Linux Mint 21.1 has just been released. For those that want to upgrade to the new release, it is a simple matter. Below are the steps from a helpful article.
Upgrade to Linux Mint 21 and 21.1 from Mint 20.3 [Complete Guide]
This guide gives you all the information you need to Upgrade to Linux Mint 21 series from Linux 20.3.
Linux Mint 21 “Vanessa” and 21.1 “Vera”
was recently released with the latest Ubuntu 22.04 base and other
additional features. If you are running the earlier Linux Mint 20.3, now
it is possible to do a major version upgrade using the graphical tool
by Linux Mint.
But before you upgrade, you need to do some housekeeping because major version upgrades always come with a fair amount of risk.
That said, make sure of the following before performing the upgrade.
Before you perform the upgrade, remember the followings:
The current version upgrade is only possible from Linux Mint 20.3 to Linux Mint 21 and 21.1.
What does this mean? If you are running Linux Mint 20.2 or Linux Mint 20.1, you can not directly upgrade to 21. Instead, you need to perform sudo apt update and sudo apt upgrade to reach 20.3. And then follow the steps.
Things to do before the Upgrade Attempt
Open the Update Manager and make sure your system is up to date until Linux Mint 20.3.
Use TImeshift to create a system restore point after you apply all
the pending updates in the above step. If something happens, you can
always restore it to this point in time.
Take a backup of all of your home, downloads, documents, pictures and videos folders.
Disable any third-party PPA that you may have added. You can find those in the System Settings > Software Sources > PPAs or Additional Repositories tabs.
Make sure you have a minimum of 10 GB to 15 GB of free disk space in the root file system.
(Optional) Prepare a LIVE USB of Linux Mint 20.3 if you cannot boot it after a failed upgrade. It will help to restore via Timeshift.
(Optional) Finally, do a fresh reboot before you follow the steps.
Ensure you have a stable internet connection and have around 1.5 hours to give attention to the upgrade process.
Upgrade to Linux Mint 21, 21.1 from Linux Mint 20.3 [Graphical Method]
Open a terminal window and run the following command to install mintupgrade
utility. This is a GUI-based program which Linux Mint modified for
major version upgrades. It makes the upgrade easier for general users
who are not comfortable with the command prompt.
sudo apt install mintupgrade
Now, from the command, run the program.
sudo mintupgrade
You should see the following prompt, which tells you the ‘upgrade to
Linux Mint 21’ is available. Click on Let’s Go. If you are running this
after December 20th, then you should see a prompt ‘upgrade to Linux
mint 21.1 Vera’.
Upgrade to Linux Mint 21 from 20.3 via the mintupgrade tool
The tool will verify your system for any problems and tell you to fix them. If you see a FIX button, click on that to resolve the error (after reading the details in the window).
It will also give you a list of packages which require a downgrade.
In the end, you should see a summary of the packages to be downloaded or removed.
Press OK to start the upgrade process.
Final Upgrade summary
The program first downloads the packages. Then start to upgrade each
one of the packages. Wait for the process to finish for close to an
hour (based on your standard internet speed).
Upgrading to Mint 21
After the download and installation, you should see a successful upgrade prompt.
Successful Upgrade
Now, reboot the system, and you should be greeted with brand new Linux Mint 21.
Things to remember during the Upgrade
Usually, the upgrade process is smooth and should not be an issue. It takes around 1 hour and 15 minutes for a base install.
The upgrade process may seem stalled sometime up to ~10 minutes, and
you may not see any visible progress on the screen other than the
progress animation.
So, you need to wait until it completes all the steps. Alternatively, you can also watch the status in the terminal window.
If you end up with a broken upgrade system, you can boot from a LIVE Mint USB/CD and restore your system with Timeshift backup.
If the upgrade fails, you may try for a new upgrade via this official guide.
Post Upgrade Steps
If you have disabled the third-party PPAs, enable them and do a system update check. You can find the third-party PPs at the System Settings > Software Sources > PPAs or Additional Repositories tabs.
Verify whether your documents, pictures and videos are present.
Also, check if your browser add-ons and extensions are working fine.
For this version, you should also check whether your Printer and Bluetooth are working. Because Mint 21 introduces IPP (a new protocol for printing) and a new Bluetooth manager.
As our hard drives continue to get larger, I have the need to dual boot these newer larger drives. With Windows NTFS file size limitation of 2TB on partitions, care must be taken to format and partition with Windows 10/11 and Linux. Only desktops/laptops with Bios that support UEFI support 4TB+ drives, so make sure your PC supports this. Legacy Bios booting is not supported.
4TB Drive Goal: Win10 Drive=1TB, Linux Drive=1TB, Shared Drive=2TB
Ready the Hard Drive:
1. Convert 4TB drive to GPT with Diskpart (data loss)
There
is a built-in tool called Diskpart, which can convert 4TB hard drive to
GPT with several lines of command. Here are the detailed steps.
✍Note:
this method needs to clean your disk before converting, so if it is not
a new hard drive or has important data on it, you have to back up the
disk beforehand.
Step 1. Press “WIN+R”, type “CMD” and press Enter to open the command prompt. Then, input
"diskpart" and hit Enter.
Step 2. Type the following commands, remember press Enter after you input each one.
list disk
select disk n (n means the drive letter, replace it with your 4TB drive letter)
clean (clear all partitions on the selected disk)
convert gpt
When the “DiskPart successfully converted
the selected disk to GPT format” shows on the screen, type “exit” and
press “Enter” to leave the program, and check if the rest of the
capacity is restored.
Source: https://www.diskpart.com/articles/4tb-drive-only-shows-2tb-1984.html How to install Linux Mint alongside Windows By Abraham
The
user-friendliness of the Mint desktop makes it one of the most
prevalent Ubuntu-based variants. Besides, it has an easy-to-use
interface making it a charm for beginners. Moreover, Mint can run at
full speed on even the most outdated computers. Cinnamon, MATE, and Xfce
are the three most popular desktop environments on the Mint download
website, with Cinnamon being the flagship version.
Linux Mint is an excellent option if you’re wondering where to begin
your Linux journey. See the magic when you install Linux Mint on a
computer that can barely run Windows.
Dual-booting Linux Mint with Windows
In this article tutorial, we’ll look at how to get Linux Mint up and
run quickly. In addition, we’ll look at how you may run it alongside
Windows 10 in a dual-boot configuration.
Note: We don’t advocate messing with your computer’s
hard disk unless you’re an expert. Don’t neglect to back up your data
before you begin!
Prerequisites
An 8GB or more flash memory device
Free disk space (at least 100GB)
Patience
If your laptop or desktop already has Windows 10, you must disable the following options in the UEFI menu:
Fast Boot and
Secure Boot options.
If the machine doesn’t already have an operating system installed,
install Microsoft Windows first and then proceed with the installation
of Linux Mint.
As a newbie, Linux Mint is one of the better options. Linux Mint is
simple to use, and getting it up and running isn’t difficult either.
This guide will teach us how to install Linux Mint alongside Windows 10.
Here are a few things you need to know about installing Linux Mint
before getting started. You may begin using any Linux-based operating
system in a few different ways, as shown below:
Virtualization: You may run a Linux operating
system on a Windows environment using a virtual machine. Using this
method, you may gain a feel for Linux safely and securely. You may want
to avoid this if you have less than 4 GB of RAM.
Linux live version: Consider running Linux off a
USB stick instead of a hard drive: You may boot Linux from a USB or DVD
using this approach. In most cases, this process takes a long time, and
your Linux system modifications aren’t stored. If you only want to get a
feel of Linux, this is a great option.
Remove Linux and Windows: It is possible to delete
both Windows and Linux if you back up your data and have a Windows
recovery CD on hand or are determined not to reinstall Windows in the
future.
Concurrently install and run Linux and Windows:
Dual booting Linux and Windows is a term for this procedure. Rather than
beginning from scratch, you can use an existing Windows PC to run the
Linux operating system. There is a choice between Windows and Linux when
your computer starts up. This may necessitate changing the boot order
or partitioning the hard drive. Using Linux and Windows together on one
system might be confusing for those just getting started, but there is
no better approach.
Before starting, there is one question we must answer that most newbies and existing users are concerned about.
Will dual-booting slow down your system?
This question has been trending in the Linux Users Group for quite a
while. Hence, this section’s essence is to provide a clear answer. To
put it plainly: No. Your PC will not be decelerated by running Linux and
Windows simultaneously.
The only hiccup is that you receive 10 seconds of buffer time to
choose between Linux and Windows when you power up your computer. You
may use Linux or Windows as your sole operating system after booting
into any of them. Your system’s usefulness is unaffected. Therefore,
dual-booting does not slow down your computer.
Installing Linux Mint alongside Windows 10
Recommended precautions
Before we examine how to dual boot Linux Mint and Windows, I’d like to provide you with a few more safety tips:
Back up your information: Disk partitions will be
on your to-do list. This isn’t a significant deal, but you might lose
data if you accidentally touch the wrong partition. To be safe, I
recommend regularly backing up your vital data to an external hard drive
or cloud storage service such as Google Drive or Amazon Cloud Storage,
whichever you choose.
A boot repair disk is a must-have. You can use a
boot repair CD to fix a broken boot. You can construct a boot repair
disk from an additional USB or CD if you have one around.
Make sure you have a Windows live or recovery CD on hand: You may utilize the Windows CD to reinstall Windows if your boot gets screwed up and you wind up with an unbootable PC.
I’m not trying to discourage you, and I hope you understand that. This section prepares you for the worst-case situation.
For machines with Windows 10 already installed, please refer to this
article. Linux Mint is being installed on a Windows machine, not the
other way round.
Making a USB Drive Bootable with Rufus
The first step is creating a USB drive that can boot into the
distribution. Rufus is the program we’ll be using in this article to
create a bootable USB drive, which you can get here.
Linux Mint may be downloaded from this page. Once you have downloaded it, save it as an iso file on your hard drive. Linux Mint Download page
Plugin your USB flash drive to your computer’s USB port and open Rufus Rufus
Rufus will instantly recognize your flash drive. Choose the “Select” option.
Navigate to your desktop and pick the ISO file. Now, click on the start button.
If asked, allow Rufus to obtain Syslinux and wait for the formatting procedure to complete.
Creating a Linux Mint partition
In the Windows Start menu’s search field, type “partitions” and
select the first result that says “Create and Format Hard disk
Partitions.”
Your computer’s partitions and disks will be visible. Since my
laptop contains both an SSD and a hard drive, this window may appear
differently on your machine. I’m going to install Mint on the HDD.
To shrink the volume of your drive, right-click on it and select
“Shrink Volume.” Next, enter the desired quantity of shrinkage (in my
instance, 100GB) and click “Shrink.” Partition hard disk
This will result in the creation of an empty segment on the drive. You will now notice a partition labeled “Unallocated.”
At the moment, Connect the USB device to which you flashed Mint,
restart your computer, and continue pressing F2, F5, F8, F10, or F12 to
access the BIOS. The key used to access BIOS is OEM-specific; therefore,
try another if one key does not work. It’s F2 in my situation (for
Lenovo).
BIOS Configuration
Ensure that secure boot is deactivated under security. Disable Secure Boot
Ascertain that UEFI is selected in the boot options.
UEFI boot mode
While
not every interface may look precisely like this, the terminology will
almost certainly be the same. Save your preferences and leave BIOS
(typically, the functions of each button are available under the BIOS
options, as seen in both images).
Installing and booting Linux Mint
Here are some of the tutorial’s most critical phases to ensure you don’t miss anything.
1. Entering the Boot Entering the Boot
Turn on your computer, and before the manufacturer’s logo shows,
press the OEM-specific key to boot into Boot choices. Look for the key
on Google or in your PC’s manual, or press F2, F5, F8, F10, or F12. The
menu will appear as follows.
2. Navigate and key in
As you can see in the following image, your USB drive will be
displayed last, as I’m using an SD card in an SDHC adaptor. Pressing
Enter brings you to the Linux Mint desktop. You may experiment with Mint
before installing it.
Linux Mint
3. Launch the program “Install Linux Mint.”
On the desktop, look for the “Install Linux Mint Application.” And fire it up
4. Configure the language preferences
Configure the keyboard and operating system language selections until you reach the “Installation Type” option.
5. Choose “something else.”
Continue your installation adventure by selecting the “Something
else” option. Alternatively, you may choose “Erase everything and
install Mint” if you have previously backed up all of your files.
Note: If Windows Boot Manager is identified
automatically, you can install Linux Mint alongside it. This option
guarantees that the installer partitions the hard drive automatically
without causing data loss.
The second choice, “Erase the drive and install Linux Mint,” should
be disregarded for dual-booting purposes because it is potentially
harmful and will wipe your disk clean.
Select the “Something else” option and click the Continue button to proceed with a more flexible partition plan.
6. Additional partitions!
Phew! It’s been a hard road here so far; you don’t want to give up
now, do you? Four more steps, and you’ll have Linux Mint all to
yourself. Remember how much space we saved by installing Mint in
Windows? First, locate a partition called “Free Space” in the list of
partitions. Then, create new partitions by double-clicking on them.dditional partitions
7. Root
The Root directory is where your system’s critical components are kept. Consider it to be Windows’ “C: Drive.”
The minimum space suggested for root is 30GB (considering we only
have 100GB space to use). Select “/” from the list of Mount points.
Assemble everything precisely, as shown in the image.
8. Home
Home is where most of your downloaded items and folders will be
stored. In our situation, the bare minimum suggested space for the Home
sector is 60GB. Therefore, ensure that “/home” is selected from the list
of mount locations.
9. Swap
If you have below 2GB of RAM, swap memory is required. To begin, swap
memory is utilized when your RAM runs out of space, allowing you to
continue working.
Note: The swap partition is now ready to be created. What size swap partition should be used for the Linux Mint installation.
The answer is dependent on your RAM capacity, your requirements,
accessible disk space, and whether or not you want to employ
hibernation. You may like to consider the following suggestion:
RAM less than two gigabytes: Swap should be twice the amount of RAM.
RAM between 2 and 4 GB: Swap should equal the RAM capacity.
RAM between 6 and 8 gigabytes: Swap should be more than RAM
RAM greater than 8 GB: Swap should be at least half the RAM.
Avoid spending an excessive amount of time contemplating the swap. It
is advantageous for computers with little memory. The less swap space
used by a machine with more than 8 GB of RAM and an SSD, the better.
Swap files are used in newer versions of Linux Mint to create a
custom file in the root directory and use it as the swap area. A system
can have both a swap partition and a swap file.
10. How to create an EFI partition
EFI saves your Grub, enabling you to boot into Windows or Mint during
the boot process. The suggested minimum amount of space to assign is
500MB.
11. The final step!
After creating the partitions, ensure that you choose the Root
partition (it will be highlighted) and click the “Install Now” option.
The installation process usually takes up to 30 minutes, dependent on
your hard drive’s speed. After that, you’ll be prompted to reboot, and
after the process, you’ll have a dual-boot machine with Windows and
Linux Mint installed.
After rebooting, the system will initially boot into Grub, with Linux
Mint as the first boot choice. After ten seconds, the machine will
automatically launch Linux Mint. Additionally, you may direct the device
to boot into Windows or Linux at this point.
The Grub boot loader is disabled by default on PCs with more recent UEFI firmware, and the system boots directly into Windows.
To boot into Linux after a restart, you must hit the special function
boot key and then pick the operating system you wish to start.
Navigate to the UEFI settings, choose your preferred operating
system, and save the changes to alter the default boot order. Then,
consult the vendor’s handbook to see whether special function keys are
needed to boot or enter UEFI settings.
After the system has finished loading, log in with the credentials generated during the installation procedure.
That is all! You have now successfully installed Linux Mint on your
computer. You’ll find the Linux Mint ecosystem to be extremely strong,
quick, versatile, pleasant, simple to use, pre-installed with the
majority of applications necessary by a typical user, and relatively
stable.
Conclusion
That concludes our how to install Linux Mint tutorial. Pat yourself
on the back if you’ve made it this far, and for those who are still
stuck in the process, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us with the
issue(s) you’re having, and we’ll do our best to assist you. Thank you
for reading.
