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My question is more-or-less a summary of all pre-existing Ask Ubuntu questions and answers relating to the installation of Ubuntu along with Windows 7.

I have bought a new HP laptop with its original Windows 7. I want to install Ubuntu along with Windows 7 64-bit. I ran the Ubuntu 12.04 Desktop installation CD, but the Ubuntu installer doesn't show the "along with Windows 7 option" -- it is only showing two options.

I read some questions and answers posted on this community, then focussed on Ubuntu 12.04 installer does not see Windows already installed on my computer.

I tried the following things,

  1. I ran the terminal in live CD and tried sudo dmraid -rE command and dmraid remove command, but the terminal says that there are no dmraid partitions.

  2. Then I tried another scenario and checked my partitions with GParted. There are some partitions labelled C, HP tools, Recovery and System. C contains Windows 7 files.

  3. So I shrank the volume of the C Drive.

  4. Now I have 50000MB of unallocated disk space. I tried with GParted to create a partition on that allocated space. It says something like "you can't create more than four primary partitions". Of course, all four other partitions created on Windows are actually the type of the primary partition.

  5. So I went back to Windows 7 and tried to create a new volume on the unallocated space. Unfortunately, it says that if I create a new volume, it will be the type of Dynamic partition. It says we can't boot another OS from that partition, so I cancelled that step.

Now I have 50000MB of unallocated space, but how can I install Ubuntu on that partition without harming the existing Windows 7? Because I still have only two options:

  1. Erase and install Ubuntu.
  2. Try something else.

(I can see my unallocated space by going to "something else" option.)

3 Answers 3

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I have just lived through this!

Consider what I have done as an unfinished test. I don't really know (and may never need to know) if what I did will work for me in all situations.

Steps:

  1. I created the HP/Win7 back up DVDs. I think you will need 5 DVDs to do this. There were 4 primary partitions on my HP HDD. I think they were the BOOT(small), MAIN(huge), BACKUP(not big) & HPTOOLS(small) partitions. I am lead to believe that the software to create the DVDs is in the HPTOOLS partition. And that the DVDs are a copy of the BACKUP partition. But I could be wrong about that last point. Regardless, HP will only let you create (at least they say so when you do the backup) 1 set of DVDs per laptop. By all means do this. It only costs you your time and 5 DVD.

  2. At this point I felt I could do away with either the BACKUP partition or the HPTOOLS partition. I chose to delete the HPTOOLS partition even though the placement of the undeleted BACKUP partition meant I would not be able to use about 5% of the HDD. As an added precaution, I did a disk dump of the HPTOOLS partition to an ordinary file in the Win7 partition. The "dd" (disk dump) application is an old Unix command. I was booted up in the Ubuntu Live CD under "try it" when doing this backup.

  3. After the precautionary "dd" I deleted the HPTOOLS partition. I believe this was primary partition number 4 (of 1 to 4).

  4. While booted up in Win7 you should probably run the de-fragmentation application on your Win7 partition. Make sure the disk is empty enough to be shrunk to the desired size.

  5. I used gparted to shrink my Windows 7 partition. The Ubuntu installer might be able to do this as well.

  6. Now the Ubuntu installer should offer up the option of installing Ubuntu "alongside" Win7. Before, with 4 primary partitions already on the HDD, the Ubuntu installer only offered me to install Ubuntu "into" the Win7 partition.

That got me to being able to dual boot my new HP laptop.

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  • I tried your way..But small different.If you have Hp support assistant software, it will automatically create the HP tools partition when you run it.So There are only two way .Use WUBI installer ,delete the recovery partition after make backup on DVD.WUBI installer contentiously crashing to me.So a did the second option.You know i never buy HP laptops in future.Because you cant customize it.Also support is very poor.Believe me the support agent i talked last time even don't know what is primary partition!
    – Thabo
    Jul 10, 2012 at 2:35
  • Interesting, I just checked with gparted and my HDD is as I described. No tools partition. Only an empty (small wasted) space at the end of the HDD. However, I can not say for sure I have run HP support assistant software since I had re-partitioned the HDD. But even if I did, nothing can re-create a new primary partition to contain the HP tools because there are already 4 primary partitions on the HDD (remember I had installed Ubuntu). ... I should add, though, my HP laptop died on day 18. HP sent me a new one (a bit unusual). So I'll be going through this process yet again!
    – st2000
    Aug 2, 2012 at 13:41
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Try to save the HP Tools on a USB Pen (copy the programs to the USB pen and try to run them from the pen, to see if they are still working) and then delete the HP Tools partition. That way you will have more space unallocated and you'll be able to create your Ubuntu partition.

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  • Thanks ....But it is not working from USB.I think those files might have some shared installation files with windows 7 files.
    – Thabo
    Jul 7, 2012 at 22:56
  • Well then, if it doesn't void your warranty, erase all partitions (except Windows 7, if you want to keep it). If you do so, I would advise to make a third partition, just to mount /home :) Jul 8, 2012 at 3:27
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So you have 4 partitions. You should have one extended partition and three primary to make this work...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disk_partitioning#PC_partition_types

The total data storage space of a PC hard disk can be divided into at most four primary partitions, or alternatively three primary partitions and an extended partition. These partitions are described by 16-byte entries that constitute the Partition Table, located in the master boot record.

You can then have two sub divisions in the extended partitions. One of these can be your 50GB partition, and are called logical partitions in the extended. Now you have have 5 partitions. I have this and it works fine.

Then you can let ubuntu do it's business.

|Partition1|Partition2|Partition3{ExtendedPartition|4|5|} for example.

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  • 4th one is labeled as "System " and it has lower capacity around 8 MB.What is that mean?if i make that as extended partition doesn't it harm Hp recovery mechanism and Windows7?
    – Thabo
    Jul 7, 2012 at 22:45
  • I can't help you with that I'm sorry. If you don't need it by all means do what the person below says. What you could do, is use Gparted and maybe one of them is an extended partition, if you are lucky!
    – JSt
    Jul 7, 2012 at 22:47
  • Thanks...Unfortunately that is not going to work because i already checked with Gparted.There is no an extended partition
    – Thabo
    Jul 7, 2012 at 22:52
  • Hmmm, well are you sure system is just 8MB? Does it contain anything? Usually system contains windows 7, and C: contains your files.
    – JSt
    Jul 7, 2012 at 22:59
  • Actually i can see the system and Hp tools partitions via Gparted and Windows Disk managers.Only two Partitions(C and Recovery )can be accessible via My computer.I think System and Hp tools partitions are some kind of loaders. :(
    – Thabo
    Jul 7, 2012 at 23:07

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