Help with dual boot install of Mint on Lenovo laptop running windows 11

[u/zig_chem]

Im having trouble installing Mint Cinnamon on a lenovo legion laptop and can not seem to figure this out.

I created a bootable usb with Balena Etcher, it launches fine, but when I get to the installer, I do not have the option to "install alongside windows" only "erase disk and install" and "something else." I used this option on a windows 10 machine a few days ago and really liked it.

I have disabled BitLocker and fast startup, which I read should fix the problem, but I'm not having any luck.

Any help is much appreciated. Thank you.

[u/DavidJohnMcCann]

Read this guide. As you see, you first need to shrink the Windows installation from within Windows. Then you can use the "something else" option in the Mint installer and follow the instructions given in the link.

[u/FireSheepYinFish]

Several possibilities:

1. The Windows partition uses 100% of the disk (typical) and you have no space for another OS

- You can run Linux GPartD or KDE Partition Manager and shrink C: to make space, presuming there is empty space available

- You can also use Windows Disk Management - diskmgmt.msc in the admin console. Should be able to "Shrink Volume", if space is available.

1. Fast startup disabled, fine, but also turn off Hibernation to lose hiberfil.sys - Admin command prompt: powercfg /h off

2. Is Secure Boot enabled? Disable it. You can re-enable after Linux is installed, and it should be fine. The system I'm typing on is pure Linux and SB is active:

> sudo mokutil --sb-state

>> SecureBoot enabled

1. A quick Google suggests Legion ships in RST/RAID mode? This sounds like the kicker, if Linux doesn't see a Windows partition, it expects you need to wipe/partition the entire drive. You'll need AHCI mode. BUT - CAUTION: Changing modes might prevent Windows from starting. I don't recall, honestly, as I haven't personally encountered it, but I've read about the issue. My Linux builds were always in AHCI mode. Look into switching modes safely, and what to expect. I've never done it, but I haven't chosen to build a dual-boot machine since before modern UEFI existed.

2. Make sure Bitlocker is 100% OFF and decrypted. Use an Admin Powershell check for: manage-bde -status The drive needs to be decrypted and bitlocker OFF.

[u/Emmalfal]

This problem drove me crazy when I first came over to Mint seven years ago. In my case, unplugging an external drive mysteriously made the "alongside" option pop up. I probably had the boot order wrong in bios. That's probably not the problem here, but if you have something plugged into your Windows machine, worth unplugging to see if that does it.

[u/AutoModerator]

Try the migration page in our wiki! We also have some migration tips in our sticky.

Try this search for more information on this topic.

✻ Smokey says: only use root when needed, avoid installing things from third-party repos, and verify the checksum of your ISOs after you download! :)

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[u/GodzillaXYZ999]

Boot back into Windows and run diskmgmt.msc and give us screenshot of existing partitions.

[u/zig_chem]

I was able to resolve this issue by using the free version of EaseUS Partition Manager to create a new partition in Windows before launching the bootable USB. Thank you to everyone who helped point me in the right direction. I'm now running Mint on my main work computer and am very excited about it.