Fixing Ubuntu Installer Not Detecting Hard Drive on Dell XPS 13 9350

When you’re attempting to install Ubuntu on your Dell XPS 13 9350, you may encounter a common issue where the installer fails to detect the hard drive. This problem typically arises when the system is in IDE mode instead of AHCI mode. In this article, we’ll guide you through several solutions to overcome this issue.

Solution 1: Switch to AHCI mode in BIOS settings

The simplest solution is to change the SATA Operation mode in your BIOS settings.

1. Restart your computer and press the F2 key during startup to enter the BIOS setup.
2. Navigate to the System Configuration option, then select SATA Operation.
3. Change the mode from RAID On to AHCI.
4. Save the changes and exit the BIOS.

After restarting your computer, the Ubuntu installer should now be able to detect the SSD.

Solution 2: Perform a Clean Installation of Windows

If the first solution doesn’t work, you might need to perform a clean installation of Windows.

1. Create a system backup of your current Windows installation. This will allow you to restore your system if anything goes wrong.
2. Boot from a GParted Live media and format the Windows partition. GParted is a free partition editor for graphically managing disk partitions.
3. Change the BIOS settings to AHCI/SATA mode as explained in Solution 1.
4. Reinstall Windows on the newly formatted partition.
5. Disable Hibernation and Fast startup in Windows. These features can interfere with the Ubuntu installer’s ability to detect the hard drive. You can disable them by navigating to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Power Options > System Settings.
6. Reinstall GRUB using the Ubuntu installation media. GRUB is a boot loader package that supports multiple operating systems on a computer. During the Ubuntu installation, select “Something else” when asked about installation type. Then, select the partition you want to install Ubuntu on and click on “Install Now”.
7. Finally, set Ubuntu as the default operating system in BIOS. This will make your computer boot into Ubuntu by default.

Solution 3: Enable AHCI mode in Windows

If you don’t want to reinstall Windows, you can try enabling AHCI mode directly in Windows.

1. Press Win + X and choose Command Prompt (Admin) or Windows PowerShell (Admin).
2. Type the following command and press enter:

bcdedit /set {current} safeboot minimal

This command will set your computer to boot in safe mode.

3. Restart your computer and enter BIOS to change SATA Operation mode to AHCI.
4. Save changes and exit BIOS. Your computer will boot in safe mode.
5. After booting, open Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell as admin again and type the following command:

bcdedit /deletevalue {current} safeboot

This command will delete the safe boot option, allowing your computer to boot normally.

6. Restart your computer again. Windows will now use AHCI drivers.

After following these steps, try installing Ubuntu again. The installer should now be able to detect your hard drive.

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve covered three potential solutions to the issue of the Ubuntu installer not detecting the hard drive on a Dell XPS 13 9350. Remember to always back up your data before making any significant changes to your system. If you’re still encountering issues, it might be worth reaching out to the Ubuntu community or Dell support for further assistance.