[SOLVED] Can't Install Dual Boot on HP Notebook

PROBLEM: Zorin 15 installer does not present an option to set up dual boot on my system.

BACKGROUND: I am not a Linux guy, although I very successfully used an older version of Zorin to extend the lifetime of a Win XP being used for light duty print/file server & backup storage. The notebook is HP Pavilion dv7-6c23cl with a single hard drive running Windows 7. The main C: drive partition has been shrunk to provide 300Gb contiguous free space for Zorin and apps. In addition to the free space, the following partitions are on the drive: "System" (NTFS, active), "Win 7 C: OS & Data (NTFS)", "Win 7 D: Recovery (NTFS)" and "Win 7 E: HP Tools (FAT32)".

WHAT WORKS: Per the "Install Zorin" web page: OS downloaded with correct checksum, successfully flashed USB install media, notebook booted from USB OK, install media checked OK (0 errors). The system successfully boots to the Zorin desktop that asks if you want to "Try Zorin" or "Install Zorin". "Try Zorin" works flawlessly.

The problem occurs when I select "Install Zorin". The "Installation Type" panel appears, acknowledges "This computer has multiple operating system on it", but has no "Dual Boot" provision! The only installation options are "Erase disk and Install Zorin" and "Something else".



If I select "Something else", I get a partition display that correctly shows the above listed partitions, but the 300Gb free space is marked "unusable". Selecting this "unusable" space causes all the tool buttons to gray out.



Anyone have any idea what is going on? I must use dual boot because I use a few specialty Windows apps that have no Linux counterparts. I'm hoping these will run under Wine or Play on Linux, but I've got to get Zorin up and running in order to know...

Thanks for your help!

* RESOLVED! * Solution kindly provided by Swarfendor437.
The problem was resolved by creating external recovery media and deleting the recovery partition. The partition management method used on this computer only allowed 4 physical partitions, deleting made room for Zorin.

On your Windows OS, have you checked in your settings that windows is not reserving the entire partition for "Fast Boot?"
It should be under Power Options, shutdown settings "enable Fast boot." Don't quote me on that... You would need to disable that Fast Boot in order to dual boot Zorin (or another OS).

Windows 7 through 10 enable the Fast Boot Option, which reserves or "locks" the drive with a file that preserves its state, allowing a faster boottime since the bootup procedure is not having to read from disk, so much.
This MAY be what is causing your issue- as a first thing to check, it's worth a try.

Thanks for your interest and comment! I could not find the setting you mentioned in even the Advanced Power Management settings. I looked up the topic in Microsoft forums and they said Fast Boot implemented in the OS started with Win 8. HOWEVER they also said some manufacturers implemented their own version of Fast Start / Quick Boot in BIOS. I'll take a peek in there when I have time to poke around. Naturally, this is an area that I'll tread very carefully so I don't end up with a brick...

Did I get something wrong about Microsoft Windows? Oh, the humiliation...

I have an HP Mini 110 and what HP does is make all of those partitions Primary and on any system the maximum number of Primar partitions you can have is 4. So my advice to you is use the create recovery media then store the DVDs in a safe place (the Mini needed 3 DVDs) delete that partition and you should be good to go.

Woohoo! Swarfendor437, your advice was spot on, worked like a charm! Thank you so much!