Installer stuck! – What am I missing?

Sorry I did not realise that it would take so much time. I usually run those scan after getting my work done and never actually come back to check if it is over (I go to bed).

Thanks for the useful info. That could spare many users a bit of headache.
According to the O.P.'s specs, he is using a 5400 rpm optical Sata Hard Drive.

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Hmm...Well, I cannot find where he mentioned that but if he has a hard drive then he should go for it.

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Not directly, but I looked up the specs based on his model in the O.P.
This does not however, detract from the information you provided. One, it is helpful and two, he may have installed an SSD with an adapter.

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The dskchk didn't change anything unfortunately. I think I might actually try uninstalling Windows and then installing Zorin (and Windows later if I even need it) like you suggested before.
However, I can't figure out how to actually do it. All the information I find is either for reinstalling Windows in the process, or for replacing Windows in the installer of a different OS but I can't do that because of, well, the stuck installer. Any tips?

If you want to completely remove windows...You need to select either "Erase Disk" option or the "something else" option while installing Zorin. In case you opt for the "something else" option, you will need to delete the windows partitions and create a root partition and a home partition (and a swap partition if you want) for Zorin OS. If you have UEFI boot make sure to create an efi partition as well.

Thank you for the heads up about the defrag. I haven't changed anything about the hardware so I guess it's what Aravisian said. And no worries - I also did the chkdsk in the evening and it was done by morning.

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I use those three commands when Windows does not behave. It works like a charm (every time).

Yeah, the thing is the installer gets stuck there no matter which option I choose, so I'm looking for a way (if it exists) to uninstall Windows without using an OS installer.

Defrag done! I do have Gparted on a flash drive but when I opened it, I couldn't figure out how to really do anything. I couldn't unmount any of the drives and when I looked in properties, it said they were all already unmounted :exploding_head: That is to say, I'm willing to do it with Gparted, I just don't know what to do.

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A pictorial explanation here. I think it is easier to read this than me trying to explain by words.

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As for the defragging of SSD, you could still do so-called
defrag freespace without wearing it out.

This is what I use in Windows.
https://www.ccleaner.com/defraggler

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Personally, I find the Gnome Disks Utility much easier to understand and use. That's why I installed it in Kubuntu as well.
Why?
It is easier to understand because the GUI is similar to the Windows 'Disk management tool'.

Update time! After one of the defrags like @Aravisian said (with Windows Optimizer) I finally managed to get into the demo version of Zorin for the first time (by accident :sweat_smile:) and then managed to install it. It's in my boot options now, however when I try to boot it and choose "Zorin" in the Zorin menu, I only get a black screen.

I think it might be because I unchecked "third party apps/drivers etc" and I can't seem to find a way to fix that on my own. Any pointers?

(I also tried the installer many more times but still always got stuck at the install directory part)

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Did another defrag with Defraggler. Sadly still no difference regarding the installer.

That sounds good. I would love to be able to mess with the disks when already in Ubuntu, but I can't open it from the installer (is that possible?)/can't even open the terminal to do it that way. I'd do it in demo mode but after choosing "Try Zorin" I just get this:

I tried nomodeset again like described by Aravisian here, but sadly it didn‘t help either.

I read the error messages.
You might want to enable virtualization capability of CPU in BIOS. At least it should eliminate this top error message. Mine is always enabled in BIOS for Linux.
More detailed explanation is here:

[edit]
You might need to disable TPM (which I've never enabled for Linux):

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Yes.
There are likely two things that can be causing this:

  • Your BIOS must be updated

or

  • Closed-Source drivers need to be installed

Also... You DID make sure Secure Boot is disabled in BIOS settings, right? I see VMX was blocked by BIOS in your photo...

But this should not affect the installation even it is on.
It is for virtualization and I always enable those on my 2 desktops.
Intel VT-d
AMD IOMMU

See explanation here: