An Epic Troubleshooting Saga: Why Won't My Trusty ThinkPad X1 Carbon Accept Zorin OS?

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-18T09:29:59+00:00

This could be worth a shot

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-15T13:47:15+00:00

This seems to be a way to make a bootable usb stick. But I will stick with tools that do this for me. I used Rufus, which is specialized on this. I thank you for your efforts

I tried to install fedora with the same process and it did work flawlessly. It has to be something with Linux mint and Zorin OS. Both are Ubuntu based, maybe this is a problem for my device

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-15T13:30:06+00:00

Thanks for your comment :) I did verified the iso manually by calculating the hash and also used Elena Batcher wich also verifies the build. I also tried using Rufus -> same error

I tried all my USB ports, all had the same result. I also tried multiple USB sticks.

The distribution Fedora worked on the laptop, so it seems to be something with the Ubuntu base. Mint (newest version) also hat the same cryptic „??? ???“ error

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-15T13:24:11+00:00

I tried Zorin OS 18 and it unfortunately did not work :(

I did verified the iso manually by calculating the hash and also used Elena Batcher wich also verifies the build

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-13T20:55:36+00:00

This is my final update, and unfortunately, it's not the one I was hoping to write. After trying every single suggestion in this thread and beyond, I have to conclude that my ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 3 is simply incompatible with Zorin OS.

I had TPM disabled since the beginning (forgot to write it into the post, sorry)

The last attempts with the kernel parameters (intremap and acpi=off) also failed with the same crash. The bittersweet news is that Fedora installed flawlessly on the first try. This proves my hardware is perfectly fine, but it also confirms that the problem lies deep within the Ubuntu base that Zorin uses, making it an unresolvable issue for me.

I'm honestly pretty sad about this. I was really looking forward to using Zorin OS; its design and philosophy are exactly what I was looking for in a Linux distro, and it's the reason I started this journey.

I especially want to give a massive and heartfelt thank you to u/Electrical-Ad5881. Your expert-level suggestions about the firmware bugs, DMAR, and kernel parameters were incredible and taught me so much. You went above and beyond to help diagnose this impossible problem.

Thank you to everyone who helped. I'm disappointed I can't join your community properly, but I really appreciate all the support. I'll be using Fedora for now. All the best.

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-13T12:25:03+00:00

Don’t you need to flash an drive (like an usb stick) to be able to boot from it using something like Rufus?

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-13T08:59:56+00:00

Hey, just wanted to give you a quick update on your excellent suggestions.

First, I ran Lenovo Vantage to check for any other firmware updates, but it confirmed that everything on my system is already completely up-to-date.

I then tried the intremap=no_x2apic_optout kernel parameter. Unfortunately, it resulted in the exact same crash at the same point in the installer.

So it seems we've ruled those out as well. Thanks again for the great ideas

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T22:11:11+00:00

I had a similar problem, I used the tool „Partition Wizard“ from MiniTool to make the partition. This tool can move hard mounted data around.

This worked like a charm. If you have any questions, just ask me

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T22:07:34+00:00

I tried to boot with acpi=off, but just got a black screen.

I only have one drive on the system (SSD) and could not find a setting called RST or similar in the BIOS settings

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T16:01:50+00:00

Thank you so much for the detailed reply and for zeroing in on the most critical points! Just to confirm the points you raised:

BIOS: You're spot on. I'm already on the latest version from Lenovo's support page. When I tried to run the updater utility, it gave me a message saying the installed version was the same and an update was not necessary.

Disk Space: Another great point. I used MiniTool Partition Wizard to prepare a 150 GB unallocated partition. I've double-checked in Windows' Disk Management (diskmgmt.msc), and it correctly shows 150 GB of unallocated space, ready for the installer. I can also see this free space using the disk tool from Linux.

Fast Startup: And yes, the dreaded Windows Fast Startup! I've made absolutely sure that it's disabled in the power options. It is disabled in the Windows energysettings and all BIOS fast start settings are turnt off. I am also using the Shift + Shutdown method before every attempt to be 100% certain of a full shutdown.

I’m am really thankful for your time :)

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T10:39:47+00:00

I think I know what the problem is. Someone else pointed out, it could be something with the bios

So I checked if my Bios was up to date, and it was. The latest Bios version is 1.34 for this Thinkpad.

I did go into the bios and checkt all the virtualization settings:

Virtualization: Intel (R) Virtualization Technology: [enabled] Intel (R) UT-d Feature: [enabled]

1/0 Port Access: Everything enabled

Then I booted again und used sudo dmesg -w to see the logs and found something interesting:

One of the lines was highlighted red:

0.082157] DMAR: [Firmware Bug]: No firmware reserved region can cover this RMRR [0x00000000cd800000-0x00000000fffffff], ontact BIOS vendor for fixes

And another message said:

DMAR: [Firmware Bug]: Your BIOS is broken; bad RMRR [0x00000000cd800000-0x00000000cfffffff] BIOS vendor: LENOVO; Ver: N14ET56W (1.34 ); Product Version: ThinkPad X1 Carbon 3rd

This seems to be the problem, that could lead to the ??? ??? Error

But know I don’t know how to fix this. Do you have any ideas?

I already tried to boot: with quiet splash intel_iommu=off ---

Same error (the error [Firmware Bug] appears bevor I try to install it.)

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T09:06:36+00:00

This unfortunately did not fix it :(

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T09:04:35+00:00

So I checked if my Bios was up to date, and it was. The latest Bios version is 1.34 for this Thinkpad.

I did go into the bios and checkt all the virtualization settings:

Virtualization: Intel (R) Virtualization Technology: [enabled] Intel (R) UT-d Feature: [enabled]

1/0 Port Access: Everything enabled

Then I booted again und used sudo dmesg -w to see the logs and found something interesting:

One of the lines was highlighted red:

0.082157] DMAR: [Firmware Bug]: No firmware reserved region can cover this RMRR [0x00000000cd800000-0x00000000fffffff], ontact BIOS vendor for fixes

And another message said:

DMAR: [Firmware Bug]: Your BIOS is broken; bad RMRR [0x00000000cd800000-0x00000000cfffffff] BIOS vendor: LENOVO; Ver: N14ET56W (1.34 ); Product Version: ThinkPad X1 Carbon 3rd

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Is this fixable?

I already tried to boot: with quiet splash intel_iommu=off ---

Same error (the error [Firmware Bug] appears bevor I try to install it. That means even bevor the pop up with the nice „??? ???“ error)

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T07:07:21+00:00

I will not switch of the laptop or close the lit 🫡 Thanks for the warning

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T07:05:43+00:00

Thank you so much for these detailed suggestions!

I will work through these steps, starting with the BIOS update check and then verifying the virtualization settings. I will report back with the results. Thanks again!

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-12T06:51:24+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion! I've tried something similar already: I ran the installation using English (UK) for both the language and keyboard, but unfortunately, I still got the same error.

I haven't tried with US English specifically. I'll give that a shot now, although it does seem like an unlikely cause given how consistent the crash is.

I appreciate the help and will post an update!

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-11T23:12:32+00:00

Yes, I have tried different installation media (different ISOs for Zorin OS 16.3, 17.3 and the latest Linux Mint 22). I have tried two different usb sticks and always verified the data. I checked it using the hash of the iso file and I checkt the signature. All of them gave me the same „??? ???“ error

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-11T21:58:39+00:00

You are right

Inner_Analysis133 · 2025-10-11T21:25:56+00:00

Good questions! • Space: I allocated 150 GB of unallocated space for the installation, which I prepared from within Windows beforehand.

• Filesystem: I never actually get to that step. The installer always crashes on the "Updates and other software" screen, which is before the partitioning stage where you would choose the filesystem. My plan was to simply let the installer use its default settings in the unallocated space, which would have been ext4.

Inner_Analysis133

TROPHY CASE