[SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

tippytippy · 2026-05-27 18:06:18

After updating my system, whenever I try to boot it gets stuck on "loading initial ramdisk ...", eventually putting me into emergency mode after saying "Timed out waiting for device /dev/.12856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842".

I assumed that this was due to a kernel upgrade issue (probably incorrectly), so I tried both downgrading the kernel to a version that I know boots and downloading the lts kernel with chroot. I regenerated the initramfs images, reinstalled grub, and remade the grub configs. Trying to boot with either kernel results in the same problem as before.

I have tried using dmesg while chrooted into my arch file system, but the output seems to be for the live os I am using to troubleshoot (a debian kernel, using finnix). I can provide the log if someone can help me understand what I am doing wrong.
I also get an error when I try to invoke journalctl ("Function not implemented"). Would I be able to remedy this by using a live Arch install?

Here is a pastebin with the contents of /var/log/pacman.log starting with the day of the update:
https://pastewala.com/l6B3gcPU

Please let me know if there is any relevant information I have neglected to provide. Thanks in advance!

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-29 19:28:26)

jonno2002 · 2026-05-27 19:47:56

what is the device thats timing out ? do you have a seperate /boot partition thats not mounted ?
boot whichever live medium you want then mount the root partition to /mnt and post output of:

lsblk -f && cat /mnt/etc/fstab

tippytippy · 2026-05-27 20:07:46

I do not know which device is timing out. I have a separate boot partition (mmcblk0p1). I mounted it to /boot when downloading new kernels, reinstalling grub, and remaking grub config (I also mounted the efivars).

The output:

NAME         FSTYPE   FSVER            LABEL      UUID                                 FSAVAIL FSUSE% MOUNTPOINTS
loop0        squashfs 4.0                                                                    0   100% /run/live/rootfs/filesystem.squashfs
sda          iso9660  Joliet Extension Finnix 251 2025-11-13-22-37-43-00                              
├─sda1       iso9660  Joliet Extension Finnix 251 2025-11-13-22-37-43-00                     0   100% /run/live/medium
└─sda2       vfat     FAT12                       6916-5DB7                                           
mmcblk0                                                                                               
├─mmcblk0p1  vfat     FAT32                       9794-721B                                           
├─mmcblk0p2  ext4     1.0                         3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842  563.8M    91% /mnt
└─mmcblk0p3  ext4     1.0                         e12b6bcd-925b-4df7-b340-475fe600131d                
zram0        swap     1                zram0      142864ba-f799-4d3f-a262-1c56b6e30a65                [SWAP]
mmcblk0boot0                                                                                          
mmcblk0boot1                                                                                          
# Static information about the filesystems.
# See fstab(5) for details.

# <file system> <dir> <type> <options> <dump> <pass>
# /dev/mmcblk0p2
UUID=3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842	/         	ext4      	rw,relatime	0 1

# /dev/mmcblk0p1
UUID=9794-721B      	/boot     	vfat      	rw,relatime,fmask=0022,dmask=0022,codepage=437,iocharset=ascii,shortname=mixed,utf8,errors=remount-ro	0 2

# /dev/mmcblk0p3
UUID=e12b6bcd-925b-4df7-b340-475fe600131d	/home     	ext4      	rw,relatime	0 2

(mmcblk0p1:boot, mmcblk0p2:root, mmcblk0p3:home)

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-27 20:09:19)

jonno2002 · 2026-05-27 20:37:37

i dont see that device anywhere
boot live again, mount /root to /mnt and /boot to /mnt/boot and post:

cat /mnt/etc/default/grub /mnt/etc/mkinitcpio.conf /mnt/boot/grub/grub.cfg |grep -Pv '^#|^$'

tippytippy · 2026-05-27 20:51:30

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT=5
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR="Arch"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="loglevel=3 quiet"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""
GRUB_PRELOAD_MODULES="part_gpt part_msdos"
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=menu
GRUB_TERMINAL_INPUT=console
GRUB_GFXMODE=auto
GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=keep
GRUB_DISABLE_RECOVERY=true
MODULES=()
BINARIES=()
FILES=()
HOOKS=(base systemd autodetect microcode modconf kms keyboard sd-vconsole block filesystems fsck)
insmod part_gpt
insmod part_msdos
if [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then
  load_env
fi
if [ "${env_block}" ] ; then
  set env_block="(${root})${env_block}"
  export env_block
  load_env -f "${env_block}"
fi
if [ "${next_entry}" ] ; then
   set default="${next_entry}"
   set next_entry=
   if [ "${env_block}" ] ; then
     save_env -f "${env_block}" next_entry
   else
     save_env next_entry
   fi
   set boot_once=true
else
   set default="0"
fi
if [ x"${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}"
    if [ "${env_block}" ] ; then
      save_env -f "${env_block}" saved_entry
    else
      save_env saved_entry
    fi
  fi
}
function load_video {
  if [ x$grub_platform = xefi ]; then
    insmod efi_gop
    insmod efi_uga
  elif [ x$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
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842
    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
else
  set timeout=5
fi
menuentry 'Arch Linux' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-simple-3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842' {
	load_video
	set gfxpayload=keep
	insmod gzio
	insmod part_gpt
	insmod fat
	search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 9794-721B
	echo	'Loading Linux linux-lts ...'
	linux	/vmlinuz-linux-lts root=UUID=3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842 rw  loglevel=3 quiet
	echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
	initrd	/intel-ucode.img /initramfs-linux-lts.img
}
submenu 'Advanced options for Arch Linux' $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-advanced-3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842' {
	menuentry 'Arch Linux, with Linux linux-lts' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-linux-lts-advanced-3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842' {
		load_video
		set gfxpayload=keep
		insmod gzio
		insmod part_gpt
		insmod fat
		search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 9794-721B
		echo	'Loading Linux linux-lts ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-linux-lts root=UUID=3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842 rw  loglevel=3 quiet
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/intel-ucode.img /initramfs-linux-lts.img
	}
	menuentry 'Arch Linux, with Linux linux' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-linux-advanced-3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842' {
		load_video
		set gfxpayload=keep
		insmod gzio
		insmod part_gpt
		insmod fat
		search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 9794-721B
		echo	'Loading Linux linux ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-linux root=UUID=3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842 rw  loglevel=3 quiet
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/intel-ucode.img /initramfs-linux.img
	}
	menuentry 'Arch Linux, with Linux linux (fallback initramfs)' --class arch --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-linux-fallback-3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842' {
		load_video
		set gfxpayload=keep
		insmod gzio
		insmod part_gpt
		insmod fat
		search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 9794-721B
		echo	'Loading Linux linux ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-linux root=UUID=3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842 rw  loglevel=3 quiet
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/intel-ucode.img /initramfs-linux-fallback.img
	}
}
if [ "$grub_platform" = "efi" ]; then
  insmod bli
fi
if [ "$grub_platform" = "efi" ]; then
	fwsetup --is-supported
	if [ "$?" = 0 ]; then
		menuentry 'UEFI Firmware Settings' $menuentry_id_option 'uefi-firmware' {
			fwsetup
		}
	fi
fi
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

jonno2002 · 2026-05-28 00:59:43

that all looks perfect to me, no idea where that device ID is comming from, all i can suggest is chrooting and doing the whole lot again.
if your chrooting from debian live medium remember to do this after mounting your partitions but before invoking chroot command:

mount --bind /proc /mnt/proc
mount --bind /dev /mnt/dev
mount --bind /sys /mnt/sys

so top to bottom would be:

mount /dev/mmcblk0p2 /mnt
mount /dev/mmcblk0p1 /mnt/boot
mount /dev/mmcblk0p3 /mnt/home
mount --bind /proc /mnt/proc
mount --bind /dev /mnt/dev
mount --bind /sys /mnt/sys
chroot /mnt
grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --bootloader-id=GRUB
grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --removable
grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
mkinitcpio -P

^^ thats based on the /boot partition being the efi partition, and also the order of mounting is important, you cant mount /mnt/boot then /mnt

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 01:47:42

Reminder to mount the efivars using "mount --rbind /sys/firmware/efi/efivars /mnt/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/" before chrooting, otherwise grub will say EFI variables are unsupported (for anyone troubleshooting the same problem in the future)

I had already done what you suggested, but I did it again just in case and the problem still persists. The timeout refers to the same device as before, I am not really sure what device it is or what to do about it.

Here is the full timeout message, jic that may be of any value:

[ TIME ] Timed out waiting for device /dev/.12856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842.
[DEPEND] Dependency failed for Initrd Root Device.
[DEPEND] Dependency failed for /sysroot.
[DEPEND] Dependency failed for Initrd Root File System.
[DEPEND] Dependency failed for File System Check on /dev/disk/by-uuid/3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842.
You are in emergency mode.

etc.

My root has a password, so I managed to get into single user mode by passing these kernel parameters:

SYSTEMD_SULOGIN_FORCE=1 init=/sbin/sulogin

From there I am able to invoke journalctl successfully. The issue I have is I don't know how to export the contents so that I can paste them here. I don't know what file system is loaded during this emergency mode and so don't know where to put a text file that I can transfer to a flashdrive.

Is it possible that there is an issue with systemd or is that totally off base? I saw in the pacman.log that it had received a feature update.

jonno2002 · 2026-05-28 02:16:49

sorry about the efivars thing i dont think ive ever had to use that, must have only worked on bios boot debian machines....
well im stumped.... maybe try a fsck on all 3 of your partitions but thats really just a stab in the dark
maybe seth or somone will have some ideas

EDIT:
had another idea, try this command from live medium, no chroot required

lsblk -o NAME,PARTTYPE,PARTUUID,PTUUID,UUID

might show up that mystery uuid, worth a shot

Last edited by jonno2002 (2026-05-28 03:24:32)

seth · 2026-05-28 06:01:00

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=312403

cryptearth · 2026-05-28 06:30:11

the error doesn't match the config:

/dev/.12856c-
vs
root=UUID=3112856c-

looks like somehow for some reason the 31 is replaced with a single dot

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 16:04:53

Thanks for the related post seth. My computer has an eMMC, not UFS. And when I go into single user mode, some sort of temporary filesystem is mounted. My main filesystem on my eMMC is unrecognized/unavailable, however both of the flashdrives I have are recognized. Whenever I try to mount my flashdrive anywhere on this tempfs I get this message:

mount: /(wherever i try to mount): unknown filesystem type 'vfat'.

etc/fstab is empty in this temp filesystem. I don't really know what this filesystem is or what is happening in this "stage" of the boot process, if someone has a link I could read up on I would appreciate it.

I turned of the quiet kernel parameter and set loglevel=7 and got this message when it started to time out:

A start job is running for /dev/disk/by-uuid/3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842 (47s / 1min 30s)

It timed out and afterwards I received the same "Timed out waiting for device", except that this time it displayed the entirity of the correct boot uuid. Good catch cryptearth, I didn't notice that before.

jonno, fsck says all filesystems are clean. Also I believe that cryptearth is right, the mystery uuid is just the uuid for my boot partition minus the first two digits for some reason.

EDIT: I flashed an arch iso to my flashdrive in order to try getting the journalctl. But my main filesystem is also not recognized here (at least it's not showing up in lsblk).
I feel a little out of my depth, maybe I'm simply approaching this wrong/not understanding something basic. Thanks for the patience.

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 16:36:01)

seth · 2026-05-28 18:09:35

both of the flashdrives I have are recognized

Where?

mount: /(wherever i try to mount): unknown filesystem type 'vfat'.

You're lacking the vfat module in this context (what specifically is it? The emergency shell?)

But my main filesystem is also not recognized here (at least it's not showing up in lsblk).

?
What is the output of "lsblk -f" from the iso?
#3 seems to have the MMC detected (and mouted), what is the output of "lsmod | grep -E 'mmc|ufs'" in that context?
Try adding the ufs and mmc modules to the initramfs, unconditionally.

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 19:47:04

Both flashdrives (sda and sdb) are recognized in the emergency shell and also the live arch install. mmcblk0 is not recognized in the emergency shell or the live arch iso. mmcblk0 is only recognized by my live finnix iso.

Yes, the context is the emergency shell after the timeout.

Here is the output of 'lsblk -f' from the live arch iso:

NAME   FSTYPE   FSVER            LABEL       UUID                                 FSAVAIL FSUSE% MOUNTPOINTS
loop0  squashfs 4.0                                                                     0   100% /run/archiso/airootfs
sda                                                                                              
└─sda1 vfat     FAT32            Lexar       C98E-B430                               9.2G    38% /mnt
sdb    iso9660  Joliet Extension ARCH_202605 2026-05-01-06-05-08-00                              
├─sdb1 iso9660  Joliet Extension ARCH_202605 2026-05-01-06-05-08-00                     0   100% /run/archiso/bootmnt
└─sdb2 vfat     FAT32            ARCHISO_EFI 69F4-4294

#3 is a live finnix iso. I don't know why it is the only iso able to detect my normal arch install's filesystem (mmcblk0). Here is the output of "lsmod | grep -E 'mmc|ufs'" from the live finnix iso:

mmc_block              65536  2
mmc_core              282624  3 sdhci,mmc_block,sdhci_acpi

I added those two modules to /etc/mkinitcpio.conf and proceeded with 'mkinitcpio -P'. "Error: module not found 'mmc'." is within the subsequent output. Trying to boot into my arch install continues to timeout.

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 19:55:05)

seth · 2026-05-28 19:57:38

I added those two modules … "Error: module not found 'mmc'."

??
You can chroot from the finnix installation, right?

pacman -Qikk linux
pacman -Ql linux | grep mmc

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 20:05:36

pacman -Qikk linux:

Name            : linux
Version         : 6.19.6.arch1-1
Description     : The Linux kernel and modules
Architecture    : x86_64
URL             : https://github.com/archlinux/linux
Licenses        : GPL-2.0-only
Groups          : None
Provides        : KSMBD-MODULE  NTSYNC-MODULE  VIRTUALBOX-GUEST-MODULES  WIREGUARD-MODULE
Depends On      : coreutils  initramfs  kmod
Optional Deps   : linux-headers: headers and scripts for building modules
                  linux-firmware: firmware images needed for some devices [installed]
                  scx-scheds: to use sched-ext schedulers
                  wireless-regdb: to set the correct wireless channels of your country
Required By     : None
Optional For    : base
Conflicts With  : None
Replaces        : virtualbox-guest-modules-arch  wireguard-arch
Installed Size  : 145.77 MiB
Packager        : Jan Alexander Steffens (heftig) <heftig@archlinux.org>
Build Date      : Wed 04 Mar 2026 11:25:08 AM MST
Install Date    : Tue 26 May 2026 07:39:30 PM MST
Install Reason  : Explicitly installed
Install Script  : No
Validated By    : Signature

linux: 7685 total files, 0 altered files

pacman -Ql linux | grep mmc:

linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/iio/magnetometer/mmc35240.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/media/mmc/
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/media/mmc/siano/
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/media/mmc/siano/smssdio.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/core/
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/core/mmc_block.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/core/mmc_core.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/core/mmc_test.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/core/sdio_uart.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/alcor.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/cb710-mmc.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/cqhci.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/mmc_hsq.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/mmc_spi.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/mtk-sd.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/of_mmc_spi.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/rtsx_pci_sdmmc.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/rtsx_usb_sdmmc.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci-acpi.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci-pci.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci-pltfm.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci-uhs2.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci-xenon-driver.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdhci_f_sdh30.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/sdricoh_cs.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/tifm_sd.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/toshsd.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/usdhi6rol0.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/ushc.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/via-sdmmc.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/vub300.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/mmc/host/wbsd.ko.zst
linux /usr/lib/modules/6.19.6-arch1-1/kernel/drivers/phy/intel/phy-intel-lgm-emmc.ko.zst

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 20:05:56)

seth · 2026-05-28 20:17:33

Looks fine, what does your mkinitcpio.conf look like?
Edit: please also post the journal from the install iso (where the mmc doesn't show up)

Last edited by seth (2026-05-28 20:18:15)

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 20:28:29

mkinitcpio.conf:

# vim:set ft=sh:
# MODULES
# The following modules are loaded before any boot hooks are
# run.  Advanced users may wish to specify all system modules
# in this array.  For instance:
#     MODULES=(usbhid xhci_hcd)
MODULES=(ufs mmc)

# BINARIES
# This setting includes any additional binaries a given user may
# wish into the CPIO image.  This is run last, so it may be used to
# override the actual binaries included by a given hook
# BINARIES are dependency parsed, so you may safely ignore libraries
BINARIES=()

# FILES
# This setting is similar to BINARIES above, however, files are added
# as-is and are not parsed in any way.  This is useful for config files.
FILES=()

# HOOKS
# This is the most important setting in this file.  The HOOKS control the
# modules and scripts added to the image, and what happens at boot time.
# Order is important, and it is recommended that you do not change the
# order in which HOOKS are added.  Run 'mkinitcpio -H <hook name>' for
# help on a given hook.
# 'base' is _required_ unless you know precisely what you are doing.
# 'udev' is _required_ in order to automatically load modules
# 'filesystems' is _required_ unless you specify your fs modules in MODULES
# Examples:
##   This setup specifies all modules in the MODULES setting above.
##   No RAID, lvm2, or encrypted root is needed.
#    HOOKS=(base)
#
##   This setup will autodetect all modules for your system and should
##   work as a sane default
#    HOOKS=(base udev autodetect microcode modconf block filesystems fsck)
#
##   This setup will generate a 'full' image which supports most systems.
##   No autodetection is done.
#    HOOKS=(base udev microcode modconf block filesystems fsck)
#
##   This setup assembles a mdadm array with an encrypted root file system.
##   Note: See 'mkinitcpio -H mdadm_udev' for more information on RAID devices.
#    HOOKS=(base udev microcode modconf keyboard keymap consolefont block mdadm_udev encrypt filesystems fsck)
#
##   This setup loads an lvm2 volume group.
#    HOOKS=(base udev microcode modconf block lvm2 filesystems fsck)
#
##   This will create a systemd based initramfs which loads an encrypted root filesystem.
#    HOOKS=(base systemd autodetect microcode modconf kms keyboard sd-vconsole block sd-encrypt filesystems fsck)
#
##   NOTE: If you have /usr on a separate partition, you MUST include the
#    usr and fsck hooks.
HOOKS=(base systemd autodetect microcode modconf kms keyboard sd-vconsole block filesystems fsck)

# COMPRESSION
# Use this to compress the initramfs image. By default, zstd compression
# is used for Linux ≥ 5.9 and gzip compression is used for Linux < 5.9.
# Use 'cat' to create an uncompressed image.
#COMPRESSION="zstd"
#COMPRESSION="gzip"
#COMPRESSION="bzip2"
#COMPRESSION="lzma"
#COMPRESSION="xz"
#COMPRESSION="lzop"
#COMPRESSION="lz4"

# COMPRESSION_OPTIONS
# Additional options for the compressor
#COMPRESSION_OPTIONS=()

# MODULES_DECOMPRESS
# Decompress loadable kernel modules and their firmware during initramfs
# creation. Switch (yes/no).
# Enable to allow further decreasing image size when using high compression
# (e.g. xz -9e or zstd --long --ultra -22) at the expense of increased RAM usage
# at early boot.
# Note that any compressed files will be placed in the uncompressed early CPIO
# to avoid double compression.
#MODULES_DECOMPRESS="no"

output of 'journalctl -xb' from live arch iso (sorry if you wanted different options, i can do it again if need be):
https://pastewala.com/alC4pjFt

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 20:30:09)

seth · 2026-05-28 20:40:30

…
MODULES=(ufs mmc_core mmc_block)

May 28 20:17:29 archiso kernel: mmc0: SDHCI controller on ACPI [80860F14:00] using ADMA
May 28 20:17:29 archiso kernel: intel-spi intel-spi: unsupported C0DEN: 0xc
May 28 20:17:29 archiso kernel: intel-spi intel-spi: probe with driver intel-spi failed with error -22
May 28 20:17:29 archiso kernel: mmc0: new HS200 MMC card at address 0001

Do you get the intel-spi error on finnix?

Ftr,

sudo journalctl -b | curl -s -H "Accept: application/json, */*" --upload-file - 'https://paste.c-net.org/'

Please *never* use -x (it's spam) and try to use a paste service that provides raw text, not html.

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 20:58:12

Building the images with those modules did not result in errors this time.

I am now able to boot into my arch linux install, it no longer times out. But why were the mmc modules missing in the first place?

No, that error is not present in the finnix journal. I can post the full journal if you'd like.

Thanks for letting me know, I was not aware.

I had downgraded my kernel because I thought that was the cause of the issue. Should I try upgrading to the newest kernel version?

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 21:01:50)

seth · 2026-05-28 21:13:37

Should I try upgrading to the newest kernel version?

Yes and also kinda be ready that this will break things again - does your system *currently* show the intel-spi errors?

tippytippy · 2026-05-28 21:35:20

From the journal of my normal arch install (before updating):

...
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd[1]: Starting Virtual Console Setup...
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux kernel: usbcore: registered new interface driver uas
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd-vconsole-setup[175]: setfont: ERROR kdfontop.c:212 put_font_kdfontop: Unable to load such font with such kernel version
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd-vconsole-setup[173]: /usr/bin/setfont failed with a "system error" (EX_OSERR), ignoring.
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux kernel: intel-spi intel-spi: unsupported C0DEN: 0xc
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux kernel: intel-spi intel-spi: probe with driver intel-spi failed with error -22
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd-vconsole-setup[173]: Configuration of first virtual console was skipped, ignoring remaining ones.
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd[1]: Finished Virtual Console Setup.
May 28 13:49:11 archlinux systemd[1]: Found device /dev/disk/by-uuid/3112856c-4ce8-4a3d-ace5-894fe7c08842.
...

System continues to boot normally after the -Syu. Really confused as to what happened.

I don't really know what the intel-spi error is about, but I am still getting it even after updating.

Lmk if I should mark this thread solved.

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-28 21:36:09)

seth · 2026-05-29 06:10:43

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_Pe … _Interface

Really confused as to what happened.

What happens if you remove the mmc modules again?

tippytippy · 2026-05-29 15:16:25

When I remove the mmc modules the problem returns, timeout waiting for boot device.

seth · 2026-05-29 19:13:44

Should lift the confusion

mmc is probably the same situation as ufs then? Not sure whether that's fixed in the mkinitcpio git.

Please always remember to mark resolved threads by editing your initial posts subject - so others will know that there's no task left, but maybe a solution to find.
Thanks.

tippytippy · 2026-05-29 19:28:08

Fair enough, I'm just glad to be able to use my computer again. Thanks a lot for the help. Marking solved.

Edit: I remade the initramfs images without ufs module, because I don't have a ufs device. Obviously tailor the modules to the devices you use, if you have a similar issue.

Last edited by tippytippy (2026-05-29 19:43:38)

Arch Linux

#1 2026-05-27 18:06:18

[SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#2 2026-05-27 19:47:56

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#3 2026-05-27 20:07:46

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#4 2026-05-27 20:37:37

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#5 2026-05-27 20:51:30

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#6 2026-05-28 00:59:43

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#7 2026-05-28 01:47:42

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#8 2026-05-28 02:16:49

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#9 2026-05-28 06:01:00

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#10 2026-05-28 06:30:11

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#11 2026-05-28 16:04:53

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#12 2026-05-28 18:09:35

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#13 2026-05-28 19:47:04

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#14 2026-05-28 19:57:38

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#15 2026-05-28 20:05:36

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#16 2026-05-28 20:17:33

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#17 2026-05-28 20:28:29

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#18 2026-05-28 20:40:30

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#19 2026-05-28 20:58:12

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#20 2026-05-28 21:13:37

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#21 2026-05-28 21:35:20

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#22 2026-05-29 06:10:43

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#23 2026-05-29 15:16:25

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#24 2026-05-29 19:13:44

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

#25 2026-05-29 19:28:08

Re: [SOLVED] boot stuck on "Loading initial ramdisk" after last -Syu

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