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My set up is dual boot (I presume...) with XP pro and ubuntu 14.02. But ubuntu has disappeared - the purple screen with the OS options no longer appears, and my machine automatically boots into Windows.

I have a boot repair CD which works sometimes - which is to say after running it and rebooting I am sometimes presented with the purple screen with my OS options. But even on these rare occasions, before I can get into ubuntu a number of other screens appear with a lot of fine text in computerese, which - I guess - hints at some serious problems under the hood.

Any suggestions? Do I have to reinstall?

user298740
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  • You should look at: http://askubuntu.com/questions/88384/how-can-i-repair-grub-how-to-get-ubuntu-back-after-installing-windows – mmm3743 Jun 28 '14 at 22:53

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It looks like you may have mistakenly chosen "try Ubuntu" as you say "dual boot (I presume...)"...... If this is not a problem and you are sure that you had Ubuntu installed then one trick I learned when new to ubuntu - was to use the same account name and password when re-installing that helps get your files back and avoiding permissions if its not not a major error. Also when you say "a number of other screens appear with a lot of fine text in computerese" - do you see words like GRUB or can you see any file names or folders or programs ?. You get more help as well if you can actually post the actual error messages that are being displayed.

Gadgetroid
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  • It's quite possible that I'm using 'try ubuntu'. I was given a ubuntu CD a couple of years ago and ran it on my computer where it's been ever since - though I've no recollection of doing any special installation procedure. Perhaps this explains everything? I ran the boot repair disk again and a summary of the boot info can be seen here: http://paste2.org/UaEYvIGD As far as suggested solutions go it may help you to know that I have no interest in keeping the XP partition on my computer. – user298740 Jun 29 '14 at 15:29
  • I am not an expert but I had a look at the the link and spotted quite a few things that would bother me personally. I thought to point them out but there are too many. If you no longer have interest in the xp partition then its easy - format and fully install ubuntu. You also say that you are using a CD that is few years old. I would recommend that you try using the latest version of ubuntu as (ubuntu being open source improves massively over time). The best solution is to make a bootable usb stick see - http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/create-a-usb-stick-on-windows ..... – Gadgetroid Jun 30 '14 at 12:12
  • ...which is what I have done. Thanks for your advice Gadgetroid. – user298740 Jul 01 '14 at 23:36