Linux - NewbieThis Linux forum is for members that are new to Linux.
Just starting out and have a question?
If it is not in the man pages or the how-to's this is the place!
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
Getting excited to experiment with both MX LINUX, and SOLUS ..... not sure which version(s) to try, as the explanations are vague, but anyway.
One BIG question is a BOOT MANAGER. I had been (occasionally) running Linux MINT 17, and managed to get a SUPER BOOT MANAGER working, but apparently it is an old program and won't work with MINT 19.
Asking on the MINT Forum, I was told ..... too old, better try GRUB2.
Wellll, not knowing how to program linux, that doesn't help.
Can any tell me - assuming I'm running Windows (10 on one machine, XP on the other), and I then install MX or SOLUS to run alongside it, - how can I set up a NICE boot manager to choose which system I want to run???
In general when you install a Linux distro you will get a boot manager installed by default. Grub2 is generally referred to as simply grub these days and it looks like both the above will install it. Should work fine on both XP and Win10 without you having to do anything.
If you don't know what you are doing, and choose to try something else, it may become a learning exercise in recovering a non-booting machine.
syg00, thank you for your reply. I did try MINT 19 with my windows 10, and indeed got a boot manager automatically,
however, the lines were so tiny I had to really look where WINDOWS was and remember how many lines down.
MINT loaded by default. I would have liked to change it to make it bigger, prettier, WINDOWS by default,
and a longer time to respond - it seemed to only give me 5 seconds or so.
The old SUPER BOOT MANAGER was great - it let you edit the parameters, etc, although it was very involved to install and edit.
I know ..... involved is NOT BAD !!
Oh yes, my system is backed up completely on a second hard drive, having had a couple of failures, and a "take over" I fell for .....
In fact, I couldn't figure out how to uninstall MINT, so I used my backup HD to reinstall my system.
The first place to configure the boot manager is /etc/default/grub. This is a shell script that normally consists of a set of key-value assignments.
The Grub manual documents the keys and acceptable values that you can use in the default file. To change the default to Windows, use the GRUB_DEFAULT key. If Windows is the third menu point, set it to GRUB_DEFAULT=2 (counting starts from 0).
After changing /etc/default/grub, you need to compile a new Grub configuration and save it to the right location. I believe that Debian-based distros put the config file into /boot/grub, but some distros use /boot/grub2 instead. Before you overwrite it, save the former Grub configuration (see also the backup advice given by svg00):
Some distros call the configuration tool grub2-mkconfig.
I have never had the problem of small fonts on the Grub screen and can't help you with this problem. It can be done, however, probably using Grub themes, where you can also change the font type, background, splash screen and such.
Rather than believing what I say, I suggest you read the relevant parts of the Grub manual. Your distros may also have documentation about this subject.
Last edited by berndbausch; 04-17-2019 at 09:18 PM.
To save all the hassle, maybe search for tutorials on how to install grub-customiser on Mint. It involves adding the ppa then installing the tool. Should do all you want; I'm surprised it's not in the standard repos these days.
berndbausch, thank you, so much !!
Now I think I can get somewhere ..... didn't know there was actually a GRUB Manual .....
And although I really like MINT, I am anxious to try a couple of others.
I found that although MINT recognized that Windows was up there, and MANJARO,
when MINT loaded it's boot manager SAID MANJARO was up there, it wouldn't load it.
I CAN have 3 LINUX systems - my main system is Windows 10, my wife's old 'puter
has Windows XP, and I have a third box which someone in my seniors' community
discarded as it had "goten really slow ..... so I grabbed it, put an old 80 gig HD
in it, and put MINT 17 on it.
I often tell people who don't want to spend a lot of money that if all they want to do
is write letters, do spread sheets, and access the WEB, grab an old computer, CHEAP,
or free, and put LINUX on it.
PS: the kitchen remodel is almost finished, and I will now have time !!!!
While various themes are available for Grub2, there are alternative boot managers as well, among them AiR-Boot, Burg and Syslinux. If you're really interested in NICE, on a UEFI-capable PC or Mac, you might wish to try rEFInd. It can be sampled via USB stick or CD boot, no installation required.
Whilst I understand the OP concern with unreadable menus, call me old-skool but I've never understood the need for eye-candy on a boot-loader. When I (infrequently) boot, I usually want to see the messages as they (hopefully) scroll by.
Then some bright spark came up with plymouth ... :sheesh:
I recently got into MX Linux and was pleased to find the authors addressed the BOOT concern.
It is a feature easily found in which one can EDIT the boot manager, make the font bigger so you can easily read it,
and set the OS you want as the default.
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.