I'm trying to switch my laptop from Windows 10 to Linux, and I've done this successfully before on another laptop. My current device is a ThinkPad T450 with an Intel Core i5-5300U and 8GB of RAM. I've attempted to use both Pop!_OS and Linux Mint, and while Ventoy loads correctly, selecting either OS results in just a black screen with no further action.
I've already disabled secure boot in the BIOS and set it to UEFI-only, with CSM switched off. Can anyone help figure out why it's not working this time?
5 Answers
You might want to try using a different USB flash drive or even an external SSD for your Ventoy installation. Some USB sticks can be pretty unreliable and not work well with booting.
Some ISO images just don't play nicely with Ventoy. It might be best to test them using a dedicated USB stick to see if they work that way instead.
It sounds like the Ventoy drive is working fine on an older laptop, but you’re running into issues on the ThinkPad. It could be a BIOS setting that's preventing it from booting those distros. Also, check if there’s another F key for selecting boot devices directly; this might help you confirm if the Ventoy drive is recognized correctly. Additionally, consider whether your Ventoy USB needs a GPT or MBR partition table—as I've found some machines are picky about it. Doing a bit of research on partition types might lead you to a solution.
Try switching to legacy mode in your BIOS. Also, look for settings related to fast boot, secure boot, and EFI boot options—tweaking those could solve your problem.
Check some additional BIOS settings that might be causing issues. Try disabling Intel Rapid Start Technology and Panel Self-Refresh if those options are available. If you're getting to the grub menu but then see a black screen, try adding "nomodeset" to the boot parameters. This guide can help: [Dell's nomodeset Boot Option](https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000123893/manual-nomodeset-kernel-boot-line-option-for-linux-booting).
Just a note, ThinkPads are Lenovo's products, not Dell's. I’ve noticed that different laptop brands might handle boot settings differently, so just keep that in mind while you're troubleshooting.
I used MX Linux on my previous device, and the Ventoy setup worked without a hitch there, too. I appreciate the suggestion—I'll dig deeper into that partitioning issue.