I have a Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15IIL05 that became extremely slow on Windows 11 and now boots to a repair-needed message. I tried installing a few lightweight Linux distributions, including Mint, but the installers failed during partitioning because the computer appears to have almost no usable storage. Mint reported only about 8 GB available, and now the system sometimes reports 0 bytes of space.
The laptop has an Intel Core i3-1005G1, 8 GB of RAM, and an M.2 SSD. I am not sure whether the SSD is the original 128 GB model or whether it is failing. Is this laptop still suitable for Linux, and what should I check before attempting another installation?
2 Answers
Create a bootable USB with a tool such as Ventoy, put the Linux Mint XFCE ISO on it, and boot the laptop from the USB. First choose the live-session option and confirm that the keyboard, Wi-Fi, display, and storage are working. If the installer correctly identifies the full SSD and you do not need the existing Windows installation, you can choose the option to erase the drive and install Linux. Back up anything important first, because that option removes Windows and all existing files.
Those specifications are capable of running Linux, especially a lightweight desktop such as Mint XFCE. However, the distribution probably is not the main issue here. If the installer sees only a few gigabytes—or reports 0 bytes—the SSD may be full, corrupted, disconnected, or failing. Check the drive capacity and health from the firmware setup or a live Linux session before installing anything. If the drive is not detected correctly, replacing the M.2 SSD is likely the best fix.
Before erasing the drive, verify its actual size in the installer or with a disk utility. A healthy 128 GB drive should show roughly 128 GB, not 8 GB or 0 bytes. If the size is wrong or the drive disappears, stop installing and replace or reseat the SSD.