[SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

Head_on_a_Stick · 2025-09-02 20:13:59

You also need to move your Arch /boot/ to the main root partition, with the ESP mounted under (e.g.) /efi/ instead; remember to modify /etc/fstab to reflect the new configuration.

Once that is done you can run the grub-install command with the correct --efi-directory option to get the system booting with the kernel & initramfs on the main root partition.

An even simpler option would be to not install a bootloader in Arch at all and instead rely on Mint's GRUB.

TySpicer · 2025-09-03 01:47:41

I got intel-ucode to install! I went into the ESP and deleted the files initramfs-linux-fallback.img (20M) and initramfs-linux.img (15M), so intel-ucode had plenty of space to install.

I continued going through the wiki installation instructions, and reached step 3.8 (almost there!).

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:

An even simpler option would be to not install a bootloader in Arch at all and instead rely on Mint's GRUB.

This sounds like the simplest option, so I think I'd like to do this. Would you be able to tell me how to do this here, or since it's technically a different topic, should I create a new topic?

Thanks again for the help! I feel confident that I'm getting closer!

Last edited by TySpicer (2025-09-03 18:55:10)

cryptearth · 2025-09-03 04:25:03

well - you CAN clear the existing ESP and create a new bigger one and use the required tools to fully recreate its contents - but this requires at least booting into WinPE and use windows tools to restore the windows bootloader (something I can help you with but unfortunate it's not supported here because it's not arch)
as for cleaning the ESP: that's what I recommended first: the standard windows esp has about 25mb of microsoft related stuff (give or take) with any of the usual linux bootloaders taking up about the same - so using the ESP for the windows and ONE linux bootloader is plenty of space - but in this setup you want to NOT use it for /boot and put a kernel and initrd on it as then you likely will run out of space (as you did initially)
simplest option: do not mount the ESP to /boot but rather to /efi and store only grub on it and make /boot a regular folder on the root partition
next step: add a xbootldr partition for /boot
also: depending on actual naming and which linux you use to manage grub (or do it by hand) you may reuse the xbootldr for both installs

my replies targeted towards leaving the windows boot stuff untouched so you don't break your windows install
of course you can wipe the drive and start from scratch (if so I recommend installing windows "the arch way" (look it up for Chris Titus)) but depending on the speed of your system and amount of data on the to be wiped drive and backup capabilities this is maybe not an option for you - unless you're some geek like me with a home servce and pxe and a massive 25tb+ array so you don't worry about killing a 500gb ssd with 4 OS on them because to restore them takes you about half an hour
also: as by this forums rules I'm somewhat limited in how much I'm allowed to help you before mods intervene with "out of scope of this bbs"

Head_on_a_Stick · 2025-09-03 06:14:09

TySpicer wrote:

I got intel-ucode to install! I went into the ESP and deleted the files initrams-linux-fallback.img (20M) and initramfs-linux.img (15M), so intel-ucode had plenty of space to install.

Yes but you will need the initramfs image to boot the machine and a new fallback image will be created every time the kernel is updated, which is why I suggested having /boot/ on the main root partition rather than it's own separate partition.

TySpicer wrote:

Would you be able to tell me how to do this here

Just install Arch with everything in one partition then boot into Mint and update the GRUB configuration to generate a menuentry for Arch.

nl6720 · 2025-09-09 07:56:25

cryptearth wrote:

nl6720 wrote:
Not sure why no one has suggested it, but you can simply replace the existing EFI system partition with a larger one.
because it will likely kill the windows install

Unless you can prove it, that's bullshit.

cryptearth · 2025-09-09 14:14:22

nl6720 wrote:

cryptearth wrote:
nl6720 wrote:
Not sure why no one has suggested it, but you can simply replace the existing EFI system partition with a larger one.
because it will likely kill the windows install
Unless you can prove it, that's bullshit.

uhm - just read the tech news sites in your preferred language - you'll find at least two incidents in the past 6 months
but if you insist I can construct an example which will reliable kill the esp on every windows boot
that's why at least I recommend: just leave the windows esp alone - or re-use it proper - but trying to fiddle with repartition the drive? I wouldn't

Arch Linux

#26 2025-09-02 20:13:59

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

#27 2025-09-03 01:47:41

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

#28 2025-09-03 04:25:03

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

#29 2025-09-03 06:14:09

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

#30 2025-09-09 07:56:25

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

#31 2025-09-09 14:14:22

Re: [SOLVED] Error installing intel-ucode - Not enough space on ESP

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