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I wish to dual boot Ubuntu 14.04 LTS on my Macbook pro running Yosemite. I installed "refind" and it works, I created a bootable pendrive with Ubuntu using unetbootin, but when I turn on my Mac and I boot from the pen drive, it does not work.

A black screen with some sentences like

The system doesn't find the operating system.

appears. I noticed that when I created the bootable pendrive with unetbootin, at the end of the procedure, the Mac told me that he could not use the pen drive. Can anyone help?

3 Answers 3

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It sounds like the bootable usb pen drive was not created successfully, especially given the "mac told me that he could not use the pen drive" message. But try "step 10" (reboot with the alt/option key pressed to boot from the usb stick) if you weren't already.

I'm unfamiliar with mac's, but I'd suggest creating a Ubuntu cd/dvd/usb again using a different method. If you've got any dvd-r's or rewritable dvd-rw's around that might be the easiest, there appears to be an easy way to write an iso to a disk in mac.


First, you should verify that the Ubuntu iso downloaded correctly with no errors. Using md5sum or sha256sum to verify is the standard way.

This link ( https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BurningIsoHowto#Verifying_the_ISO_integrity ) looks like some excellent instructions on downloading, verifying, and burning an iso (on mac/win/ubuntu), and checking the finished DVD, and a link to booting tips too.

[Excerpt from BurningIsoHowto link above]

Verifying the ISO integrity

Before burning a DVD, it is highly recommended that you verify the md5 sum or sha256 sum (hash) of the .iso file. For instructions, please see HowToMD5SUM and HowToSHA256SUM. For the current list of Official Ubuntu SHA256 hashes, see the SHA256SUMS file for the release you're using under http://releases.ubuntu.com (and optionally the PGP signatures in the SHA256SUMS.gpg file); hashes for the older MD5 algorithm are in the same directory. UbuntuHashes currently has only md5sums. Checking the hash ensures that the file was not damaged during the download process and is 100% intact.


Here's some instructions from http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/create-a-usb-stick-on-mac-osx

How to create a bootable USB stick on OS X

We would encourage Mac users to download Ubuntu Desktop Edition by burning a CD. But if you prefer to use a USB stick, please follow the instructions below.

Note: this procedure requires that you create an .img file from the .iso file you download. It will also change the filesystem that is on the USB stick to make it bootable, so backup all data before continuing.

Tip: Drag and drop a file from Finder to Terminal to 'paste' the full path without risking typing errors.

  1. Download Ubuntu Desktop

  2. Open the Terminal (in /Applications/Utilities/ or query Terminal in Spotlight).

  3. Convert the .iso file to .img using the convert option of hdiutil e.g.,

    hdiutil convert -format UDRW -o ~/path/to/target.img ~/path/to/ubuntu.iso

    Note: OS X tends to put the .dmg ending on the output file automatically.

  4. Run

    diskutil list

    to get the current list of devices.

  5. Insert your flash media.

  6. Run

    diskutil list

    again and determine the device node assigned to your flash media (e.g. /dev/disk2).

  7. Run

    diskutil unmountDisk /dev/diskN

    (replace N with the disk number from the last command; in the previous example, N would be 2).

  8. Execute

    sudo dd if=/path/to/downloaded.img of=/dev/rdiskN bs=1m

    (replace /path/to/downloaded.img with the path where the image file is located; for example, ./ubuntu.img or ./ubuntu.dmg).

    • Using /dev/rdisk instead of /dev/disk may be faster
    • If you see the error dd: Invalid number '1m', you are using GNU dd. Use the same command but replace bs=1m with bs=1M
    • If you see the error dd: /dev/diskN: Resource busy, make sure the disk is not in use. Start the 'Disk Utility.app' and unmount (don't eject) the drive
  9. Run

    diskutil eject /dev/diskN

    and remove your flash media when the command completes.

  10. Restart your Mac and press alt/option key while the Mac is restarting to choose the USB stick.


Here's a link to ubuntu.com's instructions on burning a DVD on OS X using "Disk Utility." http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/burn-a-dvd-on-mac-osx

Important parts seem to be:

  • Insert blank disk
  • Drag and drop your .iso file to the left pane in Disk Utility. Now both the blank disc and the .iso should be listed.
  • Select the .iso file, and click on the 'Burn' button in the toolbar.
  • Ensure that the 'Verify burned data' checkbox is ticked (you may need to click on the disclosure triangle to see the checkbox).

Also, the BurningIsoHowto link way above has this info on "If the burning fails":

If the CD writing fails, try writing at a slower speed. For better results, try the slowest burn speed reasonably possible. Most Gui tools have a "Properties" button to select speed but with Brasero those sorts of options appear after pressing the 1st "burn" button. This is the single most likely cause of problems but is much more widely known than Md5sum/SHA error-checking. Slower speeds ensure greater accuracy.

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  • I tried to burn a Ubuntu cd but at the end of the process of burning the mac told me "The disc inserted is not readable by this computer". I used DVD-R DL verbatim with disk utility.
    – Riccardo
    Dec 9, 2014 at 17:17
  • That sounds like the right way, with "Disk Utility"... maybe the .iso file you downloaded has errors? I'll add a link & basic info on verifying the iso with md5sum or sha256sum
    – Xen2050
    Dec 9, 2014 at 23:46
  • I've added some info, and links to LOTS more info. If it's been helpful please select/check mark / upvote my answer :)
    – Xen2050
    Dec 10, 2014 at 0:10
  • I'll try following your guides and I'll see if it will work. Thank you
    – Riccardo
    Dec 10, 2014 at 11:32
  • You're welcome, hope it works out. The good news is that once you get one live Ubuntu/linux to boot, you can use it to make more live disks/usb's easier. My fav method is a "multiboot" usb from these instructions pendrivelinux.com/… I skip parts I and II if the drive is OK, and just do III (install grub, copy iso files, setup grub.cfg)
    – Xen2050
    Dec 10, 2014 at 12:11
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Ubuntu have a help document to install the Ubuntu on Mac-books, hope this document will helps you https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MacBookPro

You can also follow the step available in the URL http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/install-linux-macbook-pro/ to install the Ubuntu on mac pro

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The disc inserted is not readable by this computer

As long as you followed the above burning a DVD on OS X, then this is normal. OS X doesn't recognize the bootable Ubuntu Live disk, but you still should be able to 'option boot' and select the live disk from there (it will probably be listed as 'EFI' or 'Windows').

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