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#1 2017-07-29 17:36:54

orrin5250
Member
Registered: 2016-10-12
Posts: 39

Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

I am struggling to get up and running with Arch on my new system.

In preparation I manually created and formatted partitions as follows:

parted /dev/sda print
Model: ATA WDC WDS250G1B0A- (scsi)
Disk /dev/sda: 250GB
Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
Partition Table: gpt
Disk Flags:

Number  Start   End    Size    File system     Name  Flags
1      1049kB  538MB  537MB   fat32                 boot, esp
2      538MB   217GB  216GB   ext4
3      217GB   250GB  33.6GB  linux-swap(v1)

I ran through the installation guide seemingly without hiccups then attempted to set up grub as directed on the Arch GRUB page (UEFI systems):

  • mount /dev/sda1 (my EFI partition) /boot.

  • installed grub and efibootmgr

  • grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --bootloader-id=grub

  • grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

Unfortunately on boot up I am just getting the grub command shell.

The EFI system partition was empty before all of the above and here is what grub placed:

root@lubuntu:/mnt# tree
.
├── EFI
│   └── grub
│       └── grubx64.efi
└── grub
    ├── fonts
    │   └── unicode.pf2
    ├── grub.cfg
    ├── grubenv
    ├── locale
    │   ├── ast.mo
    │   ├── ca.mo
    │   ├── da.mo
    │   ├── de_CH.mo
    │   ├── de@hebrew.mo
    │   ├── de.mo
    │   ├── en@arabic.mo
    │   ├── en@hebrew.mo
    │   ├── en@piglatin.mo
    │   ├── en@quot.mo
    │   ├── eo.mo
    │   ├── es.mo
    │   ├── fi.mo
    │   ├── fr.mo
    │   ├── gl.mo
    │   ├── hr.mo
    │   ├── hu.mo
    │   ├── id.mo
    │   ├── it.mo
    │   ├── ja.mo
    │   ├── ko.mo
    │   ├── lt.mo
    │   ├── nb.mo
    │   ├── nl.mo
    │   ├── pa.mo
    │   ├── pl.mo
    │   ├── pt_BR.mo
    │   ├── ru.mo
    │   ├── sl.mo
    │   ├── sr.mo
    │   ├── sv.mo
    │   ├── tr.mo
    │   ├── uk.mo
    │   ├── vi.mo
    │   ├── zh_CN.mo
    │   └── zh_TW.mo
    ├── themes
    │   └── starfield
    │       ├── blob_w.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_c.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_e.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_ne.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_n.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_nw.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_se.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_s.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_sw.png
    │       ├── boot_menu_w.png
    │       ├── COPYING.CC-BY-SA-3.0
    │       ├── dejavu_10.pf2
    │       ├── dejavu_12.pf2
    │       ├── dejavu_14.pf2
    │       ├── dejavu_16.pf2
    │       ├── dejavu_bold_14.pf2
    │       ├── README
    │       ├── slider_c.png
    │       ├── slider_n.png
    │       ├── slider_s.png
    │       ├── starfield.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_c.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_e.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_ne.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_n.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_nw.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_se.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_s.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_sw.png
    │       ├── terminal_box_w.png
    │       └── theme.txt
    └── x86_64-efi
        ├── acpi.mod
        ├── adler32.mod
        ├── affs.mod
        ├── afs.mod
        ├── ahci.mod
        ├── all_video.mod
        ├── aout.mod
        ├── appleldr.mod
        ├── archelp.mod
        ├── ata.mod
        ├── at_keyboard.mod
        ├── backtrace.mod
        ├── bfs.mod
        ├── bitmap.mod
        ├── bitmap_scale.mod
        ├── blocklist.mod
        ├── boot.mod
        ├── boottime.mod
        ├── bsd.mod
        ├── bswap_test.mod
        ├── btrfs.mod
        ├── bufio.mod
        ├── cacheinfo.mod
        ├── cat.mod
        ├── cbfs.mod
        ├── cbls.mod
        ├── cbmemc.mod
        ├── cbtable.mod
        ├── cbtime.mod
        ├── chain.mod
        ├── cmdline_cat_test.mod
        ├── cmp.mod
        ├── cmp_test.mod
        ├── command.lst
        ├── configfile.mod
        ├── core.efi
        ├── cpio_be.mod
        ├── cpio.mod
        ├── cpuid.mod
        ├── crc64.mod
        ├── cryptodisk.mod
        ├── crypto.lst
        ├── crypto.mod
        ├── cs5536.mod
        ├── ctz_test.mod
        ├── datehook.mod
        ├── date.mod
        ├── datetime.mod
        ├── diskfilter.mod
        ├── disk.mod
        ├── div.mod
        ├── div_test.mod
        ├── dm_nv.mod
        ├── echo.mod
        ├── efifwsetup.mod
        ├── efi_gop.mod
        ├── efinet.mod
        ├── efi_uga.mod
        ├── ehci.mod
        ├── elf.mod
        ├── eval.mod
        ├── exfat.mod
        ├── exfctest.mod
        ├── ext2.mod
        ├── extcmd.mod
        ├── fat.mod
        ├── file.mod
        ├── fixvideo.mod
        ├── font.mod
        ├── fshelp.mod
        ├── fs.lst
        ├── functional_test.mod
        ├── gcry_arcfour.mod
        ├── gcry_blowfish.mod
        ├── gcry_camellia.mod
        ├── gcry_cast5.mod
        ├── gcry_crc.mod
        ├── gcry_des.mod
        ├── gcry_dsa.mod
        ├── gcry_idea.mod
        ├── gcry_md4.mod
        ├── gcry_md5.mod
        ├── gcry_rfc2268.mod
        ├── gcry_rijndael.mod
        ├── gcry_rmd160.mod
        ├── gcry_rsa.mod
        ├── gcry_seed.mod
        ├── gcry_serpent.mod
        ├── gcry_sha1.mod
        ├── gcry_sha256.mod
        ├── gcry_sha512.mod
        ├── gcry_tiger.mod
        ├── gcry_twofish.mod
        ├── gcry_whirlpool.mod
        ├── geli.mod
        ├── gettext.mod
        ├── gfxmenu.mod
        ├── gfxterm_background.mod
        ├── gfxterm_menu.mod
        ├── gfxterm.mod
        ├── gptsync.mod
        ├── grub.efi
        ├── gzio.mod
        ├── halt.mod
        ├── hashsum.mod
        ├── hdparm.mod
        ├── hello.mod
        ├── help.mod
        ├── hexdump.mod
        ├── hfs.mod
        ├── hfspluscomp.mod
        ├── hfsplus.mod
        ├── http.mod
        ├── iorw.mod
        ├── iso9660.mod
        ├── jfs.mod
        ├── jpeg.mod
        ├── keylayouts.mod
        ├── keystatus.mod
        ├── ldm.mod
        ├── legacycfg.mod
        ├── legacy_password_test.mod
        ├── linux16.mod
        ├── linux.mod
        ├── loadbios.mod
        ├── loadenv.mod
        ├── loopback.mod
        ├── lsacpi.mod
        ├── lsefimmap.mod
        ├── lsefi.mod
        ├── lsefisystab.mod
        ├── lsmmap.mod
        ├── ls.mod
        ├── lspci.mod
        ├── lssal.mod
        ├── luks.mod
        ├── lvm.mod
        ├── lzopio.mod
        ├── macbless.mod
        ├── macho.mod
        ├── mdraid09_be.mod
        ├── mdraid09.mod
        ├── mdraid1x.mod
        ├── memdisk.mod
        ├── memrw.mod
        ├── minicmd.mod
        ├── minix2_be.mod
        ├── minix2.mod
        ├── minix3_be.mod
        ├── minix3.mod
        ├── minix_be.mod
        ├── minix.mod
        ├── mmap.mod
        ├── moddep.lst
        ├── modinfo.sh
        ├── morse.mod
        ├── mpi.mod
        ├── msdospart.mod
        ├── mul_test.mod
        ├── multiboot2.mod
        ├── multiboot.mod
        ├── nativedisk.mod
        ├── net.mod
        ├── newc.mod
        ├── nilfs2.mod
        ├── normal.mod
        ├── ntfscomp.mod
        ├── ntfs.mod
        ├── odc.mod
        ├── offsetio.mod
        ├── ohci.mod
        ├── part_acorn.mod
        ├── part_amiga.mod
        ├── part_apple.mod
        ├── part_bsd.mod
        ├── part_dfly.mod
        ├── part_dvh.mod
        ├── part_gpt.mod
        ├── partmap.lst
        ├── part_msdos.mod
        ├── part_plan.mod
        ├── part_sun.mod
        ├── part_sunpc.mod
        ├── parttool.lst
        ├── parttool.mod
        ├── password.mod
        ├── password_pbkdf2.mod
        ├── pata.mod
        ├── pbkdf2.mod
        ├── pbkdf2_test.mod
        ├── pcidump.mod
        ├── play.mod
        ├── png.mod
        ├── priority_queue.mod
        ├── probe.mod
        ├── procfs.mod
        ├── progress.mod
        ├── raid5rec.mod
        ├── raid6rec.mod
        ├── random.mod
        ├── read.mod
        ├── reboot.mod
        ├── regexp.mod
        ├── reiserfs.mod
        ├── relocator.mod
        ├── romfs.mod
        ├── scsi.mod
        ├── search_fs_file.mod
        ├── search_fs_uuid.mod
        ├── search_label.mod
        ├── search.mod
        ├── serial.mod
        ├── setjmp.mod
        ├── setjmp_test.mod
        ├── setpci.mod
        ├── sfs.mod
        ├── shift_test.mod
        ├── signature_test.mod
        ├── sleep.mod
        ├── sleep_test.mod
        ├── spkmodem.mod
        ├── squash4.mod
        ├── syslinuxcfg.mod
        ├── tar.mod
        ├── terminal.lst
        ├── terminal.mod
        ├── terminfo.mod
        ├── test_blockarg.mod
        ├── testload.mod
        ├── test.mod
        ├── testspeed.mod
        ├── tftp.mod
        ├── tga.mod
        ├── time.mod
        ├── trig.mod
        ├── tr.mod
        ├── true.mod
        ├── udf.mod
        ├── ufs1_be.mod
        ├── ufs1.mod
        ├── ufs2.mod
        ├── uhci.mod
        ├── usb_keyboard.mod
        ├── usb.mod
        ├── usbms.mod
        ├── usbserial_common.mod
        ├── usbserial_ftdi.mod
        ├── usbserial_pl2303.mod
        ├── usbserial_usbdebug.mod
        ├── usbtest.mod
        ├── verify.mod
        ├── video_bochs.mod
        ├── video_cirrus.mod
        ├── video_colors.mod
        ├── video_fb.mod
        ├── videoinfo.mod
        ├── video.lst
        ├── video.mod
        ├── videotest_checksum.mod
        ├── videotest.mod
        ├── xfs.mod
        ├── xnu.mod
        ├── xnu_uuid.mod
        ├── xnu_uuid_test.mod
        ├── xzio.mod
        ├── zfscrypt.mod
        ├── zfsinfo.mod
        └── zfs.mod

And here are the contents of /boot:

root@lubuntu:/mnt/boot# tree
.
├── grub
│   ├── grub.cfg
│   └── grub.cfg.example
├── initramfs-linux-fallback.img
├── initramfs-linux.img
└── vmlinuz-linux

1 directory, 5 files

I find it strange there are 2 grub.cfg files - one in /boot and one in the ESP (and they are not the same).

I attempted to manually boot from the grub command shell as directed here but the files don't seem to match up...I am not certain this process applies to Arch.

Lastly here are the 2 grub.cfg files...1st from the EFI system partition:

root@lubuntu:/mnt/grub# cat grub.cfg
#
# DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE
#
# It is automatically generated by grub-mkconfig using templates
# from /etc/grub.d and settings from /etc/default/grub
#

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/00_header ###
insmod part_gpt
insmod part_msdos
if [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then
  load_env
fi
if [ "${next_entry}" ] ; then
   set default="${next_entry}"
   set next_entry=
   save_env next_entry
   set boot_once=true
else
   set default="0"
fi

if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then
  menuentry_id_option="--id"
else
  menuentry_id_option=""
fi

export menuentry_id_option

if [ "${prev_saved_entry}" ]; then
  set saved_entry="${prev_saved_entry}"
  save_env saved_entry
  set prev_saved_entry=
  save_env prev_saved_entry
  set boot_once=true
fi

function savedefault {
  if [ -z "${boot_once}" ]; then
    saved_entry="${chosen}"
    save_env saved_entry
  fi
}

function load_video {
  if [ x$feature_all_video_module = xy ]; then
    insmod all_video
  else
    insmod efi_gop
    insmod efi_uga
    insmod ieee1275_fb
    insmod vbe
    insmod vga
    insmod video_bochs
    insmod video_cirrus
  fi
}

if [ x$feature_default_font_path = xy ] ; then
   font=unicode
else
insmod part_gpt
insmod ext2
set root='hd0,gpt2'
if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,gpt2 --hint-efi=hd0,gpt2 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,gpt2  b3c7c8e0-1a27-4adf-bad1-f785c6ec902b
else
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root b3c7c8e0-1a27-4adf-bad1-f785c6ec902b
fi
    font="/usr/share/grub/unicode.pf2"
fi

if loadfont $font ; then
  set gfxmode=auto
  load_video
  insmod gfxterm
  set locale_dir=$prefix/locale
  set lang=en_US
  insmod gettext
fi
terminal_input console
terminal_output gfxterm
if [ x$feature_timeout_style = xy ] ; then
  set timeout_style=menu
  set timeout=5
# Fallback normal timeout code in case the timeout_style feature is
# unavailable.
else
  set timeout=5
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/00_header ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###
### END /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###
# This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries.  Simply type the
# menu entries you want to add after this comment.  Be careful not to change
# the 'exec tail' line above.
### END /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
if [ -f  ${config_directory}/custom.cfg ]; then
  source ${config_directory}/custom.cfg
elif [ -z "${config_directory}" -a -f  $prefix/custom.cfg ]; then
  source $prefix/custom.cfg;
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###

And from the /boot directory:

root@lubuntu:/mnt/boot/grub# cat grub.cfg
#
# DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE
#
# It is automatically generated by grub-mkconfig using templates
# from /etc/grub.d and settings from /etc/default/grub
#

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/00_header ###
insmod part_gpt
insmod part_msdos
if [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then
  load_env
fi
set default="0"

if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then
  menuentry_id_option="--id"
else
  menuentry_id_option=""
fi

export menuentry_id_option

if [ "${prev_saved_entry}" ]; then
  set saved_entry="${prev_saved_entry}"
  save_env saved_entry
  set prev_saved_entry=
  save_env prev_saved_entry
  set boot_once=true
fi

function savedefault {
  if [ -z "${boot_once}" ]; then
    saved_entry="${chosen}"
    save_env saved_entry
  fi
}

function load_video {
  if [ x$feature_all_video_module = xy ]; then
    insmod all_video
  else
    insmod efi_gop
    insmod efi_uga
    insmod ieee1275_fb
    insmod vbe
    insmod vga
    insmod video_bochs
    insmod video_cirrus
  fi
}

if [ x$feature_default_font_path = xy ] ; then
   font=unicode
else
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='hd0,msdos5'
if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos5 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos5 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos5  ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
else
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
fi
    font="/usr/share/grub/unicode.pf2"
fi

if loadfont $font ; then
  set gfxmode=auto
  load_video
  insmod gfxterm
  set locale_dir=$prefix/locale
  set lang=en_US
  insmod gettext
fi
terminal_input console
terminal_output gfxterm
set timeout=5
### END /etc/grub.d/00_header ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
menuentry 'Arch Linux, with Linux core repo kernel' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-core repo kernel-true-ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467' {
	load_video
	set gfxpayload=keep
	insmod gzio
	insmod part_msdos
	insmod ext2
	set root='hd0,msdos5'
	if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos5 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos5 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos5  ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
	else
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
	fi
	echo	'Loading Linux core repo kernel ...'
	linux	/boot/vmlinuz-linux root=UUID=ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467 rw  quiet
	echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
	initrd	/boot/initramfs-linux.img
}
menuentry 'Arch Linux, with Linux core repo kernel (Fallback initramfs)' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-core repo kernel-fallback-ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467' {
	load_video
	set gfxpayload=keep
	insmod gzio
	insmod part_msdos
	insmod ext2
	set root='hd0,msdos5'
	if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos5 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos5 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos5  ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
	else
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467
	fi
	echo	'Loading Linux core repo kernel ...'
	linux	/boot/vmlinuz-linux root=UUID=ad4103fa-d940-47ca-8506-301d8071d467 rw  quiet
	echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
	initrd	/boot/initramfs-linux-fallback.img
}

### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###
### END /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+ ###
### END /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+ ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###
# This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries.  Simply type the
# menu entries you want to add after this comment.  Be careful not to change
# the 'exec tail' line above.
### END /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
if [ -f  ${config_directory}/custom.cfg ]; then
  source ${config_directory}/custom.cfg
elif [ -z "${config_directory}" -a -f  $prefix/custom.cfg ]; then
  source $prefix/custom.cfg;
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###

And for what it's worth, here are my components:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1500X 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($176.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver - 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5g Thermal Paste  ($5.84 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - GA-AB350-GAMING 3 ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($91.77 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Kingston - FURY 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card  ($148.88 @ OutletPC)
Case: Phanteks - ECLIPSE P400 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($79.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $663.24
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-07-29 13:34 EDT-0400

Any ideas?  I have gone through the process 3 times without any luck.  I am not sure what I am missing.

Last edited by orrin5250 (2017-07-31 11:30:08)

Offline

#2 2017-07-29 17:59:19

V1del
Forum Moderator
Registered: 2012-10-16
Posts: 21,427

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

Well if you want GRUB to apply it's configuration and show you the correct entries it you will likely have to make sure that the correct grub.cfg is on the ESP as well. The example in the wiki assumes you are using /boot for  your ESP. Why are you separating your ESP and /boot anyway? You can technically do that with GRUB but it leads to a few avoidable gotchas

Last edited by V1del (2017-07-29 18:05:55)

Offline

#3 2017-07-29 18:04:06

ewaller
Administrator
From: Pasadena, CA
Registered: 2009-07-13
Posts: 19,740

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

orrin5250 wrote:

I find it strange there are 2 grub.cfg files - one in /boot and one in the ESP (and they are not the same).
...
Any ideas?  I have gone through the process 3 times without any luck.  I am not sure what I am missing.

I boot directly from uefi or I use rEFInd, so I am not much help with grub.  Sorry.

But, your statement about differences between /boot and the contents of the the ESB volume being different is a huge indicator of a problem.  The reason being, the ESP partition is supposed to be mounted on /boot; the contents of /boot are (supposed to be) the contents of the ESP.  That they are different means the ESP volume is not mounted, so /boot is a common directory, not a mount point.  The install tools write things to /boot with the implication being that they are being written to the ESP.  You should clean up your system by ensuring nothing is mounted on /boot, cleaning out that directory, fixing your /etc/fstab to ensure that the ESP gets mounted on /boot, mount ESP on /boot, and reinstall grub.  See how far that gets you.

Lastly, I see you've a tendency to run things logged in as root.  It might be just because of the state of your machine, so I'll cut you some slack wink  Never-the-less, logging in as root is generally not required and is a bad habit to get into.

Edit: Too slow.

Last edited by ewaller (2017-07-29 18:04:38)


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#4 2017-07-29 18:05:46

Slithery
Administrator
From: Norfolk, UK
Registered: 2013-12-01
Posts: 5,776

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

You say you mounted your EFI partition just before you installed GRUB, was is mounted before this?
You need to mount your root partition, and then your boot (EFI) partition before you run the pacstrap command - this is because the linux package installs the kernel to your EFI partition.

Personal opinion - Is there a reason you've chosen GRUB for your bootloader? For a simple system like yours I'd just use systemd-boot instead, it's a lot less complicated and doesn't require the installation of any additional packages (like GRUB).

Last edited by Slithery (2017-07-29 19:23:53)


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#5 2017-07-29 18:25:10

orrin5250
Member
Registered: 2016-10-12
Posts: 39

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

OK wow, thanks for the speedy replies.  I am going to study this and try again tomorrow.  My eyes (and brain) are crossed for now.

Some quick responses:

V1del wrote:

The example in the wiki assumes you are using /boot for your ESP. Why are you separating your ESP and /boot anyway?

slithery wrote:

You say you mounted your EFI partition just before you installed GRUB, was is mounted before this?
You need to mount your root partition, and then your boot (EFI) partition before you run the pacstrap command - this is because the linux package installs the kernel to your EFI partition.

I must have missed something in the install guide or it went over my head.  I most certainly did not mount the EFI partition to /boot before running pacstrap.  I will definitely give that a try.

ewaller wrote:

Lastly, I see you've a tendency to run things logged in as root.  It might be just because of the state of your machine, so I'll cut you some slack wink  Never-the-less, logging in as root is generally not required and is a bad habit to get into.

Thanks for the steps you recommended...I will work on them.  As far as the root thing goes, I generally avoid it.  But I was on an ubuntu live cd and getting sloppy.  tongue

I will give a progress report tomorrow.  And I'm certainly open to using systemd-boot if I can get up and running.  I've used grub for years as I like to play around with different OSs and distributions.

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#6 2017-07-29 21:46:16

Blasphemist
Member
From: Colorado
Registered: 2013-01-17
Posts: 160

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

We can clear up the confusion. When installing arch or when using arch-chroot to fix a problem, we mount the new root partition to /mnt, make the directory /mnt/boot to mount the $ESP to, mount the $ESP to /mnt/boot and then use arch-chroot to cause our environment to see what we just mounted as our root and $ESP partitions. Even after you've mounted partitions to /mnt and /mnt/boot but before you've run arch-chroot, your / and /boot directories are on your iso. After you've run arch-chroot, if you look at the contents of directories, you are looking at what you are installing or have installed. Seeing /boot and /mnt/boot tells me you hadn't run arch-chroot. After you run that you wan't any longer have a /mnt/boot directory.


Simple and Open

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#7 2017-07-31 11:29:19

orrin5250
Member
Registered: 2016-10-12
Posts: 39

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

As an update, I scrubbed the installation and tried again, this time with root partition mounted to /mnt and boot partition mounted to /mnt/boot.  All this BEFORE running pacstrap.

Everything went smoothly and grub is now happy. 

I may try out the systemd-boot strategy down the line.

Thanks everybody.

----------

As an aside, reviewing installation guide:

Mount the file systems
Mount the file system on the root partition to /mnt, for example:

# mount /dev/sda1 /mnt

Create mount points for any remaining partitions and mount them accordingly, for example:

# mkdir /mnt/boot
# mount /dev/sda2 /mnt/boot

At least to me this is a pretty broad reference -- it doesn't make it clear that the EFI partition MUST be mounted to /mnt/boot before proceeding.  I guess I am in need of a bit more hand holding.  smile  Thanks again.

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#8 2017-08-02 09:13:25

V1del
Forum Moderator
Registered: 2012-10-16
Posts: 21,427

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

Well the thing is that it isn't a MUST, it's good practice and will minimize customizations on your side. The setup you had originally would technically work as well and make sense if you e.g. intend to have multiple distributions installed and don't want their respective kernels pollute your ESP. However you would've had to make sure that the grub.cfg contains all entries (from all distributions) and reside on the ESP, were grub will read it and provide access to the kernels on your other partitions. if you make the ESP your /boot a lot of automatisms will simply work which you might have to check up on if your ESP and /boot are seperate.

However glad to hear you managed to resolve this.

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#9 2017-08-02 10:03:34

orrin5250
Member
Registered: 2016-10-12
Posts: 39

Re: Stuck at grub command shell [SOLVED]

@V1del -- clarification and explanation much appreciated.

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