Install Ubuntu Linux on a samsung series 5 ultrabook with SSD
To install Ubuntu Linux on your samsung series 5 ultrabook with SSD you should change some stuff in your BIOS as well as change some things in your Ubuntu Linux install.
I used Ubuntu 12.10 as that’s the most current version at this moment.
You must first disable ‘secure boot’ as it’s a Microsoft thing we don’t need it and would make things a lot more complicated.
Start the laptop and keep pressing the F2 button.
Your now in the BIOS setup.
‘Advanced’ -> ‘Fast Biosmode’ > Disabled
‘Security’ -> ‘Secure boot configuration’ > Customized signatures
‘Boot’ -> Move USB HDD to the top
-> ‘Secure Boot’ > Disabled
-> ‘OS mode selection’ > CSM OS
‘Exit’ > Save and exit
That’s it, no more secure boot crap.
Connect your usb-stick.
Boot the laptop.
When installing Ubuntu remove all the partitions on sda (HDD) and sdb (SSD).
Make one new partition on sdb (SSD) with mount point ‘/’ (root)
Make on sda (HD) the following (extended) partitons:
(Size is a personal issue but you get the idea)
sda5 swap 6GB
sda6 /var 20GB
sda7 /home remaining space
Install Ubuntu.
When the install is finished no want to set some mount options in to keep the write actions to the SSD to a minimum.
Open you /etc/fstab file and make sure you have the following mount options for your SSD:
noatime,nodiratime,discard,errors=remount-ro
So your fstab line for SSD would look something like this:
(This is actually one line in fstab)
UUID=c1526b35-193f-4573-9817-b0fa06100b93 / ext4 noatime,nodiratime,discard,errors=remount-ro 0 1
(Of course your UUID would be different.)
You should also move the /tmp directory to a ramdisk so that the directory would no longer be on SSD but lives in RAM.
Again it’s something you do in fstab:
tmpfs /tmp tmpfs defaults,noatime,mode=1777 0 0
You could also set a different scheduler for the SSD to get the most out of it.
Edit /etc/rc.local and add the following line ABOVE the line ‘exit 0′.
echo deadline >/sys/block/sda/queue/scheduler
Your done, reboot and enjoy your 3 seconds boot time 
Posted on November 22, 2012, in Linux. Bookmark the permalink. 22 Comments.
Great tutorial… it’s not necessary to change from U/EFI to CMOS, and in fact you shouldn’t if you want to keep Windows
Your right but I find it much easier to have a windows7 system running in virtualbox or vmware instead of a dual boot.
MAN! Thank you soooo much for these simple steps! I was very anxious of installing Ubuntu on Samsung ultrabook because of all these articles “Linux bricks Samsung”. Fortunately, following your guide helped me not only not to brick the laptop, but to make it way faster! Great thanks!
How do I set up dual boot?
Also, which version is better 64 or 32 bit?
3sec? how? I’ve set up my root fs on the SSD sdb drive (encrypted LVM though) and this thing is so slow, my 2 yr old USB 2.0 flash drive performs faster. Copying from the SSD to anywhere peaks at 12 MB/s, I gave up on the SSD altogether and have all partitions on the hard drive. If you have any pointers on how to make it work, please lmk.
Thanks for the summary, worked all well! Only change I had to do was setting up a separate boot partition on the hdd and installing the bootloader on the hdd as it didn’t boot otherwise. Still pretty fast.
Some pictures? Clean installation of 13.04(daily build)??
Nice, I am currently trying it. Should I set the boot loader to /dev/sda or /dev/sdb ?
sda, sdb is the SSD
Thank you schoolplay for your excellent howto, I have a question:
What’s the meaning of sda6 /var 20GB partition?
Is that compulosory?
Thanx for hints!
The /var as a separate partition is done because /var is used for many system specific write operations.
So to prevent as many write operations to the SSD one can place /var at the SATA HD.
But this is optional of course you can let /var be part of the filesystem at the SSD and accept more write actions to the SSD.
I am sorry schoolsplay, but I am in BIG Troubles!
After done the your bios changes I tried Ubuntu from usb and I got no working network (neither wireless nor wired) so I tried to restart my Samsung to see if windows 8 still worked with the network connection, but the system doesn’t boot: a window with Boot Menu with the only option for the Sata HD appears, and giving the ok has the only effect to make that window appear again after a while….
Have set the bios back to it’s original settings ?
Windows8 needs secure boot.
OK installed Ubuntu, everything OK… BUT: boot problem: at boot time I get the boot window (with Boot Menu (the only option for the Sata HD) and giving the ok to the SATA hdd nothing happens… In the bios boot devices there is not the SSD disk…. Is that the problem? I put the sata hdd a first place in the boot order….
I forgot: I installed Ubuntu 12.04 LTS…
Have you installed the grub boot loader in /dev/sda ?
Make sure that you disabled the secure boot in the BIOS settings.
BIOS secure boot is disabled
I just followed your howto up to ‘Install Ubuntu’.
Nothing done with Grub; isn’t it autometically installed during the Ubuntu installation?
(Always done that way with no boot troubles!).
Thanks for help!
Thanks a lot for your article. It really helped me and now using ubuntu 12.10
:)
I have just experienced the following issue – any ideas?
1. Installed Ubuntu alongside Windows 7
2. Rebooted and could only get Windows.
3. Rebooted again on ubuntu live USB abd Ubuntu didn’t manage to load completely
4. Turned on and off. Since then, black screen – cannot even get the BIOS menu
Many thanks for any help
Perhaps you’ve been bitten by the brick bug https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-cdimage/+bug/1040557
I can install ubuntu 12.04 with secure option enabled, but i can’t boot windows 8 from grub. I tried with boot-repair, grub now show me ubuntu and windows 8, but when i restart windows 8, boot directly to windows. I tried many times boot-repair, but have the same issues. Can you help me?. I have the same samsung laptop.
Thanks, sorry for my english.
Well as this howto discusses Ubuntu install only I can’t help you. As far as I know you can’t install Linux on a secure boot system.