0

I used my Dell laptop to compile a boot usb stick with another Ubuntu distro. When I finished I tried to go back on to the Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS system on the laptop but all I get is a flashing cursor in the top LH corner of the screen. I have run Boot Repair Disk but it only created a "paste file" with a caption that someone may be able to help if they review this file. At the moment when I switch the laptop on I get the usual Dell start-up screen and then is goes to the flashing cursor and that's it. I'm not a techie by any means so your help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers Rambler1

Rambler1
  • 11
  • 1
  • In honesty it was a little while ago and I'm not sure exactly what I did. As I recall I was trying to partition a memory stick and install another version of Ubuntu, I booted from a boot CD containing Mint and working in Mint I tried to create a bootable version of another Ubuntu distro but I can't remember which. – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 16:02
  • Is it possible that you made a mistake and formatted a volume associated with your system installation? Without knowing what caused the problem, it's hard to guess how to fix it. There is always the one-size-fits-all solution which is to reinstall the OS. You can boot a live session from installation media by selecting "Try Ubuntu" if you need to access the file systems. – Nmath Jul 10 '21 at 16:05
  • It was a while ago, I'm not sure what I did. I was trying to partition a memory stick and install another ver of Ubuntu, I booted from a boot CD with Mint and working in it I tried to create a bootable version of another Ubuntu distro but I can't remember which. I thought it would be a safer way of working as I was not working on the Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS and so less likely to do any harm. When I run the Boot Repair it gives the option to create a "bootinfo summary" or to quit, there is no option with "reccommended repairs". It gave me this web address : http://paste.ubuntu.com/p/54829vFgjD/ – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 16:14
  • I do need to access the files but thought that I may overwrite them if I ran anything else. I have the disc with Mint, would that allow me to access the files? – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 16:17
  • I'd be the last to say that what you propose is impossible! – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 16:18
  • Any live session of Ubuntu will allow you to access file systems. Running a live session doesn't need to be installed and won't make changes to your installed system **unless you tell it to**. From the boot repair output there were no operating systems found. If I had to guess, you made a mistake when flashing the USB and wrote over your Ubuntu installation instead. Be very careful what operations you perform even in a live session because even though a live session does not need to be installed, it's still a fully functional version of Ubuntu – Nmath Jul 10 '21 at 16:55
  • OK, I'll take a look with Mint. Should it come up as another drive in the File Manager? – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 17:00
  • Yes the file manager should be able to access any mounted file systems – Nmath Jul 10 '21 at 17:07
  • OK another lesson learned, thank you for your assistance. – Rambler1 Jul 10 '21 at 17:08

0 Answers0