partition and have tried to run the installer using the below configuration.
Does your system support UEFI ?
Ive run ls /sys/firmware/efi and get the below output which i think means UEFI is supported?
config_table fw_platform_size runtime systab
efivars fw_vendor runtime-map vars
Ive also installed and run efibootmgr and get a boot order output.
Looks like UEFI is supported yes.
I solved this on my Wyse Z-series this afternoon. You need the 8.6_024 bios, which can be downloaded from Dell's support site for ThinOs clients and flashed through the Linux flashrom utility. Wyse BIOS update: flashrom
With the new bios, grub installs and works perfectly for me.
