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My dad screwed up my HDD while trying to install Ubuntu and Windows on separate partitions, so now it says it has 20.8 GB of space on the disk and it really has MUCH MORE, but I don't know exactly how much.

The computer is an HP intel celeron with 2.00 GB ram and 1.86 GB usable (don't know why that is).

Ubuntu never actually got installed and my dad installed Windows on the '20 GB' HDD and now Windows only thinks that's how big the drive is. Windows version: 1511.

There is no data that needs keeping, so I can delete everything if required. He partitioned it using Ubuntu installation disk, but then installed Windows! Come On!

The goal is to have both Windows and Ubuntu running stable on this computer and to fix the hard drive so it is 128 GB

I am 9 years old, hope this question can be resolved soon.

batchBoy3
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    Please, [edit] your question and add the output of sudo lsblk -o NAME,FSTYPE,SIZE,MOUNTPOINT,LABEL. Also, specify the exact version of your Ubuntu system. – FedKad Dec 03 '23 at 11:45
  • Where exactly do you see the size of the HDD being shown as 20.8 GB? – Tilman Dec 03 '23 at 12:35
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    Windows installation is out of the scope of AskUbuntu. However, you can boot to a live Ubuntu system (see: https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/try-ubuntu-before-you-install) and check your disk with the Disks utility. Delete all partitions and start installing Windows and Ubuntu side by side. Search Internet for more info: https://www.google.com/search?q=install+ubuntu+and+windows+dual+boot – FedKad Dec 03 '23 at 12:36
  • Reply to Tilman: Everywhere, i.e. BIOS, Windows, 3rd Party tools, PE installations. – batchBoy3 Dec 03 '23 at 13:53
  • Reply to FedKad: Ok, will try next time I get a chance. – batchBoy3 Dec 03 '23 at 13:54
  • If a disk reports its size incorrectly, then it is probably faulty. It should be checked with an appropriate S.M.A.R.T. utility: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_S.M.A.R.T._tools – FedKad Dec 03 '23 at 14:01
  • Reply to FedKad: There is no physical damage and I've tried updating the drivers/firmware and it still thinks its 20.8GB. But will use a S.M.A.R.T utility to try and RRR the disk. (Recover,Repair,Reset) – batchBoy3 Dec 03 '23 at 14:16
  • I would suggest looking at a manufacturer's hardware utility, such as WD Drive Utilities or the equivalent for your type of disk. This should be able to fix a non-faulty drive. Another option that is more generic is something like HDDScan. (I am not recommending any particular software product.) – doneal24 Dec 03 '23 at 15:26
  • Son … If your father partitioned the rest of the drive for use with Ubuntu and used a Linux EXT4 filesystem on it then Windows can't see that … I would advise that you ask your father about what exactly did he do and has he finished installing Ubuntu yet? first … Your father could be in the process of installing Ubuntu as a second Operating System, but hasn’t finished it yet … You might mess things up if you don’t ask him first … I'm sure you’re a smart young man no doubt, but it’s smart as well to ask your father first, isn’t it? – Raffa Dec 03 '23 at 16:07
  • … and please son … choose nice words when you speak about your father or when you speak to us and avoid "… screwed up …" and such as those words are not fit for a smart young man. – Raffa Dec 03 '23 at 16:20
  • Reply to Raffa C1: Yes I have and I am sure he has not partitioned the drive as an Linux EXT4 FS. – batchBoy3 Dec 04 '23 at 20:09
  • Reply to Raffa C2: 1. He asked me to do it 2. He is ok about it. So don't worry friend – batchBoy3 Dec 04 '23 at 20:10

1 Answers1

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  1. Boot to an Ubuntu live session (Try Ubuntu) from an Ubuntu live USB.

  2. Launch GParted partition editor and reformat the 128GB drive to FAT32 in order to overwrite everything that is installed on it. Now the Windows installer can recognize the drive.

  3. Installing Windows alongside Ubuntu often breaks Ubuntu, so you need to install Windows first in an Ubuntu / Windows dual boot. Boot from the Windows installer and install Windows on the entire drive.

  4. Boot from the Ubuntu installer and select the "Install Ubuntu alongside Windows" option. This option will automatically show you a drag-able partitioning slider and allow you to adjust the space allocation between the Windows and Ubuntu partitions.

  5. After you have allocated space for Ubuntu, the Ubuntu installer will do everything automatically from there on. Just accept the defaults and let the Ubuntu installer do the work for you. To save time you can also let the Ubuntu installer install updates and third-party codecs, so your new installation of Ubuntu will be ready to use as soon as the Ubuntu installer is finished and you restart the computer.

  6. When the Ubuntu installation is finished the Ubuntu installer will prompt you to restart the computer. While the computer is restarting it will halt and prompt you to remove the USB Ubuntu installation media. Remove the USB thumb drive so the Ubuntu installer doesn't start automatically again.

In these steps I have selected the easy way to do everything skipping everything that is too complicated. Nevertheless there are some other things that you might need to know, and you can find these things at How do I install Ubuntu alongside a pre-installed Windows with UEFI?. You can skip most of it, but you will probably need to disable Secure Boot in the UEFI settings before you install Ubuntu.

karel
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  • So, I format the '20GB' drive? Because Windows cannot see 128GB drive, it sees a '20GB' drive because my dad formatted it in a file system that works but I cannot see. – batchBoy3 Dec 03 '23 at 14:38
  • Let's assume your 128GB drive is OK because your dad didn't break anything, just reformatted it. If your drive is OK the "Try Ubuntu" option of the Ubuntu installation USB has a built-in app called GParted partition editor that can reformat the entire drive as either FAT32 or NTFS so that the Windows installer will be able to recognize the entire drive and install Windows on it. Install Windows first before installing Ubuntu please. – karel Dec 03 '23 at 14:41
  • Yeah, but the drive has been formatted to 20GB partition with 'no' allocated space available, and it thinks the drive is healthy and is working properly when it is not. Because it is not 'OK' – batchBoy3 Dec 03 '23 at 15:04
  • This is just to remind you that in step 2 where I wrote "reformat the 128GB drive to FAT32" I was referring to formatting the entire drive, not just to formatting one partition of this drive. – karel Dec 05 '23 at 11:59
  • Thanks to everyone helping me it means a lot. I will check in later next time i get a chance. =) – batchBoy3 Dec 08 '23 at 17:15