Questions tagged [boot-loader]
A boot loader (aka bootstrap loader) is the program that loads up the operating system kernel (or another boot-loader), e.g., GNU GRUB, LILO, SYSLINUX, or rEFInd. Use this tag for questions about installing, configuring or trouble-shooting software that is used to load Unix-like operating systems. Questions about boot loaders on Android or iOS devices are generally off-topic and are better asked on android.stackexchange.com or apple.stackexchange.com.
746 questions
1 vote
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How to get out of the Linux/Windows dualboot setup disaster [closed]
I have a two-drive PC that originally came with Windows 11 preinstalled. As I wanted to use linux for projects/research I decided to install omarchy on the second drive. During Omarchy installation ...
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0 votes
1 answer
111 views
update-initramfs breaks loader.conf to the point of not booting properly
In preparation for installing Debian on my main Computer, I tried the setup in a Virtualbox first. I use encrypted BTRFS RAID1, which seems kind of special, as I've not found anyone else doing the ...
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2 votes
0 answers
84 views
Laptop tries to boot Windows even when Linux installation USB drive is plugged in
I'm trying to wipe an old laptop and install Ubuntu on it. I've reset the BIOS to boot from the USB drive first, but it keeps trying (and failing) to start Windows when the USB drive is connected. It ...
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2 votes
0 answers
98 views
Arch Linux dual boot: mount error and boot failure following upgrade
I was properly installing Arch and doing dual boot. The error happened not only once, possibly because some kernel module needs to be loaded first before the system can mount the NTFS file system? Is ...
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2 votes
2 answers
185 views
How is compressed and how can be decompressed real core.img?
In GPT/BIOS, GRUB2 "installs" on BIOS boot partition "core.img" consiting of "diskboot.img", lzma decompressor (lzma_decompress.img) and core.img (IIUC). I assumed that ...
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2 votes
2 answers
321 views
Debian virsh-install unattended install stuck at "loading initial ramdisk" on first boot after install
Installing Debian on a virtual machine interactively: virt-install --virt-type kvm --name debian-13-x64 \ --memory 4096 \ --vcpus 4 \ --cdrom /mnt/data/iso/debian-testing-amd64-DVD-1.iso \ --os-...
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3 votes
1 answer
251 views
Debian Bookworm, slow boot issue
After upgrade to Debian Bookworm, I'm encountering slow boot, significantly slower than the previous Bullseye version. How to find the real reason and fix it? boot log: [FAILED] Failed to start Raise ...
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0 votes
1 answer
142 views
RHEL8 dracut initramfs switch-root hanging on one machine and not others
I have a 2TB external SSD connected to a server. Using the server, I booted into the RHEL8 installer and successfully installed onto the external drive, however during the post-install reboot (and all ...
0 votes
0 answers
124 views
UEFI boot entry regenerates with malformed path ‘File(.䍒)’ causing double GRUB menu
I have Windows 10 pro and Ubuntu 24.04 installed on HDD and SSD respectively in same HP laptop. When booting I am getting 2 GRUB menu. First a blue + white screen, and later the normal ubuntu grub ...
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1 vote
0 answers
161 views
Mint installer tries to install GRUB to /dev/sda instead of /dev/sdb
I don't necessarily need it to be GRUB, I just want a bootloader. I've done a lot of troubleshooting already, but here's what I found. The last thing before the installer dies on me, it says: mint ...
0 votes
0 answers
83 views
update-grub sets wrong kernel root upon second execution
My system looks like this: NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS sda 8:0 0 931.5G 0 disk ├─sda1 8:1 0 500M 0 part /boot ├─...
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1 vote
2 answers
1k views
How can I boot into Linux on an NVME drive when my system's UEFI firmware doesn't recognise it
I want to install Debian on an NVME SSD, which is in a PCIE adapater card. However, the drive doesn't appear in the UEFI settings as a bootable drive. I was able to install Debian onto a SATA HDD and, ...
0 votes
1 answer
404 views
Arch Linux installation has disappeared from systemd-boot
I truly am at a loss for what has happened. I booted into Arch Linux as per usual, and instead of being greeted with the boot option for Arch, the only option was "Reboot into firmware interface&...
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1 vote
1 answer
566 views
I have a Linux Mint + Windows 10 dual-boot system, but I can't get the boot menu to show
[Context: I am more than ready to end my ~35yr relationship with MS and, after many hrs investigation, have chosen Linux Mint Cinnamon 22 as my next main OS. In order to ensure I can still use some ...
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1 vote
1 answer
245 views
Set to 0 seconds the default grub timeout in the grub boot menu of a Yocto boot image
I have a Yocto (kirkstone release) bootable image for x86_64 machine. While booting, I'm able to see the grub menu showing the default boot will be executed after the timeout, as shown in the image ...
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