Ultimate Boot CD 5 Guide

[Midknyte]

This is a quick how-to guide for creating an Ultimate Boot CD 5 (UBCD5) boot disc.

Make sure that you have enough free disk space to download the UBCD5 .iso (≈600MB)

Go to http://ubcd.sourceforge.net/download.html
*Do NOT click on any buttons that say Download or Download Free Now!*
(You won't see these if you are running an adblocker)

Scroll down to the "Mirror Sites" section
Click on one of the download buttons Attachment 13587next to ISO
Save the ubcd5##.iso file to your computer

After the download completes, you'll need to burn the ubcd5##.iso to a CD as an IMAGE:
If you have Windows 7 or higher, follow these instructions:
How To Burn an ISO Image In Windows 7

If you don't see the "Burn disc image" option, it’s probably because .iso is associated with another program.
Fix: “Burn Disc Image” Option Missing From Context Menu

Otherwise, you can download ISORecorder and follow the instructions here:
How can I write (burn) ISO files to CD or DVD?

Post #2 - How to create a bootable flash drive
Post #3 - Memory Test
Post #4 - Hard Drive Test
Post #5 - Remove MBR from USB flash drive using DiskPart (make non-bootable)
Post #6 - How to Copy Files with Parted Magic

[Midknyte]

If your computer supports USB boot, you could create a bootable UBCD5 flash drive instead.
The flash drive must be reformatted, so make sure to move any important data off to another location.

*** WARNING! Rufus will destroy ALL data on the flash drive! ***

To create a bootable UBCD5 flash drive:

Download Rufus here: http://rufus.akeo.ie/

Run rufus-###.exe

Use the following parameters:
Drive Properties:
Device = verify that the correct flash drive is selected
Boot selection = Disk or ISO image
Click Select
Browse to your ubcd5.iso file, and click Open
Partition scheme = MBR
Target system = BIOS (or UEFI-CSM)

Format Options:
Volume label = You can keep the current label or rename the drive
File system = FAT32
Cluster size = 16 kilobytes (Default)

Click the Start button
*** WARNING #2! Rufus will destroy ALL data on the flash drive! ***
Click OK
*Rufus will now write UBCD5 to your flash drive*
Click Close

[Midknyte]

To run a memory test:

Boot from UBCD5 (CD or USB flash drive)
Using the arrow keys, scroll down to "Memory" and press Enter
Using the arrow keys, scroll down to "Memtest86+ V5.01" and press Enter
Allow Memtest86+ to run though at least 1 full pass (2 or 3 passes would be preferred)
You should see ZERO errors
If there are errors, shut down the computer, remove all but 1 memory module, and run Memtest86+ again.
Repeat for each memory module to determine which one(s) are defective.

[Midknyte]

To run a hard drive test:

Determine your hard drive's manufacturer:
- In Windows, look in Device Manager - Disk Drives
- In the BIOS, look for IDE or SATA drives (varies by motherboard)
- Open up the computer case and look at the sticker on the drive

Seagate drive model numbers start with "ST"
Western Digital drive model numbers start with "WD"
If the model number does not start with "ST" or "WD", post it to the forum

Boot from UBCD5 (CD or USB flash drive)
Using the arrow keys, scroll down to "HDD" and press Enter
Using the arrow keys, scroll down to "Diagnosis" and press Enter

For Seagate drives, use the arrow keys to scroll down to "Seatools for DOS V2.23" and press Enter
For Western Digital drives, use the arrow keys to scroll down to "Data Lifeguard Diagnostic for DOS V5.22" and press Enter

Run the short/quick test first.
If the short/quick test fails, replace the hard drive.
If the short/quick test passes, run the long/extended test.
If the long/extended test fails, replace the hard drive.


*If the hard drive is not detected by Seatools or DLG Diags, it could be because the storage controller is set to AHCI mode in the BIOS.
To resolve this, boot into the BIOS and set the storage controller mode to IDE or SATA. (varies by motherboard)
Boot from UBCD5 again and run the hard drive diagnostics.
After you finish running the diagnostics, boot into the BIOS again and set the storage controller mode back to AHCI.

[Midknyte]

Remove MBR from USB flash drive using Windows

If you have a USB flash drive that was previously set up as bootable, but you want to make it non-bootable again:

*** Disconnect all USB drives except for the flash drive you are modifying ***
*** Backup your flash drive data first! ***

Open an Elevated command prompt
Type diskpart
Type list disk
Determine which Disk # is your flash drive (Ex. Disk 1)

Type select disk # (where # is the disk number of your flash drive)
Type list partition
Determine which Partition # is the boot partition (Usually the bigger one, Ex. Partition 0)

Type select partition # (where # is the partition number of your flash drive)
Type inactive

You should see "DiskPart marked the current partition as inactive"

Type exit to close DiskPart
Type exit to close the command prompt

[Midknyte]

* IMPORTANT! Plug in your destination USB HDD or flash drive BEFORE booting UBCD5 *
* If you plugged in your destination drive after boot, see the "Mounting Drives" section below *

Boot from the UBCD5 disc or flash drive
Use the arrow keys to choose "Parted Magic" and press Enter
Choose "1. Default settings" and press Enter (or just wait for Automatic boot)
At the Desktop, click Cancel for the "Parted Magic Timezone"
Double-click "File Manager"
The drives will be shown in the left-hand column
* If you are unfamiliar with Linux drive letters, go to the "Drive Letters in Linux" section below *

Click on the "source" drive (a new drive tab will open)
Right-click on the files you want to copy, and click "Copy"

Click on the "destination" drive (another new drive tab will open)
Right-click in the destination drive area, and click "Paste"

Repeat as necessary

When you are done copying data, close File Manager
Click the "Start Menu" button (bottom left corner)
Click "Logout"
Click "Turn Off Computer"


Drive Letters in Linux:
Linux does not use drive letters like C: or D:

sda is the first physical drive (probably your C: drive)
sda1 is the first partition on the first physical drive
*There may be multiple partitions on the drive, so identify them by capacity

sdb is the second physical drive (probably your USB HDD or flash drive)
sdb1 is the first partition on the second physical drive


Mounting Drives:
If you plugged in a USB HDD or flash drive after booting UBCD5, it will NOT be automatically mounted.
You must manually mount the drive before File Manager can see it.

Click the "Parted Magic Mount" button (next to the "Start Menu" button)
Identify the drive you want to mount (Ex. /dev/sdb1)
Leave "Read-only" UNCHECKED
Click the "Mount" button
The drive should now be visible in File Manager


For more info about copying files with Parted Magic: https://fixit.litten.com/linuxfilecopy.html