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I followed these steps, but can't get Linux to boot from USB on my HP Pavilion dv7 (Radeon HD 6490M). I was told to disable Secure Boot, but that option isn't even in my BIOS menu.

  1. BIOS on Laptop - changed Boot Order to this:
    1. USB Diskette on Key/USB Hard Disc
    2. USB CD/ROM ROM Drive
    3. USB Floppy
    4. Notebook Hard Drive
  2. UNetBootIn wrote the Linux Mint ISO to these drives:
    1. A 16 GB USB stick
    2. A 60 GB portable HDD
  3. Reboot laptop:
    1. With the USB stick inserted, it just boots Windows
    2. With the portable HDD it says no OS is found on the drive

What am I doing wrong?

Jeff Schaller
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FDM
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  • 1. You can try with the [boot option](http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2230389&p=13370808#post13370808) `nomodeset` (if the problem is caused by the graphics card); 2. You can try to make the USB boot system with another tool. I suggest [Rufus](https://rufus.ie) in Windows or [mkusb](https://help.ubuntu.com/community/mkusb) in Linux, – sudodus Jun 03 '20 at 09:31
  • mv point USB Floppy on the top in boot order. source https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebooks-Archive-Read-Only/DV7-Notebook-Won-t-boot-from-USB/td-p/2464049/page/3 – nobody Jun 03 '20 at 09:43
  • @nobody Already enabled that option... put it at the top, nothing changed. It's like it doesn't recognize the USB. – FDM Jun 03 '20 at 09:46
  • @sudodus Rufus didn't help. No clue how to do the boot option, alas. – FDM Jun 03 '20 at 09:46
  • There is a description of how to add a boot option in the link in my second comment (and links from that link). How far do you reach in the boot attempt? Is there any sign at all that the USB drive is recognized? Are you booting in BIOS mode or UEFI mode? Does some other computer boot from the USB drive? -- See also [this link](https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/FromUSBStick/bootUSB) with tips and links. – sudodus Jun 03 '20 at 10:42

3 Answers3

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Okay, I figured it out.

Had nothing to do with Secure Boot (option is missing in my BIOS anyway). It simply worked by using Rufus instead of UNetBootIn, and pressing F9 to manually select this drive during boot.

FDM
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I had the same issue, it worked when I formatted the USB stick to FAT32 rather than NTFS.

Echo
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One thing that has an effect on some ISOsis the writing method used.

  • "DD" mode is best for most applications contrary to what Rufus suggests (ISO mode), where DD copies the data one-for-one lowering the probablility of something going wrong during writing from errors possibly caused by writing in ISO mode.

  • tl;dr if you have issues with a drive not booting and your boot options are ok, it might be written wrong

AdminBee
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matthewtownson
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  • _"DD" mode is best for most applications contrary to what Rufus suggests_: You may want to read [this](https://github.com/pbatard/rufus/wiki/FAQ#Why_doesnt_Rufus_recommend_DD_mode_over_ISO_mode_for_ISOHybrid_images_Surely_DD_is_better), that provides a number of counterpoints to the idea that DD mode is best for most, and where the author of Rufus explains why they made ISO mode the default over DD mode. – Akeo Nov 26 '21 at 23:11