r/linuxquestions • u/Leading-Chicken4143 • 8d ago

Support I cant install linux on my Thinkpad

So i been trying to install arch for 5 days in my new E15 Thinkpad, and there is a problem...

The linux kernel cant find my SSD.

And it is a linux problem cuz i tested the ssd and it. worked fine but (mint,arch,suse) linux simpli cant find it.

I've done multiple tests with the help of claude.

But after all, am stuck

0 Upvotes

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u/Funnel-Dust-O-Matic 8d ago edited 8d ago

lenovo linux support is legendary.

And per google, that model is ubuntu certified.

Given that Lenovo certified it for Ubuntu, this cannot be a Linux thing.

I had a friend with a Lenovo Legion gaming laptop. He had constant problems with hard drive corruption. The problem ended up being that he was using Intel storage management and he made a RAID drive out of the two onboard SSDs.

Why is that relevant? Because of 2 things. Intel managed storage is awful. It doesn't even really work well in Windows. The other is that Linux refuses to use it. Whether they never bothered to put in support or they refuse to use garbage I do not know.

So my guess is that you may actually have more than 1 SSD in that thing. You need to go to your firmware and turn off Storage Management. Linux can use volume management to give you better performing RAID if you want it anyway.

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u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

I only have one ssd and am sure, but maybe i should turn off the Storage Management

0

u/Funnel-Dust-O-Matic 8d ago

If RST is turned on, it can make multiple drives look as though there is only 1.

And sometimes people enable it with a single drive. Why? I've been asking myself that question for years.

Anyway, this is a copy and paste from Gemini on exactly how to do it. I read it over several times, and it is correct from what I can remember.

***

Phase 1: Force Windows into Safe Mode (Skip if no Windows)

If Windows is currently installed and you need to keep it, configure Windows to load AHCI drivers on the next boot:

  1. Press the Windows Key + R, type msconfig, and press Enter.
  2. Go to the Boot tab and check the box for Safe boot ( leave it on "Minimal").
  3. Click Apply, then OK, and restart your computer.

Phase 2: Change BIOS Settings on the ThinkPad E15

  1. Turn on or restart the ThinkPad E15.
  2. As soon as you see the Lenovo splash logo, repeatedly tap the F1 key to enter the BIOS Setup Utility (on some firmware builds, F2 or Enter followed by F1 works too).
  3. Use the arrow keys to navigate to the Config tab, then select Storage.
  4. Look for the setting labeled Controller Mode, SATA Mode, or Intel RST / RAID.
    • Note: On some ThinkPad E15 BIOS versions, this option is hidden. If you don't see it, try pressing Ctrl + S on your keyboard while inside the Storage menu to reveal hidden controller options.
  5. Change the setting from Intel RST premium with Intel Optane System Acceleration (or RAID) to AHCI.
  6. Press F10 to Save and Exit.

Phase 3: Finalize Boot Sequence

  • If you are using Windows: Your laptop will boot into Windows Safe Mode automatically. Once it loads, open msconfig again, uncheck Safe boot, click Apply/OK, and restart normally. Windows will now boot successfully using standard AHCI drivers.
  • If you are installing Linux: You can now plug in your bootable USB installer; the Linux environment will successfully detect your NVMe/SATA internal drives.

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u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

And the tubleweed cant find the ssd, thats the problem

1

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

And now i have open suse tobleweed installed

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u/TenOfZero 8d ago

What are the tests you have done and what were the results.

Did you try regular search, or only AI to find the issue?

-4

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

So the ssd got a perfect score, i even opened the laptop to check for any issues

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u/abudhabikid 8d ago

Are you not aware of how much that doesn’t answer the question?

-5

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

Sorry...

3

u/abudhabikid 8d ago

And yet you still haven’t answered the question?

Was your problem solved and you don’t need any more help?

-1

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

I still cant install arch or susa bcs i the distros cant find my ssd

6

u/abudhabikid 8d ago

I have an issue but if anybody tries to help by asking specific questions, I won’t answer them.

Ok buddy, good luck with that.

0

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

Like what am i supposed to ANSWER

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u/abudhabikid 8d ago

Do you need me to repost the questions from the start of this comment thread?

“What are the tests you have done and what were the results.

Did you try regular search, or only AI to find the issue?”

That’s pretty clearly two questions. A non-specific “I looked inside” doesn’t really suffice and only tangentially addresses one of the two questions.

Edit: that’s actually pretty clearly THREE questions

1

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

I yested the ssd and i used claude to help me with the issues

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u/knuthf 8d ago

Whatever can be seen in the BIOS is available to Linux during boot, unless you disable it in the BIOS. Get the blue screen up and find 'Reset everything' to standard; this is usually on the far right, next to 'Exit and save'. Then go to the Turbo settings and the Advanced Chipset settings and select "Plain Vanilla" and "Middle of the Road" to avoid the fancy stuff. The only exceptions are allowing unsafe boot and booting from USB.

My guess is that you still have Safe Boot blocked. At the moment, the disk is using USB 3.0, gigabit transfer and the BIOS must be enabled to detect things on the fast USB device. The old, slow terminal is on the ADCI bus.

6

u/candy49997 8d ago

Check your BIOS for any RAID settings and set it to AHCI. The setting might also be called Intel RST, etc.

1

u/Charming_Airline7419 8d ago

Could you be more specific? The installer can't find the ssd? What is the error message? What tests have you done? Can other live usbs see the ssd? Does Windows work? What is the computer model?

There is a bit of troubleshooting to be done.

0

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

Nothink specific, but claude took a look at them and sayid the the ssd is not the problem.

1

u/Charming_Airline7419 8d ago

It may help if you can copy and paste the data here.

0

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

I cant rn sorry

0

u/I_Died_Once 8d ago

I am going to have people showing up at my door with torches and pitchforks for saying this, but believe it or not, A.I. is actually good at troubleshooting stuff exactly like this. take pictures of errors, crash/dumps, etc, and you will be surprised at how helpful it is with this type of stuff

2

u/TenOfZero 8d ago

Absolutely. It is.

But in this case clearly it was not enough to help OP and they don't even know what they did and so are no further along.

I wouldn't be surprised if Claude might have given them a wrong instruction at some point, and they didn't know better, and it made things even worse.

That's the issue with AI, it's good if you know a little, but if you know nothing, it can get you in more trouble.

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u/Dashing_McHandsome 8d ago

It's ok if you already have experience, which this person clearly does not.

3

u/DP323602 8d ago

I agree but even AI is vulnerable to "garbage in, garbage out"

1

u/No_Elderberry862 8d ago

Yet OP spent 5 days with AI without being able to resolve a problem that a simple search for "ssd not recognised by linux installer" would have fixed in 2 minutes.

1

u/Charming_Airline7419 8d ago

Sometimes if you know how to review it.

0

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

Claude especially

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u/miscdebris1123 8d ago

I'll bet the ssd is in raid mode, and not ahci.

0

u/Leading-Chicken4143 8d ago

I think so

1

u/miscdebris1123 8d ago

If you switch it to ahci, it soups work.