I’ve tried ubuntu 18, 20, 22; xubuntu, kali linux but they all started with trial page and I installed the OS but after that OS is not installed. But windows 10 can be installed easily. What could be the problem?
Welcome back! I hope I’m understanding correctly. It sounds like the issue is happening right at the bootloader stage rather than the install itself.
A lot of older Samsung laptops can be picky with Linux, especially around Secure Boot and UEFI. Try turning off Secure Boot in the BIOS and make sure you’re installing in the same mode Windows was using, whether that’s UEFI or Legacy.
Wiping the disk beforehand can also help clear out any conflicting boot entries. If it still gives trouble, switching to Legacy/CSM mode may work better on machines like that.
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The Samsung e5510 came out in 2009 so my guess is the same as @hydn – it’s related to the boot. Reply to the thread and let us know if disabling secure boot improved things – I’ve had to do that on a few older systems.
When you say “I installed the OS but after that OS is not installed” what does that mean, exactly? Just that the system doesn’t boot into the OS? Or, you’ve looked at disk and there’s no EFI partition? Clarity here could help better determine what is actually happening.
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That’s a great perspective, and it really shows how distro hopping can eventually lead you back to what simply works best for your needs.
Mint Cinnamon is a solid, reliable daily driver, and pairing it with Debian standard on servers makes for a clean, low-maintenance setup.
I also agree about pacman, it’s fast, the layout of the output is very clear, and gives that nice sense of “control” over what’s happening.
Your Chromebook setup is a nice touch too. Lightweight, practical, and perfect for remote access without lugging around a heavy machine.
Thank you very much for your responses. Here is what I’ve tried and reached success on installing XUbuntu.
- Disable UEFI Boot: I turned “UEFI Boot Support” to
Disabled. This forces the computer to use the older, more compatible Legacy/CSM boot mode , which Linux installers often work with better on older hardware. - Configure the USB Drive: In Rufus, I set the partition scheme to MBR and the target system to BIOS (or UEFI-CSM) . This creates a bootable USB that is compatible with the Legacy mode I enabled.
- Set Boot Priority: I moved the USB drive to the top of the “Boot Device Priority” list to ensure the computer boots from it first.
In short: I switched the boot method from modern UEFI to legacy BIOS mode and prepared the USB stick to work with that legacy mode.
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Nicely done!
Note if you would like to keep secure boot enabled you can use distros like Ubuntu or Fedora.
However, keeping it disabled is not a big deal at all unless it’s a work laptop with sensitive information.