Decreasing windows partition's size and increasing kubuntu partition's size

[Robert24]

Hello everyone,

I managed to reboot windows using mr_raider advice. Here is what I did exactly:

1) I entered ``reboot" in this GRUB shell
2) When the first screen appeared (with the LENOVO logo) there was the usual message ``Press ENTER to interrupt bla bla", and I pressed ENTER
3) I chose Windows boot in the boot options and pressed f10

And windows started. So I could save the bookmarks I had done there.

Concerning windows system, I would be glad if we could keep this dual boot and not damage windows because when I bought my computer, I didn't receive any CD, even if I paid to have windows installed on it (so it's a 100% legal windows). I don't know if I am entitled to some licence which would give me the possibility to download Windows on some usb key to be able to reinstall it.

Could someone give me the steps to reinstall kubuntu? At this point I really don't mind erasing the whole kubuntu partition and then chopping it (and the free space) into the 4 parts advised by oshunluvr in his post #58.

I guess I need to start by turning off my computer, plug the live key, change the priority in the bios to boot this key, and then?
Clikc on ``install kubuntu 16.04"? But then how will I choose to make these 4 partitons?
Should I delete the partitions previously used by linux with the KDE partition manager in order to have one big block of unallocated memory?

Anyway thanks a lot for all the help you give me. Without you I would be totally hopeless.

Best

[mr_raider]

For windows here is what I suggest.

Go to your activation page in settings (ctrl-i)

Link your activation to a MS account. If not done create an outlook.com email. This will allow you to recover the activation if lost.

Go to MSs website and download the iso image for windows 10. MS also makes a tool to create a USB image

Between the ISO and the online activation, you can restore your windows 10 install anytime.

You can also even create a recovery image from Windows backup utility to keep your install and restore it.

This should give you the tools to restore your installation.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5010 using Tapatalk

[Robert24]

Thank you for these precious indications mr_raider.
Ok I linked my activation to my outlook address and I created an ISO file using their MediaCreationTool, which I put on my external drive.

Concerning Kubuntu, how should I proceed? Were my previous plans correct? i.e.

I guess I need to start by turning off my computer, plug the live key, change the priority in the bios to boot this key, and then?
Clikc on ``install kubuntu 16.04"? But then how will I choose to make these 4 partitons?
Should I delete the partitions previously used by linux with the KDE partition manager in order to have one big block of unallocated memory?

[mr_raider]

I bow to the expertise of others in this area.

You really should create a btrfs install, it avoids the issue of splitting your home and / partitions.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5010 using Tapatalk

[Robert24]

Thanks for the advice. This being said, I really have no idea what a btrfs is. I googled it and didn't understand what I read.
To be honest, for me the simplest the better. I don't intend to play a lot with my partitions when this will be over. I only want a big linux partition, stable, with my Windows partition that I can access from time to time (and if possible mount from linux).

[oshunluvr]

I bow to the expertise of others in this area.

You really should create a btrfs install, it avoids the issue of splitting your home and / partitions.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5010 using Tapatalk

Of course, you're correct. But with Robert24 already in damage-control mode I was afraid to throw anything new into the fray.

Robert24: btrfs is just a different file system than ext4. ext4 is the default because it's old and everyone is familiar with it. On of the many advantages to Linux over Windows and OS/x is the plethora of file systems you can use, with each having advantages and disadvantages. mr_raider is referring to the default install of Kubuntu using btrfs. Instead of partitions, btrfs uses subvolumes to segregate data similarly to partitions, but still existing on the same file system/partition.

Since it seems you're new to the Linux world, I would leave it up to you if you want to try btrfs over ext4. If you do, a little research is probably in order, but it's actually much easier to use than ext4. What happened to you would be much less likely with btrfs as the file system is flexible enough to allow expanding and contracting without attempting to move data. In this case, you would have just had to expand the partition both directions - left and right - to fill the desired space and the files would have remained in place.

[Robert24]

Hello everyone,

Thank you to both of you oshunluvr and mr_raider for this suggestion. With your explanations and a bit of googling, I understood a bit better what this btrfs is. It looks like it can allow to recover some earlier version of the system if something goes wrong. But I think I will stick to the manual back-ups using an external hard drive. I was very happy with my previous system, so I don't really need to change it.

For now, what's really important to me is to be able to use kubuntu as soon as possible. So I just want to reinstall it and have enough space to deal with large files.

[Snowhog]

I, personally, want to congratulate you on your perseverance you've shown throughout this extensive thread. I know that what has happened is frustrating to say the least, but be assured, it is fixable. You have also not been hesitant in the least to let us know that everything you've been through is "new" to you. So many might have simply given up and said "Screw this! I'm going back to Windows." But you have stuck it out. That puts you ahead of many.

It is difficult at best to help someone using messages such as this, but again, you are sticking with us (and yourself). Every single one of us "experts" were, at one point, 'new' just like you. Believe it or not, Linux isn't as difficult as it must seem to you right now. It's a learning experience.

[mr_raider]

Anybody know what actually borked? I have always been wary of moving the left side of a partition. Now I'm even more apprehensive. My paranoia was clearly well founded.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5010 using Tapatalk

[Rod J]

Anybody know what actually borked? I have always been wary of moving the left side of a partition. Now I'm even more apprehensive. My paranoia was clearly well founded.

Yeah, I agree with you. Your paranoia is well founded.

I have successfully moved partitions left in the past. But, if you have an "ear" for what computers are doing you can tell it's very hard work for a mechanical hard drive to do this and why it often takes so long to do it. The read/write head keeps having to reposition itself thousands of times to read some data and then back to write it in the new position. So, things can go wrong with this process quite easily. I guess it's not so hard for an SSD to this. I suppose we'll never know just what went wrong this time though.

Actually, I've just realised that in this case the drive appears to be an SSD (Samsung MZ7LN512). I wonder if trimming the drive before huge writes like partition moving might have helped prevent whatever went awry?

It amazes me that there were no valid superblocks available in Robert's file system. On my 320Gb ext4 file system here I have 15 valid backup superblocks available--

rod@HP-Compaq-dc7600:~$ sudo dumpe2fs /dev/sda1 | grep superblock
[sudo] password for rod: 
dumpe2fs 1.42.9 (4-Feb-2014)
Primary superblock at 0, Group descriptors at 1-19
Backup superblock at 32768, Group descriptors at 32769-32787
Backup superblock at 98304, Group descriptors at 98305-98323
Backup superblock at 163840, Group descriptors at 163841-163859
Backup superblock at 229376, Group descriptors at 229377-229395
Backup superblock at 294912, Group descriptors at 294913-294931
Backup superblock at 819200, Group descriptors at 819201-819219
Backup superblock at 884736, Group descriptors at 884737-884755
Backup superblock at 1605632, Group descriptors at 1605633-1605651
Backup superblock at 2654208, Group descriptors at 2654209-2654227
Backup superblock at 4096000, Group descriptors at 4096001-4096019
Backup superblock at 7962624, Group descriptors at 7962625-7962643
Backup superblock at 11239424, Group descriptors at 11239425-11239443
Backup superblock at 20480000, Group descriptors at 20480001-20480019
Backup superblock at 23887872, Group descriptors at 23887873-23887891
Backup superblock at 71663616, Group descriptors at 71663617-71663635
rod@HP-Compaq-dc7600:~$

[Robert24]

Hello everyone,

I just woke up.

Thank you for the support Snowhog. Since my data is safe, I'm not too upset about what happened. I could enjoy linux and get used to it since September 2017 so I don't want to go back to windows. Plus you guys on this forum are really helpful and I find amazing to have so much support from volunteers that I never met. And also, I learned a lot in the process.

Now I just need to reinstall kubuntu. Any idea what I should do?

I was thinking I could boot my usb live key, open KDE partition manager, delete the previous linux partition and then use the installation application present on the key to reinstall kubuntu. If I understood well, I will have to choose some manual option since I want to create these 4 partitions, and this is the part where I will need your guidance because I've never done such a thing.

Best

[Rod J]

Robert, a number of us on the forum think it is better to set up the partitions ahead of doing the actual install. That way you have complete control over what goes where.

This is what I would do:

1. Leave the broken Kubuntu partition (sda6) as is. It's just over 63Gb and is probably big enough to accommodate the system plus any installed programs. This will be your root (/) partition. The partition will be reformatted when you install Kubuntu later so that will erase the broken file system. Or, you can reformat it within the partition manager first if you want.

2. Create a small swap partition at the end of the drive just to the left of the WinRE_DRV partition (sda4).

3. Use the remaining unallocated space as your home partition.

Once you have the partitions set up write down the partition numbers so you know which parition is which. It's also a good idea to label the partitions you are formatting too so avoiding confusion. Then install Kubuntu using the manual partitioning option so you can specify to the installer which parition is going to be used for what.

Hope this process goes well and good luck!

[mr_raider]

Hello everyone,

I just woke up.

Thank you for the support Snowhog. Since my data is safe, I'm not too upset about what happened. I could enjoy linux and get used to it since September 2017 so I don't want to go back to windows. Plus you guys on this forum are really helpful and I find amazing to have so much support from volunteers that I never met. And also, I learned a lot in the process.

Now I just need to reinstall kubuntu. Any idea what I should do?

I was thinking I could boot my usb live key, open KDE partition manager, delete the previous linux partition and then use the installation application present on the key to reinstall kubuntu. If I understood well, I will have to choose some manual option since I want to create these 4 partitions, and this is the part where I will need your guidance because I've never done such a thing.

Best

You should indeed use manual install.

For a functional linux boot you need:

1. EFI partition: already there

2. / partition (usually called root): minimum 10gb, Ir recommend 20 or 30gb minium. Formatted to ext4 journaling system or btrfs system

3. Optional: /home partition: formatted to ext4 also, size depends on your useage. Give it as much space as you can spare. All your downloads, media, and games are installed in /home.

4. Swap: formatted as linux swap.

Read here for swap file size recommendations:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SwapFaq

5. for bootloader installation, select /dev/sda (no number)

Here is what my EFI install looks like. This is a snigle boot linux system. I used a single btrfs partition. I have left empty space at the end of the drive but that is not obligatory for you.



Which distro you using?

[Robert24]

Thank you to both of you for your help.
I'm still a bit confused about what I'm supposed to do. Here is a print screen of my (Windows) Disk Management showing the current state of my disc:



From what I understood here is what I should do (with a lot of details because I really don't want to screw up again):

1) Turn off my computer which is actually using the windows session.

2) Plug the usb live key, turn my computer on.

3) Go into the bios to change the the priorities in order to boot from the usb key

4) Use KDE partition manager to delete the previous linux partition (the 63GB one). I will then have a bit unallocated area on my disc of size around 208 GB.

5) In KDE partition manager, right click on this unallocated area and create a partition of size 20 GB of type ext4 which will later be allocated to my root partition, the one I will boot when I want to use Kubuntu. I guess this is straightforward to do, right? I should also be able to put it on the left side of this unallocated area.

6) To the right of this newly created root partition, create another ext4 partition dedicated to my home directory of 148 GB (138 if I take 30GB for the root).

7) To the right of this partition create a linux swap partition of 20 GB (since I have 16GB of RAM, if I follow the recommendations provided here:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Sw...p_do_I_need.3F
by mr_raider).

8) Create another ext4 partition of 20GB for back-up install as oshunluvr advised me in his post #58, where I will also install Kubuntu

** Now the whole unallocated space is allocated since 20+148+20+20 = 208 **

9) Click on the install icon to start the proper reinstallation.

10) At some point I guess I need to choose manual installation.

11) At some point I will need to choose a mounting point for the root and for the home partition as indicated by oshunluvr in his post #63 i.e.

then you'll select your root (partition you're installing to) partition and give it a mount point of / and then select your home partition and give it a mount point of /home

12) Follow the instructions of the installer.

Now I have a couple of questions:

a) Is the procedure outlined above right?

b) mr-raider says that one needs 20 to 30 GB of space for the root partition. When is it more 30 than 20? I am a bit short on memory so if I can spare 10 GB I would be glad to do it. But I need to be able to use my computer to do more than just web-browsing so if it's necessary, I'll do a 30GB partition. I don't know if it can help but here is what I need to be able to do with my computer: a lot of programming with python, downloading libraries, and have several anaconda environment (sometimes very heavy). I also need to store some dataset, sometimes very heavy too. But I guess these files will go in the home partition.

c) Previously I was always able to mount my windows partition form kubuntu, and modify files on Windows (typically photos) from kubuntu. I would like it to remain so. Is there something I should do, or will it be necessary the case.

d) Does splitting my Linux in two main parts (root and home) slow down the tasks that I perform on data located on my home partition? Typically I want to do some image recognition analysis which already computationally intensive so I cannot afford dividing the speed by two or tree, because that would amount to loosing several hours every week.

e) How do I label these partitions as Rod J advised me in his post #87 :

Once you have the partitions set up write down the partition numbers so you know which parition is which. It's also a good idea to label the partitions you are formatting too so avoiding confusion.

I sincerely apologize for all the trouble I'm causing. I didn't expect this thing to be so complicated. But all this is beyond my current understanding of computers.

Best

[Robert24]

Just in case it wouldn't be obvious, of course I don't ask you to answer to everything. But if some of you have the impression that it's more or less the way to proceed or not at all, I would be glad to hear it.

I looked a bit online and found the following answers for some of my question:

b) It looks like 20GB should be enough for the root. Some people on quora say that 10 is enough so 20 seems ok.

d) Given the fact that my memory is of the SSD type, it shouldn't influence the speed of computation.