I tried a few Distros on USB sticks and a few that I managed to install onto external USB hard drives and finally settled on Enso OS to install on the internal SSD drive in my Dell Inspiron.

I gave it a try for a couple of weeks and then decided I'd rather use KDE Neon but couldn't install KDE Neon in place of Enso OS. No matter what I did Enso OS on the internal SSD would boot the Dell and I could never get to an alternate Linux Installer USB stick to replace Enso OS or to wipe the internal SSD and start from scratch. I'm not overly familiar with PC BIOS but there seems no way I can change the boot order to get the internal SSD to be 2nd on the list and let an external USB stick installer get to boot.

I tried GParted but could see no way to erase the SSD.

I then removed the SSD from the Dell, installed it into an external USB case and rebooted off an external USB stick with another Distros, but couldn't get GParted to see the SSD in the external case.

I then switched to macOS Mojave, which sees the external SSD in the USB case, initialises and verifies it fine but errors when I try and reformat it to start from scratch. I am not sure now whether the SSD drive still contains Enso OS.

My ultimate goal is to install KDE Neon Plasma 5 onto another smaller 500Gb Samsung 850 EVO SSD and put that back into the Dell as the OS. Then to reuse the original 1Tb Samsung 860 EVO SSD inside my MacBook Pro and install macOS Mojave or Catalina on it.

I am not sure where I have gone wrong. Mojave's Disk Utility reports the SSD as not encrypted/not bootable/not writable but otherwise OK. Has Enso set something else so it can't be overwritten?

I await the advice of someone more knowledgeable than I, which is anyone really!

I'm really itching to get into Linux!!! Thanks for any help.

To erase a disk on the command line:
Actually, it only erases the first megabyte, but that is sufficient to make the disk appear unused. Be aware that it will be difficult or impossible to recover whatever data was on the disk before.

The problem is /dev/something. Most probably it's /dev/sda, but it can't be guaranteed. Show the output of the lsblk command so that we can guide you.

I am certain, though, that you can convince your Inspiron to boot from the USB stick without overwriting the disk. Somewhere in the BIOS should be a boot order setting, or you should be able to change the boot order interactively as the very first step after switching the computer on.

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Thanks for the reply.

I am not versed in Terminal, but I have used the lsblk command before whilst I was in Linux (I'm currently in macOS Mojave) and it did not report the external SSD at all.

I have tried lsblk at the prompt in Terminal in macOS, just now, but I think that is not the full command, it just says "command not found".

Keep in mind, due to my issues with my Installations I have not had the chance to become versed in Linux command line interface.

I don't care if I lose everything on the SSD so long as I get the use of the SSD back.

I want to replace what's on it anyway.

I am however concerned I do not delete my good internal Mojave SSD by mistake.

These are the things that would get me back on track;

1. Erase the 1TB Samsung 860 EVO that had Enso OS installed on it. I can then install Mojave on that.

2. I have a 500Gb Samsung 850 EVO that I can then install KDE Neon Plasma 5 into. I will then install that into my Dell

END RESULT:

1. MacBook Pro running Mojave/Catalina on the 1TB Samsung 860 EVO internally

2. Dell Inspiron running KDE Neon Plasma 5 on the 500Gb Samsung 850 EVO internally

I've never heard of Enso OS but what you describe above, you would follow the same steps you did to install Enso by accessing the BIOS setup and changing the one time boot priority to boot the usb. If you don't have a manual for the computer you could either do an online search for it specifically or wait for someone familiar with it to post. I'm a little confused by your post as you first say that you are unable to boot any other Linux medium but then go on to say you were able to try GParted but could not do what you wanted. How does that work??

Does this SSD with Enso OS contain only that operating system and no other and no non-Linux filesystems? Using GParted, select the correct drive in the main windows and click on the Device tab at the top and then select "Create Partition Table" which will erase everything on the SSD. Or you could select the partition in question and then the Partition tab and select Format to.

Information that would help us to help you; Is this 'Enso' the only system on the computer? Is it an EFI or Legacy install?

I don't know where MacOS suddently comes in. I wanted you to boot Enso and type the command there.

Dell one time boot is usually F12

power the dell off
plug your install stick in
power on
press F12 when you see dell logo ( you may see "F12 one time boot" or something like that on screen, top right ?

anyway, you should then be able to select the usb stick

It may be wise to use virtual machines to test distros in the future - should save a lot of time and hassle next time.

I told you I have removed the SSD drive from the Dell, it is now in an external Hard Drive case.

I know how to get into what I believed to be the UEFI, it may have been the older BIOS, but couldn't install Enso until I reverted to Legacy Install with the aid of a friend. The problem is if I go into Legacy mode the only one where I see multiple drives, they are listed but without a means to reorder them. I've rebooted and changed everything I can, but can't change the boot order. I follow the instructions at the foot of the BIOS screen, select the drive, user the cursor key, but it only moves the highlight not the device. The manual does not show what I see in the BIOS. The Dell manual shows different screensnaps to what I see, all I see is so basic as to be useless.

The SSD only has the Enso OS to my knowledge, and I am trying to remember what Gparted showed me but there was no reformat option and I don't know enough about the partitioning structure to not stuff it up. I lost the original Windows 10 drive editing the partitions, and given my experience with Linux this feels like going deeper into the swamp.

I am using my Mac to try and reformat the SSD drive in the external HDD case because it is the only place that lets me see it.

macOS has Terminal too. It is BSD UNIX.

I would have to reinstall the SSD back into the Dell, but think I may be wasting my time now as I am not sure the Enso install is still on it. I initialised the drive in macOS Disk Utility trying to reformat the SSD drive.

Like most things with Linux, a case of 20/20 hindsight and not what I really wanted (an exceptionally slow testbed). I am not experienced enough with Linux in virtual machines anyway. Seemed better to try the distros on real external USB hard drives.

I had tested what I could on mutiple USB flash Drives. Only 4 Distros managed to install onto external HDDs and only 2 of those worked without issues.

The Enso OS was a result of me taking my Dell and a stack of Distros to a local Linux SIG where one of the people there got me to change the BIOS to Legacy, which I hadn't had to do up to this time, and installed Enso on the Internal SSD. After using it for a couple of weeks I realised Enso was not that useful and so wanted to install KDE Neon and rotate out the drives, prompted by my inability to reinstall over Enso OS and because I think I am wasting the 1Tb SSD in the Dell. It will be more useful in my Macbook Pro.

I am a long time Mac user where you can easily install multiple OSes onto multiple devices of any description and simply choose between them on Start Up by holding down the Option key and choosing which one to run. All very neat and easy. Linux (I have learnt the hard way) is not like that.

Yes I know all that. Which worked until I installed Enso OS. Now it just boots straight into Enso no matter what I do, or at least it did before I removed the drive to try and complete reformat it. It may not boot at all now that I initialised it.

I was a Mac user 10 years ago and I used virtual machines on there too... You can use your Mac to test Linux distros via VMs if you are more comfortable with the Mac.

Again I am not experienced with Linux and VMs, and absolutely do not want to trash any of my work Macs.

Several people have strongly advised against dual booting or running Linux on a Mac. Saying that I have tried a few Distros that would run on USB Flash Sticks on my iMac without installing them.

As I have said, I tried 12 distros. Someone else said I shouldn't have tried "so many". Not exactly prescient, as all I was doing was just trying to find ANY that worked.

The CENTRAL objective is to run a well constructed distro on the Dell Inspiron.

My Macs are fine. I was sick of Windows 10.