AnduinOS 2.0.2 External USB Drive Not Detected by Installer in VirtualBox

[HaesGH]

OS Version: AnduinOS 2.0.2
Environment: VirtualBox on Windows host
Installation Method: Live USB / ISO in VM

I’m unable to install AnduinOS 2.0.2 to an external USB drive when running the installer inside VirtualBox.

My usual workflow is to install a full Linux distro to an external USB drive without touching my internal Windows drive.
To do this, I use VirtualBox with the USB controller enabled and USB passthrough. I do NOT create a virtual disk in VirtualBox. Instead, I pass the physical external USB drive directly to the VM, and it shows up as an available disk inside the live OS.

Problem:
In AnduinOS 2.0.2, the external USB drive is detected in the live desktop and in the "Disks" app.
However, the AnduinOS installer does NOT detect the external USB drive as an installation target.
Because of this, I cannot proceed with the installation.

This workflow worked fine in older AnduinOS versions and other Ubuntu-based / Debian-based distros.

Any suggestion please?

(Thanks for the great work on AnduinOS!)

.

[Anduin2017]

Hi HaesGH,

Thanks for the detailed report!

For running AnduinOS from a USB drive without installing it on your internal Windows disk, we recommend AnduinOS ToGo, our persistent USB mode. It lets you install applications, save files, and change settings, with those changes retained across reboots.

Write the ISO directly to your USB drive using a tool such as BalenaEtcher. If you use Rufus, select DD mode. Then boot from the USB drive and choose Advanced Options → AnduinOS To Go (Persistent on USB).

Please back up the USB drive first, as writing the ISO will erase its existing contents.

Instructions: https://docs.anduinos.com/Install/Burn-AnduinOS-ToGo.html

ToGo uses a persistent Live system rather than a conventional full installation, so it is an alternative to your VirtualBox workflow—not a fix for the installer’s disk detection issue.

Thanks for supporting AnduinOS!

Anduin

REF: https://docs.anduinos.com/Install/Burn-AnduinOS-ToGo.html

[HaesGH]

Noted, thanks.

Will wait for the next release, as I understand that the new installer is still in beta status.
I hope the problem will be rectified then.

[samwhelp]

@HaesGH

I previously provided a method in another discussion thread for installing AnduinOS via Calamares.

I just made some changes to the settings so that it works with AnduinOS 2.0.2.

The general steps are as follows:

• Install calamares and calamares-settings-debian
• Overwrite my settings on the system

Then you can launch Calamares to install AnduinOS.

For complete operating instructions, please refer to the README.md of the project.

I don't have a deep understanding of how Calamares works behind the scenes.

My setup simply involves modifying files of calamares-settings-debian to allow Calamares to install Ubuntu.

I have tested it on AnduinOS 2.0.2 Live System, and it is possible to successfully install the system onto an external USB flash drive.

I don't have any Windows system; I only have Debian installed on my built-in hard drive.

I personally usually install Linux systems onto an external USB drive.

And I usually boot from an external USB flash drive.

My installation method was also relatively simple. I used the Manual Install mode, only used one root partition (ext4), and still used the traditional BIOS for booting.

However, I haven't tried using a virtual machine (VM), so I don't know if it's feasible.

Therefore, this method is only provided for your reference, and you need to experiment and verify whether it is feasible yourself.

Notice

It's also important to note that this settings only applies to AnduinOS 2.0.2.

I noticed that AnduinOS 2.0.3 has a different architecture, using dracut instead, and the location of files within the ISO has also changed.

Therefore, I suspect that this setting will no longer apply when AnduinOS 2.0.3 is released, and it may need to be modified.

However, I haven't researched how to modify it yet, so I don't know how. You'll have to experiment and adjust it yourself in the future.

I also look forward to the development of anduinos-installer, so that there will be another distro installer to choose from in the future.

Related Discussions

• There is no option for an installation with a separate /home partition.

[HaesGH]

Yes!

Your solution works perfectly for my case and now I have AnduinOS 2.0.2 fully installed on my external USB Drive.
During installation I also select manual install, with efi boot.
(This time I did not install it from Virtual Box in Windows, instead I did it from gnome boxes in AnduinOS 2.0).

Many thanks @samwhelp for your detailed and easy to follow instructions.

In fact, previously I also tried to install calamares on the fly, but due to my insufficient technical knowledge, it was unsuccessful.

Other alternative solutions which I tried with good results are:

• install AnduinOS 2.0 then upgrade it to version 2.0.2
• install Ubuntu 26.04 then convert it to AnduinOS using this conversion script.

Of course on all of the above I am unable to select BTRFS file system, but it is fine because I don't need it for my case.

[HaesGH]

Thanks for your reply. I am fully aware of the persistent feature of AnduinOS, but in my case I need a "fully install mode" on external / removable drive. Sent with [Proton Mail](https://proton.me/mail/home) secure email.

…

On Friday, September 11th, 2026 at 7:32 PM, Anduin Xue ***@***.***> wrote: Why not just running with "AnduinOS ToGo" feature? — Reply to this email directly, [view it on GitHub](#439?email_source=notifications&email_token=CN4RJHSBNQZ6LETL6RCWTP35OPWEZA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBUGAYDMMRSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVRTG633UMVZF6Y3MNFRWW#discussioncomment-18400622), or [unsubscribe](https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/CN4RJHSV5VCSEAHUG3AQRNT5OPWEZAVCNFSNUABIKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM3DQMZWGA2TANJVHNCGS43DOVZXG2LPNY5TCMBXG43TMNRWUF3AE). Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for [iOS](https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/CN4RJHQ6YWBV7YJ6GZNOA635OPWEZA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBUGAYDMMRSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVJTG633UMVZF62LPOM) and [Android](https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/CN4RJHUQWRCJ2LOJICIYY7L5OPWEZA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBUGAYDMMRSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVZTG633UMVZF6YLOMRZG62LE). Download it today! You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[Anduin2017]

I may not prioritze this feature since AnduinOS TOGO already covers the user story of "installing to a USB stick".

[samwhelp]

@Anduin2017

I understand.
As for me, you should just follow your blueprint and schedule.
I'm quite optimistic about your future development.
I'm quite impressed with the work you've done.
I admire your creativity.

[HaesGH]

Noted, thanks. Sent with [Proton Mail](https://proton.me/mail/home) secure email.

…

On Friday, September 11th, 2026 at 2:55 PM, KM ***@***.***> wrote: The AnduinOS installer has never supported installing the system onto removable disks. For VMware, I pass through the physical disk directly to the virtual machine as a virtual disk instead of using USB redirection. Hopefully future versions will support installation to removable disks... — Reply to this email directly, [view it on GitHub](#439?email_source=notifications&email_token=CN4RJHXFJAGEJMQKQAAKRKT5OOVXNA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBTHE3TCNJSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVRTG633UMVZF6Y3MNFRWW#discussioncomment-18397152), or [unsubscribe](https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/CN4RJHTRWX46HWVTYMTIXLL5OOVXNAVCNFSNUABIKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM3DQMZWGA2TANJVHNCGS43DOVZXG2LPNY5TCMBXG43TMNRWUF3AE). Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for [iOS](https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/CN4RJHUDJGPPR5VRGZVOBVD5OOVXNA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBTHE3TCNJSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVJTG633UMVZF62LPOM) and [Android](https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/CN4RJHT4MOZMZ4YYTITP3QD5OOVXNA5CNFSNUABIM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2ENFZWG5LTONUW63SDN5WW2ZLOOQXTCOBTHE3TCNJSUZZGKYLTN5XKMYLVORUG64VFMV3GK3TUVZTG633UMVZF6YLOMRZG62LE). Download it today! You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>