Uninstal Ubuntu 9.04

It sounds as though you have installed Ubuntu inside Windows using the Wubi? The best way to install almost any linux is following these guides

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WindowsDualBoot

To uninstall Ubuntu from inside Windows go to the windows Control Panel and use "Add/Remove Programs" to uninstall Ubuntu. Ubuntu needs about 15Gb or more and it sounds like the Wubi only gave it maybe 5Gb. The Wubi depends on Windows systems working well and co-operating with the rival OS, not something that microsquish is famous for! I think it's a miracle that the Wubi ever works at all lol. The links above should help you setup a proper dual-boot that's robust and yet quite flexible.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Many thanks for your quick response.
Unfortunatily Ubuntu is not reflected under the progrommes undre the
Add/Remove programmes in the windows control panel.
Any other suggestions?
Regards,
Rob
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom" <email address hidden>
To: <email address hidden>
Sent: Wednesday, May 13, 2009 9:58 AM
Subject: Re: [Question #70968]: Uninstal Ubuntu 9.04

Your question #70968 on Ubuntu changed:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968

    Status: Open => Answered

Tom proposed the following answer:
It sounds as though you have installed Ubuntu inside Windows using the
Wubi? The best way to install almost any linux is following these
guides

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WindowsDualBoot

To uninstall Ubuntu from inside Windows go to the windows Control Panel
and use "Add/Remove Programs" to uninstall Ubuntu. Ubuntu needs about
15Gb or more and it sounds like the Wubi only gave it maybe 5Gb. The
Wubi depends on Windows systems working well and co-operating with the
rival OS, not something that microsquish is famous for! I think it's a
miracle that the Wubi ever works at all lol. The links above should
help you setup a proper dual-boot that's robust and yet quite flexible.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

--
If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
know that it is solved:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968/+confirm?answer_id=0

If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
following page to enter your feedback:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968

You received this question notification because you are a direct
subscriber of the question.

Ok, in Ubuntu try going up to the top taskbar and click on

System - Administration - Partition Editor

and copy into here the information from the lower pane, the one with the table of text in it rather than the pretty picture. Hopefully this should help give us a clue what has gone wrong and how to fix it.

Please either use the link to bring you into the thread on the launchpad forum or else delete all the stuff that we have sent you from the tail of the email you send us because that's already in the thread.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Hi Tom,
There is no Partition Editor listed under System - Administration.
One anomaly I should mention that the one Firefox Extension I downloades was
Video Download Helper. However it tells me I have downloaded version 4.4 and
not the latest which is 4.3. Strange !!
Sorry to trouble you on this but initially when opening Ubuntu to check the
System-Administration as suggested Ubuntu would not open and it was only
after opening in Safe Mode that I was able to select to open normaly.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Rob

Hmmm, that does sound like a strange bunch of problems. Have you tried looking for an uninstaller through the "Start" button menu, "All Programs", i'm not sure exactly where from there? Perhaps this guide might help?

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/WubiGuide#How%20do%20I%20manually%20uninstall%20Wubi?

Note the Wubi guide here is usually pretty good but i think maybe it would be better to demo Ubuntu as a LiveCd session or else just install it properly - it's much easier to remove from a proper install too lol
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/WubiGuide

The proper install goes like this

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WindowsDualBoot

Thanks for helping with the email tail :)
Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Dohh that first link doesn't work. Try this link and go to Section4 part 2

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/WubiGuide

Good luck, thanks and regards from
Tom :)

Thanks for your continued assistance. I am afraid I am not very computer
literate and so am a loss with some of the suggestions.
My comments on your two latest messages are as follows-
1. Cannot trace any uninstaller under the "Start" Button.
2. Under Section 4 - part 2:
       2.1 As mentioned in add/remove programmes neither Ubuntu or Wubi
appears.
       2.2 How would I use the suggested "C:\ubuntu\uninstall-Ubuntu.exe"?
(Go Start menu\Run and type this in?)
       2.3 Under 4 - How would I edit C:\boot.ini and delete the
Ubuntu/Wubi line
Looking forward to receiving your comments.
Regards,
Rob

Hi, sorry about that.

I think we start at 2.2, that's the 'manual' uninstall right? Hopefully you could just navigate to the right folder from "My Computer", just double-click on "My Computer" and that should show your 'drives' and a few folders. Double click on the 'C:' 'drive' (Windows calls things 'drives' because it's a cool word, lets just go with it for now). Inside C: you should see a folder called "ubuntu", again double click it. If you can't see the uninstaller in there then let us know but if you see it then just double-click it ;)

Now that i think about it you might be able to do as you suggested but i've never tried using that "Start menu\Run" approach heheheheh, might be worth a try :) I tend to prefer using gui ways rather than cli's ;)

You can edit boot.ini by right-clicking it and choosing "Open with ..." and then select Notepad from the list. You could also edit it using a text-editor from a LiveCd. Avoid using an office program such as word or else it will get loads of strange codes and things added to the file but notepad and other text-editors keep the file clean :)

Before editing a crucial system file like boot.ini it's worth creating a copy of it, even if that's just in the same folder. When i do that i tend to rename the copy to something like boot-140509.ini or whatever the date is. Just in case i need to go back to using the old one again it helps to know which is the relevant backup ;)

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Note that if you put the Ubuntu Cd in the cd-drive then you should be able to boot up to a menu that has "Try Ubuntu without changes to my machine" this guide can help get you that far
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD
Choosing the "Try Ubuntu ... " option should get you to a working desktop, which we call a "LiveCd session" (if it works ;) ) and the top taskbar gold and blue icon for firefox should get you straight to the internet and should help you get into Launchpad, here.

LiveCd sessions can be useful for fixing all sorts of problems and are useful in other circumstances to. Many linux distros have them, not just Ubuntu. My favourite is Wolvix's LiveCd because it get to some of my favourite tools faster than even Ubuntu 9.04
http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=wolvix
Wolvix Hunter is my favourite

Anyway, that's all pretty irrelevant unless you get stuck and something went wrong with boot.ini in which case we can help you fix it from a LiveCd :)

Good luck and regards again from
Tom :)

Tom
I have done a full search of all drives for all files or folders (hidden or
otherwise) with the word ubuntu or Wubi in it with no success what so ever.
I tried to use the C:\ubuntu\Uninstall-Ubuntu.exe only to be told it does
not exist.
I tried to find the C:\boot.ini file to edit it only to be told it cannot be
found. Any ideas where it is to be found?
I can run my live CD and run it from the disk. If I did so how would I get
into or fix the boot.ini from the live CD opened Ubunto Ubuntu?
Finally as a last resort maybe I should just give up Ubuntu altogether. Any
suggestions on how I can get my PC to boot straight up into windows without
having to select from the start up menu.
Is there a case for trying to reinstall Ubuntu straight onto my partitioned
C drive (called F Drive) and if so how would I get the installation process
to know it must install on the partitioned F drive? I had thought in my
original installation that this is what I did but Windows is showing I still
have the full use of the drive F (File System NTFS)
Sorry to give you all this hassle but I do appreciate all the help you are
trying to give me.
Rob

Ok, assuming there's no data in the Windows install of Ubuntu, the Wubi, then it might be worth trying to reinstall the Wubi and then remove the new one. Ubuntu will really need about 10 or 15Gb. I remember once i had trouble trying to install Sage in Windows and eventually found that Sage was picking up the presence of some of it's file from a previous install in the waste-bin and so was installing itself in my bin! I don't think that's what's happening here but strange things do happen sometimes.

Alternatively if you do have data in the Wubi then maybe install Ubuntu properly

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WindowsDualBoot

and then lets see if we can get into the wubi files somehow from the proper install. I would really recommend doing a proper install of Ubuntu anyway. It sounds as though Windows is doing some very strange things so it would be nice to have a reliable OS on your system before Windows goes badly wrong.

Questions i now have is what version of Windows are you using? I would now guess at Vista? or perhaps Windows7? Xp and earlier are usually much easier to deal with and work well in combination with a linux system, although possibly a lot better with proper install rather than installing inside Windows. Also which version of Ubuntu? Hopefully earlier than 7.04 as that might explain a few problems ;) 8.04 and 9.04 should almost definitely not be having troubles like this unless caused entirely by some Windows problems.

This isn't a hassle for me: it's a challenge ;) I appreciate you feel it's a hassle and hopefully we can help you through this one although specifics of this one are a new challenge for me. I would guess that you've probably hunted through the Wubi guide to see if there's something covering this in there. Note that the Wubi install creates a virtual drive for Ubuntu and that may or may not reflect what's happened to real physical drives or the partitions on them. My guess would be that it uses some compression utilities to keep the Ubuntu partition a virtual and unreal thing but i seem to remember reading that often the Wubi sets up its folders within the file-structure of Windows, which doesn't seem to have happened given your thorough search so perhaps it does use compression after-all.

Out of curiosity when you get to a boot menu to choose between Ubuntu and Windows are there lots of Ubuntu options in the Menu? if so does the 2nd option have "recovery mode" near the end of it's line?

Please also could you download and make a cd of Wolvix Hunter (or Cub if you prefer something even lighter). I tend to find really cheap 'write once' cd's better than more expensive kinds for this sort of thing
http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=wolvix
Note that while DistroWatch is a great plce to compare different distro's of linux the download link will take you to the Wolvix main website and then their download mirrors are held on various different sites. I usually start up about 2 or 3 different downloads and then pause and cancel the slow ones, which changes according to what time of day and how many other people are using the same download site. This is particularly important with a tiny distro like Wolvix. I often kinda host some of the torrent sometimes for smaller distros but my upload speed isn't great. Alternatively just download Ubuntu 8.04 (or 9.04 (again?)) from
http://www.ubuntulinux.org/getubuntu/download

Whichever you get make a Cd, perhaps with some help from this guide
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BurningIsoHowto

The liveCd of Wolvix Hunter should get you to Gparted very quickly, it's at the bottom of the "Paw" button (roughly where the "start" button would be in Windows) and then the bottom of the "System" menu. Note that Hunter has some pretty addictive retro arcade games. XGalaxians is my favourite but Gparted has usually done all of what i need it to before i can reach level 4. To get an internet connection on Wolvix you might need to click on the icon on the bottom taskbar that's a "crossed spanner and screwdriver" but it should be fairly easy to work out, hopefully. even more hopefully Wolvix will find yoour connection straight-away like Ubuntu does. The icon for Firefox is blue and grey in Wolvix i think, rather than the usual gold and blue.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

You keep referring to Wubi - what is it and what is it for? In the books on
Ubuntu that I have I can find no reference to it.
Are you suggesting I do a new clean install over the existing copy of Ubuntu
9.04 on my PC? If so are you also suggesting I do another fresh download of
Ubuntu 9.04 from the site suggested by you?
How would I do the fresh install?
I am running Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 3 installed. I have a
new desktop PC and the windows programme was installed only a couple of
weeks ago.
I think you are possibly correct in that in my installation of Ubuntu 9.04
it used a compression utility that keeps the Ubuntu partition a virtual and
unreal thing as mentioned by you.
You suggest I download and make a cd of Wolvix Hunter - what would I do with
such a download and what would I do with it once copied. Are you suggesting
I install Wolvix on my PC - if so do I run the risk of ending up with some
programme that also does not work correctly? Is this instead of Ubuntu 9.04?
While I await your response to this message I will investigate the various
sites suggested by you.
I look forward to your reply.
Rob
PS: When booting up my PC I have the following options to select from-
1. Ubuntu 9.04 Kernal 2.628-11-generic
2. Ubuntu 9.04 Kernal 2.628-11-generic (recovery mode)
3. Ubuntu 9.04, memtest 86+
4. Other operating systems-
       Windows NT/2000/XP

Ahah, that could be why we keep running into trouble! You have installed Ubuntu properly, not inside Windows!!! lol.

I'm not suggesting installing Wolvix just suggesting getting a cd of it because it has some useful tools on the cd.

But now you really have a choice. Do you want to try to re-install Ubuntu and give it a fair try a second time or do you want to just get rid of it?

If you want to reinstall Ubuntu then i recommend downloading it again in Windows because clearly something fairly drastic went wrong with the first install. The 32bit, desktop edition should be the best one, unless you have a laptop/netbook in which case we need to work out which would be better out of the 2 main options for it.
http://www.ubuntulinux.org/getubuntu/download
And then use this guide to help make a new Cd, preferably using a really cheap, "write once" type cd
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BurningIsoHowto

If you just want to get rid of Ubuntu then i think you need to get something like Wolvix Hunter instead, mostly because it's a tiny linux and should take less time to download and burn, even at slow speed but also because it's kinda fun and a good cd to have anyway ;)
http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=wolvix
again the same advice on how to burn a Cd is useful but the md5sum will be different, you should be able to get the md5sum from the download site.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Hey dude,

   If your sure that you want to remove Ubuntu, then Follow This procedure.

1. Log on to Windows XP and right click on My Computer and click on Manage
2. Then on the left side of the Manage Window,select Disk Management.
3. Now just right click on the partition in which you installed Ubuntu and click on Delete.Now your ubuntu is uninstalled.
4. Now when you reboot you won't be able to go to Windows as you will get an Error for the grub.
5. Now just insert the Windows CD and change the primary boot settings to CD -Rom.Now you will notice that your pc boots with the CD.
6. Let all the application load.Then you will be asked what you want to do.Then hit the R button on the Keyboard.That will take you to a page similar to a Command Prompt.
7. There you will find a line like this::

    Which windows do you want to choose?
1. C:/Windows

Then type 1 and press Enter.

YOU WILL BE ASKED FOR YOU ADMINISTRATOR'S PASSWORD.IF YOU DID GIVE AN ADMINISTRATOR PASSWORD WHILE INSTALLING WINDOWS THEN TYPE IT OTHERWISE LEAVE IT BLANK AND HIT ENTER

8. Now Just type FIXMBR
(Note:Type exactly as I typed in the 8th step.)
9. Now your Ubuntu is successfully un-installed.Just remove the Windows CD and reboot.

This should fix your problem.

Good Luck.

If possible I would like to reinstall it. Is this possible; even though the
othe installation is still on my PC?
If I did reinstall how can I ensure that the programme files etc are
installed onto my exististing partition? (known as Drive F on the main hard
drive)
Is it necessary to download Ubuntu again - I have verified both the MD5Sum
and the CD's integrity of my previous download?
S.Vikash Koushik has kindly advised how to uninstall Ubuntu from my PC but
with my limited knowledge I would be scared of completily messing up and
losing my windows XP as well.
Thanks again for all your help - I look forward to hearing from you in
respect of my queries above.
Rob

Hey dude,

     If you want to uninstall Ubuntu then that's the safest way.You can do it,if you go through it care fully.

If you want to reinstall Ubuntu then you will lose the softwares that were installed previously in Ubuntu.

Thanks a lot I will certainly study your suggestions and if I do not just
reinstall Ubuntu I will, If I can get up the courage, uninstall Ubuntu in
accordance with your detailed instructions.
I must admit the one thing that worries me is that Windows will not open
automatically but will need the Windows CD and I will need to follow all the
instructions from there. SCARY!
Once again thanks for your interest and help.
Rob
----- Original Message -----
From: "S.Vikash Koushik" <email address hidden>
To: <email address hidden>
Sent: Friday, May 15, 2009 10:39 AM
Subject: Re: [Question #70968]: Uninstal Ubuntu 9.04

Your question #70968 on Ubuntu changed:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968

    Status: Open => Answered

S.Vikash Koushik proposed the following answer:
Hey dude,

     If you want to uninstall Ubuntu then that's the safest way.You can
do it,if you go through it care fully.

If you want to reinstall Ubuntu then you will lose the softwares that
were installed previously in Ubuntu.

--
If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
know that it is solved:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968/+confirm?answer_id=16

If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
following page to enter your feedback:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968

You received this question notification because you are a direct
subscriber of the question.

Hey

   You can take the printout of the instructions I gave you and then follow them carefully.

Hi,
Thanks -I have managed to uninstal Ubuntu. Problem was it was installed on
Drive C but only allocated to small partitions. One just over 2GB and the
second slightly smaller. On deleting Ubuntu the main partion for Ubuntu is
gone and I am now left with a small free space partition which I am prepared
to leave.
I now want to install Ubuntu onto the partioned main free space (99GB) which
is now identified as Drive D.
When trying to tell it to install on Drive D it requests me to prepare the
drive as no root file system is defined. The drop down menu gives a long
list of options - which should I chose bearing in mind I still wish to
continue using Windows XP!
Any suggestions?
Many thanks for your help and looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Rob

Hooray - Success at last!! Thanks guys for all your help. I could not have done it without you.

Blimey Rob! Nicely done :)))

Installing Ubuntu the 2nd time should have sorted your dual-boot out again so i guess you can now boot into Windows and Ubuntu? Sorry i wasn't around to advise about partitioning and layout a couple of the best of the almost limitless possibilities but it sounds like you found a good one yourself, which is even better news :))) I assume you put the Ubuntu on an "ext3, primary partition" of over 15Gb?

When you boot into Ubuntu you should be able to see all of you Windows 'drives' as "media" in the "Places" menu, it's not completely clear which is what but i guess you've already worked it out. From inside Windows you wont be able to see the Ubuntu partitions at all unless you've found one of the special extra utilities from somewhere in linux-land.

Really glad to hear you made it! Welcome to Ubuntu :)
Regards from
Tom :)

My Granddaughter installed Ubuntu and also put firefox on my small laptop. I want to know how to uninstall Ubuntu first and then Firefox. At this time my laptop doesn't even show the start or control panel. I have tried to google and find an answer but so far no luck. Can someone help me? <email address hidden>

My Granddaughter installed Ubuntu and also put firefox on my small laptop. I want to know how to uninstall Ubuntu first and then Firefox. At this time my laptop doesn't even show the start or control panel. I have tried to google and find an answer but so far no luck. Can someone help me? <email address hidden>

Hi :)

If you uninstall Ubuntu then your computer will be unusable unless you already have Windows installed. Are you able to use Windows on your machine at the moment?

This guide might help you use Ubuntu
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SwitchingToUbuntu/FromWindows
For Ubuntu the equivalent of the Control Panel is probably the "System" menu at the top of the screen.

Is Firefox giving you problems? Perhaps we can help you sort it out better?
Regards from
Tom :)

I had Windows XP before all of this so I don't know if it is still on there or not. What would happen if I were to put the Windows disc in and run it?

> To: <email address hidden>
> From: <email address hidden>
> Subject: Re: [Question #70968]: Uninstal Ubuntu 9.04
> Date: Thu, 3 Mar 2011 10:13:58 +0000
>
> Question #70968 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/70968
>
> Tom posted a new comment:
> Hi :)
>
> If you uninstall Ubuntu then your computer will be unusable unless you
> already have Windows installed. Are you able to use Windows on your
> machine at the moment?
>
> This guide might help you use Ubuntu
> https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SwitchingToUbuntu/FromWindows
> For Ubuntu the equivalent of the Control Panel is probably the "System" menu at the top of the screen.
>
> Is Firefox giving you problems? Perhaps we can help you sort it out better?
> Regards from
> Tom :)
>
> --
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.

Hi :)

Sorry for the delays here. The Windows Cd probably cannot see the Ubuntu partitions so it probably wont be able to do anything.

I take it that you have not been able to boot into Windows recently. However we can check to see if there is a space for Windows already and get some other useful information at the same time.

In Ubuntu please go up to the top-taskbar and click on

Applications - Accessories - Terminal

This should open a command window (we call it a terminal console; a term dating back to the 1970s). Please try this command

sudo fdisk -l

where "-l" is a lower-case "-L". It will ask for your normal user password. Copy&paste works from the right-click menu on the mouse/pad but not the keyboard-shortcuts.

Can you use Firefox to navigate into this thread and then copy&paste the output of "sudo fdisk -l" into here? We are looking for an Ntfs or Fat32 partition. Ntfs is more likely.

Also do you have an Ubuntu Cd? Sadly the Windows Cd cannot set things up for a Windows install but Ubuntu (or some other linux) can. If you don't have an Ubuntu Cd then we can help you download and make a sliTaz Cd (30 Mb is better to download than 700!).

Please let us know how this goes.
Good luck and regards from
Tom :)

Hi :)

If there is already a Windows installed on your machine then the command

sudo fdisk -l

will show us at least 1 HPFS/NTFS partition. If you can let us know the other information that "sudo fdisk -l" gives you (whether or not there is an Ntfs partition) then we can help you try to access that Windows install (if there is one) and/or help you try to install Windows alongside Ubuntu before wiping out the only usable OS your system probably has.

Please could you let us know which Windows Cd you have? Do you have Win7 or one of the out-of-date versions of Windows?

Please let us know so we can help you
Regards from
Tom :)

Hi, I really appreciate you emailing me back, I have given the laptop to someone who works with computers and has more knowledge then I do. If it is not fixed I will try your suggestion and get back to you. Thanks so much.

> To: <email address hidden>
> From: <email address hidden>
> Subject: RE: [Question #70968]: Uninstal Ubuntu 9.04
> Date: Fri, 4 Mar 2011 11:49:47 +0000
>
> Question #70968 on ubiquity in ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ubiquity/+question/70968
>
> Tom posted a new comment:
> Hi :)
>
> If there is already a Windows installed on your machine then the command
>
> sudo fdisk -l
>
> will show us at least 1 HPFS/NTFS partition. If you can let us know the
> other information that "sudo fdisk -l" gives you (whether or not there
> is an Ntfs partition) then we can help you try to access that Windows
> install (if there is one) and/or help you try to install Windows
> alongside Ubuntu before wiping out the only usable OS your system
> probably has.
>
> Please could you let us know which Windows Cd you have? Do you have
> Win7 or one of the out-of-date versions of Windows?
>
> Please let us know so we can help you
> Regards from
> Tom :)
>
> --
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.

Hi :)

If the person that you handed your machine to is only a Windows expert and has no experience of robust server level operating systems then feel free to let him/her know about the forums here so we can help him/her. Linux and Linux users are usually good at working with Windows systems but Windows is a bit blind so your expert is likely to need help from us to unhide the linux parts of your hard-drive.

Good luck and regards from
Tom :)