Zorin 9 Not Appearing, Only Windows 8

Hi.
I just installed Zorin 9, and was nicely surprised Zorin automatically made space for itself by dividing my hard disk into 2 partitions, giving just a bit more space to my Windows 8.

But after rebooting only Windows 8 appears.

To be able to boot up from the Live disk to try out Zorin I had to disable Safe Boot in the Bios, and enable Legacy Support. (Not sure I had to do the latter, but I did. I don't remember all the details of the tutorials I read, and saw on videos.) I'm obviously not very pc savvy.

To boot from that disk I had to press esc. Then I had to choose the internal CD/DVD option. But now that I don't have that disk in it anymore, and Zorin is installed, I don't know how to make it appear. No option to choose Zorin 9 or Windows 8 appears. My notebook just boots up in Windows 8.

I made a System Image Backup of Windows 8 before installing Zorin 9. It's on an external drive. So I guess I can restore my notebook to it's before Zorin state. But I would like to try Zorin now that's it installed. Otherwise I would use that backup and then install Zorin 9 once more, but this time doing something differently as per advice given here.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi, see the links I gave here:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6500#p30970

and here:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6075

Thank you! I'll check it out.

Since I typed it out, I might as well copy it here, even though it might make no difference at this point as you already posted your instructions for me:

I translate from Dutch what I see in Disk Management:

Disk 0 Standard 465,64 GB Online / 400 MB Restore partition / 260 MB EFI system partition / (C:) 251,20 GB NTFS Startup, Swapfile, Crashdump, Primary partition / 193,80 GB Primary partition/ 3,60 GB Primary partition / 450 MB Restore partition / RECOVERY (D:) 15,95 GB NTFS OEM partition /.

PS:
Can I still use the already installed (I think) Zorin 9 software, or do I better start from scratch using my System Image Backup first? (I realize the answer might be given in those tutorials. But if not...)

Hi Lode, that partition setup looks complex to me as I don't have any system with UEFI - my advice is to look at the EasyBCD article. Best if you use GParted download from here:

http://gparted.sourceforge.net/

Boot with that and post a screenshot:

http://www.veoh.com/watch/v385833212XzmANbj

Please note that you should change your boot order BEFORE selecting LEGACY mode - once you choose legacy mode you cannot change the boot order of your drives.

Also you should put the Zorin bootloader (GRUB) on the partition you install '/' too - you need 3 partitions - '/' formatted to ext4, (Primary), Extended partition - 4 Gb Swap Area at END and everything in front as '/home' formatted to ext4 file system.

I have completed a dual boot install for Windows 7 but because I don't have fast broadband, after 3 days ot 8-11 hour upload times and failing each time I have given up!

Had I been successful I was going to do a Windows 8 dual boot install - bear in mind this rig does NOT have a UEFI BIOS!

Thank you.

Since yesterday I've tried so many things to make it work... and it went wrong so bad that I have had to use the Factory image recovery option twice. Half of the time I was reformatting so I could not go on-line and see your reply. System Restore didn't work, Refresh didn't, using my System Image Backup on the external drive didn't work, even Window's offer to make a rescue disk when it couldn't use that backup failed... plus other things I tried but don't remember.

This is the situation now: booting up both Zorin and Windows appear as icons on a nice looking blue field made by EasyBCD. But when I hit the Zorin icon this appears on a black screen:

File: \NST\AutoNeoGrub0.mrb
Status: 0x000007b

I can only boot up in Windows.

I was wondering how I could remove the partition Zorin made, and try again, hopefully not making the mistakes I made before, or new ones. For just one example: as I did not see Zorin in the EasyBCD panel -it was below the lower border and only visible using the slider bar I found out later- I added Zorin again. Resulting in having 2 Zorin icons and one for Windows at boot up. I hit one of Zorin icons, but only error messages appeared.

But one of the links you gave in your above post leads to info on how to remove a partition. Hmmm, maybe I should try. My Windows 8 looks like 7 again -thanks to Startisback- all tweaked to my liking.

You talk about the boot order, and I've tried many things in the Bios for the first time in my life. But I don't know exactly what boot order you mean. And this instruction is Greek to me:

"Also you should put the Zorin bootloader (GRUB) on the partition you install '/' too - you need 3 partitions - '/' formatted to ext4, (Primary), Extended partition - 4 Gb Swap Area at END and everything in front as '/home' formatted to ext4 file system."

But the point to me is, can I still fix what I have set up now? Leaving Zorin where it is now, but make it boot up?

Hi friend - I just wish I could have uploaded my tutorial video - it would have been so much easier to explain!

OK, I will try and find some screenshots about partiitioning I did for a different system - will have to look through my archive! Bear with!

OK, can't find the pictures I wanted - please follow this text guide I created to day - it was for Seven but should still apply:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7981

In terms of the Zorin partitions - take a look at my video on installing Zorin 8 by itself:

http://www.veoh.com/watch/v67233697bJ2bS9jm

Thanks again!

I corrected the following line in my above post, adding "not" in it as that was my intent:
"Half of the time I was reformatting so I could not go on-line and see your reply."

I'll check out your tutorials. I plan to keep the Windows 8 setup I have now, as I even found a way to disable the Lock Screen and Log In Screen, besides it having the Windows 7 look and functioning using Startisback. If it were not for that I would install Zorin 9 as the only OS. I can't stand the default Windows 8 look and functioning! Next year Windows 9 comes out, but it still shows half of that to me ugly Metro screen. The Start menu will be next to that according to some pictures I saw.

I have a Compaq and HP offers a way to set what you want to happen when you close and open the lid of your laptop. I set it to "Sleep" and disabled having to log in. I also unchecked the Lock Screen from appearing as said. I surfed looking for a How To, but none of the solutions offered worked for me. Then I remembered the HP options for battery and lid settings.

PS:
I just asked the folks on the EasyBCD forum if it is possible to use that software to delete the partition Zorin made. To do a fresh install of Zorin, this time doing it right. (Crossing fingers.)

"a Partition Disappeared From Sight"
https://neosmart.net/forums/showthread. ... #post81871

If not, I might ask which version of GParted I can best use for that here:
http://gparted-forum.surf4.info/

Versions: http://gparted.sourceforge.net/download.php

It looks like I found the answers (I hope) and posted them on that forum:

https://neosmart.net/forums/showthread. ... #post81871

Dear Swarfendor437,

I want to thank you for all your affords and help.

About a year ago I was on this forum also, as I was thinking of installing Zorin then. Yet it seemed too complicated for someone with my limited PC knowledge. Yet because recently had to get a new laptop, and there were some bugs in Windows 8 -even after making it look like Windows 7- I got interested in Zorin again.

I think I gave it a good try this time. Not only with the Live disk trial method again, but now also installing it next to Windows. But I failed. Since the above post I had to reformat again. I posted the details here: https://neosmart.net/forums/showthread.php?t=13039

It was a nice surprise (as I mentioned) to see Zorin make a partition for itself. If I would have had to do that I probably would have stopped the install right there and given up on Zorin then.
I was hoping that after that automatic partition making my machine would boot up and offer the choice to use Zorin 9 or Windows 8. But that did not happen. Probably due to my lack of PC knowledge and making one or more mistakes.

I don't want to have to go into the BIOS -unless it would be with a few exact simple to follow step by step instructions- and certainly not have to open the command prompt, nor have to execute a series of instructions that are Greek to me. Those things are for people who have it as their hobby, or their work.

Maybe I misunderstand. My excuses if that is so.

Good luck to you, and my best heartfelt wishes!

<3

Hello Friend - please take a look at my Part A of dual booting with Windows 7 (link here):

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=7993#p38668

Yes you can go to Windows 8, then go to Computer, right-click and 'Manage' but I need to check this or just search for 'Disk Management' - just delete all the ext4 and swap area to the right of 'C:/' in Disk Management, Launch Easy BCD and remove 'Zorin' from the bootloader.

Simple as - but I have NOT TRIED THIS - but it SHOULD work!

Thank you again.

I just noticed in my post above that I had posted the link to one of the other tutorials here instead of to the thread with the details of what happened on the EasyBCD forum. I corrected that, and place it here also so you don't have to scroll up to see it: https://neosmart.net/forums/showthread.php?t=13039

Somehow after I had Windows 8 etc. reinstalled from that flash drive -which luckily has the "lean" HP version on it it turned out, without all the normally installed bloatware the computer makers put on their products, all the annoying bugs I had with that OS before are gone. So as it is now I see no good reason to install Zorin. If it was a matter of only inserting the Zorin Life disk and choosing "Install Zorin" I would love to install it. Just for fun. And then who knows, I might like it better than Windows. But that is not possible (yet). A series of specialized actions are still to be executed before dual bootup works. And one single mistake can cause the need for reformatting.

As I wrote: the last time -yesterday- my laptop could not even utilize partition D: (with the factory image on it) to reformat after all those things went wrong. If it hadn't been for that flash drive I luckily had made the day before, I would have had to call HP or go to the store to get a factory recovery disk.

Three times reformatting these last days is plenty for me...

If I were a programmer and had the spare time and saw it as a hobby to make Zorin so that all you had to do was to put in the disk and let it install, and that was it, I would do it. That is how Windows works. As it is now Zorin is only for the advanced users. Which is perfectly fine of course, only that I'm not an advanced user. And my interests lay elsewhere.

But I might be back here next year again... if I get another newsletter announcing a new Zorin version... which will install and dual boot all by itself.

If that is not possible, so be it. There are plenty of people who like to play with computers and do all kinds of interesting things on them. Zorin will be there for them.

PS:
In the mean time the lead developer of Zorin -Artyom Zorin- let me know that it is not necessary to use third party software with Zorin 9 now. That has been taken care of he mailed me. Only for the use the Live disk to disable Secure Boot temporarily. But for Windows to boot up next to Zorin Secure Boot must re-enabled.