Dual Boot problem Windows 10/Linux Mint 19.3 on Dell XPS 13 7390

Question

As I see many people here and on Mint's forum having issues with this model, I'd like to ask if someone has advices or solutions for me.

I just got a new (Jan 2020) XPS 13 7390 with Windows 10 Home installed and tried to make a dual-boot with Linux Mint 19.3. I followed Dell's instructions and shrank the Windows' volume instead of making new partitions.

At first I struggled to make my USB flash drive with Mint work, as it didn't detect the unallocated space on the hard drive and only tried to install Mint on the USB itself. Then I followed some forum's tips and tried disabling the Secure Boot. On top of this, someone was suggesting to put the Boot on Legacy mode, but this is not possible on my device. I finally had to switch the SATA Controllers from RAID On to AHCI mode: it worked and I managed to get a first round of updates solving Wi-Fi's compatibility issues (haven't tried at all the fingerprint).

The problem is that I need the AHCI mode in order to get Mint work, but Windows doesn't boot properly without RAID On and always try to recover.

Plus, whenever I log in the dell Support Manager wants me to update the BIOS to 1.4.0 (flagged as 'urgent' since December 2019 but I'm currently running 1.3.1, don't know why!) and it freezes while installing.

Any idea?

sara-mint · Accepted Answer

The only solution that worked for me was to re-install Windows with AHCI mode selected from the BIOS. If you're planning to buy a Dell XPS 13 7390 and want to use Linux make sure you get a USB drive to restore your system or see if there's a model with two OS pre-installed.

sara-mint · Answer

Everyone here should be aware that DELL has stopped giving any advice around dual-boot if you bought a product with Windows onyl (which was the only way for me). It's a pity, because many of us chose Dell just because it is reliable on Linux and Windows.

Anyway, there is apparently a way out: https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/568177/dual-boot-windows-10-linux-mint-19-3-on-dell-xps-13-7390

U2CAMEB4ME · Answer

@sara-mint  Sorry I did not see this earlier. There are many good tips here. https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Operating-System-and-Recovery/Ubuntu-not-installing/m-p/6077214 Best regards, U2

vickiben · Answer

Rather than re-installing Windows with AHCI on as earlier responses say, you can just follow the instructions here:

https://www.partitionwizard.com/partitionmagic/enable-ahci-after-win-10-installation.html

Worked like a charm for me. Now have dual-boot. It's too bad we have to turn off RAID. Perhaps DELL could sponsor some work to get RAID support included in Linux distros.

I did also have to turn off the Secure Boot and Intel Platform Trust (aka TPM) to get Linux to install.

XPS

Dual Boot problem Windows 10/Linux Mint 19.3 on Dell XPS 13 7390

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