Q: Installing Ubuntu on DV6T-7000

Hi everyone,

I just got a brand new HP DV6t Quad Edition that I really want to use with Ubuntu and Windows. I have dual booted on my desktop, but I'm a little concerned about dual booting on this machine because of two main things:

A)This laptop has a 32gb mSSD for Intel RSD (The main HD is 1tb)
B)This laptop has both integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics and an nvidia gt 650M

Basically, I am wondering if I will be able to install Ubuntu on this machine even with these modifications. I also want to know if there are any special steps I need to take to make sure the machine will completely work if Ubuntu is installed (If I need to run custom commands, install specific drivers, etc).

Thank you so much everyone.

 

You may want to post this question in two alternative locations. You will likely get a quicker response in these areas, and pose the question directly to those most familiar with Ubuntu / Linux and compatibility.

forum.notebookreview.com Linux Compatibility and Software forum: Linux Compatibility and Software

Ubuntu Forums: Ubuntu Forums

Good luck,

Les

 

- Intel SRT won't work under Ubuntu but I think Intel does support Red Hat/Fedora.

- nVidia doesn't support Optimus tech under Linux.
Bumblebee - NVIDIA Optimus support for Linux!
apparently a workaround.

Neither of those are really a loss considering you won't be gaming on Linux and I think the cache drives are pointless in a standard sized laptop capable of carrying an SSD.

 

Alright, but neither of these things will hinder a Ubuntu installation right? Neither will keep me from installing the OS?

Personally, I would love to attempt to install the OS on the mSSD, and use the remaining space as the cache for windows, but I don't think that is possible. And Intel HD 4000 graphics will surely be enough for what I am doing.

 

Please tell me you'll be using your dedicated graphics card although in Windows for something more than you tube and alike.

 

It might be, actually. You can repartition the size of the mSATA SSD such that Ubuntu gets a small share and the rest goes to Windows.

And, no, the lack of Optimus and RST won't hinder your Ubuntu installation In fact, you can solely dedicate the mSATA SSD to Windows or Ubuntu as well.

You may run into wireless support, audio and maybe mouse gesture issues but that depends on hardware that's inside the HP laptop. Generally speaking, though, Ubuntu tends to be very good at hardware compatibility nowadays.

 

I would love to dedicate half of the mssd to Ubuntu, but I'm afraid it may effect windows performance with rst if there is only 15gb left on the mssd

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

Alright, I'm not exactly sure what happened but its very frustrating. I booted from a USB into Ubuntu, but I couldn't find my hdd when I tried to install. I attempt
Ted to mount the hdd from the file explorer, but Ubuntu couldn't mount it. Now windows bootmgr is not found and I have a borked windows installation. When I use the recovery disk, it doesn't even see an hdd. I'm at a loss.

Sent from my Iconia A500 using Tapatalk 2

 

If it doesn't see the HDD at all then it may be a case of a dead hard drive.

Ubuntu should recognize the disc and has no real issues with NTFS partitions. The Windows recovery should certainly see an HDD. Have you tried changing the boot order from HDD > Optical first? This way you boot straight into the recovery disk and can restore your MBR that Ubuntu tried to replace.

 

It definitely has to do with the Intel RST configuration because I booted into parted magic, and then formated the 32gb mssd. When I rebooted, I got into a bios-like Intel RST screen which allowed me to turn off the raid configuration. After rebooting again, I got to the built in HP recovery tools, but I still could not repair the MBR. I, in my stupidity, did not make backup drives yet, so I just did a clean reinstall.

 

Shamelessly reposting my other thread:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-pavilion-notebooks/676213-definitive-guide-clean-install-os-mssd-cache-equipped-laptop-dv6t-7000-dv7t-7000-envy17-3200-a.html

In short, you should disable SSD acceleration first in Intel RST under Windows and format the SSD in disk management. This should create a MBR on the SSD and make it usable for a Linux install. Also if you want to partition the mSSD for a Linux install and Acceleration under Windows, go through step 4, and then re-enable SSD acceleration, but instead of choosing the full volume, choose whatever you desire. You can then make available the rest of the mSSD in Intel RST and reformat that portion for an OS install.

Additional note: SSD acceleration works like RAID 0, what you did when formatting the mSSD under Linux was essentially deleting the RAID volume on the mSSD. Therefore you get forced in Intel RST on boot because it detects a RAID volume error. It will do the same thing if you have your mSSD or hard drive unplugged form the motherboard with SSD acceleration enabled.

 

I disabled Intel RST, so now I can see drives when I attempt to install Ubuntu, but I keep getting errors. The first was a root error when installing 11.04 from a stick. Then there was an error when using WUBI within Windows. I am now making a 12.xx USB stick and I will attempt to install from that.

I would put Ubuntu on the mSSD, but I don't want to get rid of much needed cache space. I will reconsider if I upgrade the mSSD to anything bigger than a 32gb card.