Failure installing Ubuntu 14.10 on Mac Pro cylinder: Cannot mount /dev/loop0

Question

I'm trying to install Ubuntu on the latest version of the Mac Pro (the one that looks like a black mini trash can).

I basically followed the instructions on Installing on a Mac Pro - Cylinder (Late 2013)

I tried both Ubuntu 14.10 and Xubuntu 14.10. Both are 64-bit. The MD5's SUM are checked and are correct.

I created a bootable USB drive using Universal USB Installer 1.9.5.9.

I used the nomodeset kernel parameter. Everything went smoothly, until this:

(initramfs) mount: mounting /dev/loop0 on //filesystem.squashfs failed: No such device
Can not mount /dev/loop0 (/cdrom/casper/filesystem.squashfs) on //filesystem.squashfs

I've been working on this for hours. Before that, another person tried for days. Your help will be much appreciated.

Answer 1

I initially thought it is the way I created the USB drive. I switched to Rufus and it worked. But I then realized it is the USB controller within the Mac Pro. It turns out that one can only install Ubuntu from 1 of the 4 USB ports. Any other port leads to errors reading the USB key, thus the error I saw earlier. For the one success, I just happened to use the correct port.

Due to its small form factor, this Mac Pro is super hot. This causes some issues. Some ports would work a little bit when the machine is cold, but stop working very soon.