Unable to install Ubantu - old Sony Vaio will not boot from CD

[dcon]

My Vaio has an external PCMCIA connected CD drive and an external floppy. The hard drive has been formatted.

I've burned the latest version of Ubantu but although the CD spins during boot, nothing happens.The bios boot order is CD/Floppy/Hard Drive.

When I put in a Smart Boot manager disk in the floppy, I get the app to run however, my CD drive is not listed as a boot option.


type: name:
None Quit to BIOS
NONE Power off
NONE Reboot
None Floppy
None hard disk
Fat32 Primary1


How can I get Ubantu installed?? Am I missing something or are thier instructions for Smart Boot that will get the CD working?

[bidi]

Do you know for sure that the CD itself is good? I've had problems in the past with the fact that I didn't download the ISO correctly, and so the CD wouldn't boot. Try booting that same CD in another computer in which you know the CD-ROM drive works. If that works at least now you know your CD is good.

[dcon]

Do you know for sure that the CD itself is good? I've had problems in the past with the fact that I didn't download the ISO correctly, and so the CD wouldn't boot. Try booting that same CD in another computer in which you know the CD-ROM drive works. If that works at least now you know your CD is good.

Yup...absolutely positive on that one as I used it to install Ubantu on another system. The VAIO just won't deal with the CD as a boot vehicle.

[vvuiverine]

I once had a friend whom owned a Vaio and for some unexplained reason he had to boot from a floppy to install RedHat. It sounds similiar to what you are experiencing.

Here is a site that explains the procedure and links to Debian disk images, which should work with Ubuntu.

http://www.linux.com/howtos/IBM7248-...floppies.shtml

Hope this helps.

[vidd]

Yup...absolutely positive on that one as I used it to install Ubantu on another system. The VAIO just won't deal with the CD as a boot vehicle.

have you checked you bios settings to ensure that the cd rom is on the boot priority list BEFORE the hard drive?
Alot of these laptop with built in floppies are set up as follows:
boot0=floppy
boot1=ide
(IDE is the hard drive)

TAKE THESE STEPS:
1) Enter your bios
(if it boots the splash screen with no data b4 the win9x/2k/xp boot screen, refer to manufacture's web site for instructions on accessing bios...usually <ESC>, <F1>, or <DEL>)

2) Access the BOOT Priority list
(This can be found in numous locations based on your system's BIOS setting)

3) Set the first boot device to CD(ROM)

4) Set the second (or third if you want to be able to boot from floppies) boot device to IDE (or HARD DISK, or HARD DRIVE, or whatever your BIOS calls your hard drive)
********IF YOU WANT TO BOOT FROM FLOPPIES (and if you have the boot device settings) Set Floppy to 2nd and IDE (or whatever) TO 3RD***********

5) Save your settings and exit (in whatever method your BIOS requires)

*********** You can disable the splash screen within the BIOS......check your documentation (from Manufacture's web site)*************

[lestoil]

Just asking, booting from pcmcia-cdrom? What kind of external floppy? If floppy is usb and bios supports floppy booting, maybe debian type floppy install disks including pcmcia support can get things going. Ubuntu may have that option also. Do debian/ubuntu install cds come with pcmcia turned on to allow cdrom boot/install?
Maybe others with that pc have installed linux.