Installin g Ubuntu 18.04 on an external SSD

[saburo]

Hello, I am trying to install Ubuntu 18.04 on an external SSD (usb3).

First thing I created with Rufus a bootable USB Flash Drive with the ubuntu iso install image (x64), then I promoted external usb as first priorty in the uefi boot sequence in the laptop.

The flash drive does not boot tho, even selecting the specific device from the bios.

I have seen for some older model you had to disable Secure Boot and enable "Legacy Boot".

Issue is that if I disable the Secure boot I get asked for the bitlocker recovery key (which I had, thankfully!) and I cannot find any legacy boot option anywhere in the bios.

Also, my idea is to have no updates on the boot loader possibly (the internal disk should not be touched at all), I would just plug in the external drive when I need to boot with ubuntu, else it would boot windows 10. I know I managed that kind of setup many years ago with an old laptop and it did work pretty well, but did not have to mess up much with the bios back then.

I have also seen  this https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2147295   but I cannot even boot from the installation flash drive...

Does anyone have any pointers?

Thanks!

Francesco

[saburo · Accepted solution]

I managed, should anyone need to do the same thing this is how I managed (not the smoothest process).

1) I finally had to use Ubuntu 19.10 , more about that alter

2) Downlaoded the iso and flashed to a 64Gb (no need for that capacity, it was the only one I had around) with Rufus, had to flash it in DD mode (you get asked about that after confirming you want to flash) else it would not work

3) Ideally you would need to disconnect any internal hdd / ssd if you want to avoid the local boot record to be altered, but opening the laptop to disconenct the sata cable did not seem to be the easiest thing to do, so I did the installation process on my desktop PC (disconnecting the internal HDDs and connecting the sata SSD -not thoruight USB, that did not work).

4) After installing a minimal ubuntu 19.10 (the 18.04 has an older kernel that does not support the Intel wifi card present in the envy 15dr and manually updating the kernel to 5.2 did nto work either) I connected the external ssd uwing a usb3->sata box.

5) Disable bitlocker from windows (if you have it on)

6) disable secure boot from bios (don't do this unless you disabled bitlocker first!!)

7) setting usb boot as priority did not seem to change anything, either way I did it

😎 boot into windows (It does not try to boot from the external SSD, not in my case at least)

7) Access bios options from windows, restart, SELECT DEVICE -> you can now chose the ubuntu drive at this point, then it boots correctly into 19.10