Install freezes on Dell Inspiron Duo with Atom CPU

First time installing Mate. Live installer freezes while copying files and without an error message.

The installer has a minor problem installing a panel, either selection makes no difference, install continues for awhile then freezes with the CD drive busy accessing … this goes on for hours while the mouse is frozen, keyboard unresponsive, reboot required which brings me back to the live installer start menu.

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That make me think that CD in question is corrupted and/or CD drive can not read a portion of the CD reliably.

As far as I remember, when one boots from the live CD there is menu. And one of the menu items allows to verify CD checksum in order to ensure the CD integrity.

Good luck!

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What version of Ubuntu Mate are you tying to install?
Where did you download that version from?
Did you check the SHA256SUM to make sure the download was not corrupted?
You say the CD drive stalls, did you mean DVD? Ubuntu Mate won't fit on a CD.
The more information you give, the better help you will receive.

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Welcome! I have an Dell Inspirion Duo, a unique flippable, convertible netbook/tablet computer! It only has 2 GB of RAM though, unless you've upgraded yours?

It definitely doesn't have a built-in CD drive. Are you running it off a USB optical drive or USB flash drive?

I imagine it freezes because it runs out of memory (RAM). Naturally a 64-bit OS uses a little more memory then a 32-bit OS would, but Ubuntu MATE is 64-bit only. (Maybe our minimum requirements for 1 GB is out of date)

One possible solution is to create a swap partition (or swap file) on the hard disk you're installing to, so if it is running out of memory (freezes), it has somewhere to go.

  1. Before installing, on the desktop, open Menu:harddrive: GParted .
  2. Shrink a partition by about 2 GB.
  3. Create a new partition and format as "Swap".
  4. Press CTRL+ALT+T to open the terminal:
    • Take note of the partition you've created, for example: /dev/sda3
    • Type sudo swapon /dev/sda3

This should give the Duo some breathing room to complete the installation. If you want, while installing, take a look at the :monitor: System Monitor to see how much memory/swap it's using.

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Hi, @tom2tec and welcome to the Ubuntu MATE Community!

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Hello lah7, thanks for your answer. Yes, it's the one with the flip window. I thought MATE was intended for older systems which is why I selected it. I can try your suggestion, or is there a 32-bit distro more appropriate for this system? I could / should also upgrade the RAM. I just upgraded it to a 500 GB SSD; I'm installing from a USB CD, maybe I should use a stick.

I also have the dock, so it's a useful system but it always struggled to even run Win7. Main reason these never sold.

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Hi Bombilla, thanks, happy to be here. Looks like I'm learning, I can tell because I have no idea what the heck I'm doing.

So nice when that happens. ;~)

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I'd definitely try adding a swap partition. The concept is similar to a "paging file" in Windows, by using the SSD as a relief dumping ground for memory. Any Linux you pick can utilize swap partitions, it was quite common for low RAM systems.

I haven't used Ubuntu on it since like 14.04, so I can't remember if it was 32-bit or 64-bit. Ubuntu was much less... bloated... back then :smirk: If I remember, it did perform better then Windows 7, but having slow computers back then, it didn't bother me for being underpowered.

I have the dock as well but my laptop's rubber is wearing off! How's yours?


Anyway, the USB optical drive will be OK. Do let us know if something's not clear with the instructions. :point_up_2: The suggestions earlier to do a disc integrity check is a good idea too.

If I was to repurpose mine, I'd probably go with Debian (32-bit, i386) just to avoid Ubuntu's Snapd, but others will have better suggestions if we know what the Duo will be used for. Ubuntu MATE (64-bit) might be OK. Mine was last tinkered with a triple boot between Windows 7 (OEM), Android x86 and an Arch-based Linux one... on the original HDD!

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