Ubuntu Version
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS Flavors
Desktop Environment (if applicable)
None (server/headless)
Problem Description
Trying to download Lubuntu, and it is stuck on GRUB.
Relevant System Information
Core 2 Duo E8400
GT710
4GB DDR2
Please explain what you call “download”. Normally it means loading the installation image from the (Ubuntu) server in Internet onto your local system. That probably is not what you mean.
Anyway, GRUB is printed by the GRUB MBR code. It implies that your system is attempting legacy BIOS boot. Does your system support UEFI? Or is it so old that it still has native BIOS?
Im trying to install it from a USB drive, I created the drive with rufus. I believe my motherboard is legacy only. (945GCM-S2L for specifics)
Do you think your pc can use UEFI at all?
| PC era | Typical boot firmware |
|---|---|
| Before ~2005 | Legacy BIOS |
| ~2005–2010 | BIOS, sometimes early UEFI |
| ~2010–2015 | UEFI common, often with Legacy/CSM option |
| ~2015 onward | UEFI, increasingly without Legacy BIOS support |
| Windows 11-era PCs | UEFI + Secure Boot expected |
I don’t believe it can use UEFI, no.
You can verify whether your computer is EFI capable by going into the BIOS by using whatever key is necessary on your hardware, this varies by manufacturer which is information you have not posted. When you access your BIOS you should see a Boot or Boot options tab or section and look there for any reference to UEFI.
Did you download Lubuntu from the official site and verify the download was not corrupted? Did you read the Lubuntu manual which explains how to do this and how to do the install, link below?
I see no references to UEFI, and looking it up, google says my motherboard does not support UEFI, its only Legacy Award BIOS.
This is the site that I downloaded the image from.
I did not read the manual
I have also just verified the ISO, and it came back intact.
A9EEF9E75C139CAA428D11799F681E2D29E6BA7E22AA045D9A64599D45CD12FF
Lubuntu boots & installs on legacy hardware, after all the machine I do the largest majority of install tests on is a 2007 HP Compaq box which has no knowledge of uEFI in its firmware.
I saw mention of Rufus, which has the capacity to reformat the ISO during write, which means the media will only boot on the hardware you modified your ISO for, so your issue maybe your write method. Rufus also needs to be updated to correctly write later ISOs, so check your rufus is fully updated, or use it’s fallback option of no-change or a simple clone (dd-mode I believe it’s called, but I don’t use rufus sorry). If your rufus software is outdated, and you reformat ISO, you may experience failure to boot your media, or failure to install with issues with GRUB as the installer can be tricked by unusual parameters on your rufus created media that cause miscalculations in where grub goes.
Check your rufus version and when released; you aim to have a newer version than your Lubuntu ISO if you’re using any reformat options & not a simple clone of ISO to media.
FYI: If GT710 relates to an nVIDIA card; you maybe having issues with graphics, does it boot with safe graphics mode, though you’ll need to not have rufus created issues before you can do that.
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I installed the latest Rufus version (4.15) which is about 2 months newer than the latest Lubuntu release, still just getting hit with the same situation as shown in the first image. I also do not know how I would go about booting with safe graphics mode.
Just tried Ubuntu, still same thing, GRUB screen.
Are you writing the ISO unchanged?? or are using rufus to modify the ISO by selecting specific options when you write ISO?
The only QA installs I do (on many Core2Duo & Core2Quad type boxes) all use unaltered ISOs, which rufus does/did allow you to create (dd image mode) but by using other options you’re altering the ISO as you write to use your selected options. I always use mkusb, dd or Ventoy to write my ISOs so I know they’re unaltered (though Ventoy boots from install media with its own boot loader before passing control to the ISO itself which exists only as a file). If your issue is rufus created I cannot help sorry, as have barely used it.
When the initial GNU GRUB screen appears (and not just the word grub which is shown from your rufus write), you’ll see the menu as is found in the manual, try the second “Lubuntu (safe graphics)” option.
https://manual.lubuntu.me/stable/1/1.3/installation.html
That is the first image (a menu) of GRUB taken from the ISO itself; if you see a message before that it’s likely put there by rufus.
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@wifi14 I would suggest writing the image to USB by selecting dd mode in Rufus.
After restarting and booting you are not seeing the image posted above by @guiverc then something more funky might be going on.
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The 945GCM-S2L is pure legacy BIOS from 2007, no UEFI there :))
When it freezes right on the word “GRUB”, the old Award BIOS choked on the disk geometry Rufus created in ISO mode.
To get past it -
1- Re-flash with Rufus in DD mode -
Select MBR and BIOS. When you hit Start and Rufus asks, choose “DD Image mode” (not ISO). That preserves the raw image layout that ICH7 can actually read
2- In Gigabyte boot menu (F12)-
Dont pick “USB-HDD”. Go into “Hard Disk” - your USB stick will be listed right under your hard drive. Pick it there!
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