6

I just got my Dell XPS 9550 laptop, then I installed fresh Windows 10 Pro x64 on it, shrinked the volume for Ubuntu, and tried installing Ubuntu 16.04 via USB stick from ISO.

I did the install alongside Windows option, clicked next and it installs more than halfway, then it error out with this:

Unable to install GRUB in /dev/nvme.
Executing 'grub-install /dev/nvme failed.
This is a fatal error.

I have the following settings in BIOS: Legacy boot, AHCI, Secure Boot off.

Laptop configuration: i7-6700HQ, 16GB DDR4, 512GB Samsung P951 NVMe SSD, FHD screen.

Screenshots: enter image description here

enter image description here

Gparted after failed installation

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Han
  • 161
  • 1
    Maybe this is your solution. Anyway I have your same hadware configuration (on Asus UX501VW) but I have no problem to install grub on nvme – trunk96 Jun 17 '16 at 08:13
  • 2
    Thank you! That link gave me an idea, so I tried doing the "Something else" path. Apparently, Ubuntu's default installation does not know better--it installs grub to the /dev/nvme instead of the actual /dev/nvme0n1. So I created my own ext4 and swap partitions, and set the bootloader to /dev/nvme0n1, and it installed like a charm! – Han Jun 17 '16 at 08:57
  • 1
    I think that your problem comes from Legacy mode of BIOS. Next time you format your SSD I suggest you to install both Windows and Linux in UEFI mode :) – trunk96 Jun 17 '16 at 09:18
  • So after I successfully installed Ubuntu via the "Something else" method (above), I can get into Ubuntu from Grub menu just fine. However, if I choose Windows 10 option, the screen turns into a blank purple screen forever. My Windows 10 does not boot up! Any ideas? – Han Jun 18 '16 at 02:01
  • You can try to change BIOS setting from Legacy to UEFI (i think that Windows is installed in UEFI mode like in most of newer laptop). Ubuntu gurb should not run and Windows should start directly. If Windows starts in this way you have to reinstall Ubuntu leaving UEFI from BIOS setting and creating a UEFI usb bootable drive (with Rufus for example) with Ubuntu Live CD inside. Let me know how it goes! :) – trunk96 Jun 18 '16 at 07:09
  • Solved it. Appears to be a driver issue. When I was able to get into Windows after doing a sleep and wake-up on the laptop, I updated my drivers from chipset to video card. It fixed the purple screen. Then I went ahead and switched to UEFI, reinstalled everything. Works a lot smoother for some reason. – Han Jun 19 '16 at 04:43
  • Would you be able to write a full list of steps (or point me to one) as to how to install ubuntu on the xps 13. I've tried and I can't get both Ubuntu and Windows working at the same time. This is because Windows needs RAID set and UBUNTU needs AHCP. – Dan Oct 13 '16 at 17:06

1 Answers1

2

After hours of pain this is my solution to getting this working. Hope it's useful http://www.rationaljava.com/2016/10/dell-xps13-dual-boot-windows-10-with.html

Dan
  • 141
  • 4