> Get home for lunch, time to get some work done
> Fire up windows to program my keyboard
> WindowsUpdate, fine I can wait
> Reboot, grub rescue - no partition found
> Fire up a live CD, windows update nuked my linux partition (literally - now empty space instead of my previous ubuntu partition)
> Reinstall ubuntu
> Now stuck on «Loading operating system»
Oh well, I know what I'm doing tonight
> Pic related

So your point is windows deleted / wiped a complete partition on its own.. surrreee

@Kimmax Well, gparted showed my old ubuntu partition as empty space, so I'd say yes

@Kimmax,
seems possible to me, i mean,
It also nukes MBRs and EFI-Partitions on its own.

@metamourge that's something different. While these are partitions and sectors (MBR is just a sector) are utilized and needed by windows to function, other partitions, readable to windows or not, shouldn't be of any business to the update process. Everything else would indicate a major fuck up in the update process, that surely would hit the news anytime soon
I think OP fucked up somehow

@Kimmax Well I didn't do anything per se, all the updates triggered on their own in windows 10. However I do have a long history of messing up windows and linux partitions on my drives (need to start from a clean slate one day...) so it's possible I messed something up. However prior to the update I didn't change anything, and voila! No more linux partition (replaced by empty space)

Weird thing is, my older debian partition that I don't use anymore was still there... only the ubuntu partition was affected

what said file --special /dev/sdaX

@Kimmax Yes, under certain circumstances it will. I had installed Windows 10 without a recovery partition, and with the next build upgrade it nuked the next partition of an - to it - unknown FS type to create one. That way I lost my Linux installs root partition.

@DLMousey It's probably another version of windows its installing. and it probably checks the boot partitions and other partitions to assure that the OS boots when the installation is done.

@dontbeevil well I never had any linux fuck up both my operating systems to the point where even grub wasn't displaying anymore

@stop Hey, thanks for the help ! Finally I burnt a recovery windows 10 usb and fixed it via console, then re-installed ubuntu

@raldo94 I think it was installing the creators update

@dontbeevil grub with its easily accessed kernel options is dangerous for noobs...

@Trablarer Dual booting is nice when one of the oses don't fuck it all up... I'm seriously considering switching to a ps4 for my gaming needs (really the only reason I start up my windows anymore)

I don't understand why that happens. It never happened with me though, I always make one separate free space in windows and I install Linux from usb on that free space. The partition doesnt even show up in windows (I'm happy about that ), so how can windows update nuke other partition. Is there any other method by which poeple install Linux.

@Kimmax I’ve been a doubter about these types of stories for a while but I can confirm the April and May updates have been fucky as Hell

well ... call it war or not. blame windows or not.

in most cases:
when digging down to what actually happened (no matter which case/os), you will find out that the system did everything right and as it was instructed to do.

when the state after doing what ever, is not the state you expected then the system was instructed something it was not capable of doing it.
so who ever wrote the instruction did not took care of your case.