[HN Gopher] Replace GRUB2 with systemd-boot on Ubuntu 18.04
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Replace GRUB2 with systemd-boot on Ubuntu 18.04
Author : fluffyx
Score : 40 points
Date : 2020-04-01 19:45 UTC (3 hours ago)
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(TXT) w3m dump (blobfolio.com)
| jchw wrote:
| FWIW: systemd-boot is just a generic EFI bootloader, originally
| it was called gummiboot before being merged into the systemd
| project. Like many things in systemd, it has no direct relation
| to the init daemon. It does not have an enormous featureset like
| GRUB, but it is fast and gets out of the way. It has been my
| preferred bootloader since before it was part of systemd.
|
| As for why one would prefer this over just using EFI itself to
| manage boot entries, well, that comes down to sensibility, but
| traditionally Ubuntu has provided a UI at boot for selecting OSes
| so it would be weird to get rid of it now. I also currently use
| NixOS where you can select generations via the boot menu, which
| would be cumbersome at best if you try to implement it with EFI
| directly.
| unixhero wrote:
| I for one use rEFInd for all my multiboot needs on UEFI and
| modern Intel systems. https://www.rodsbooks.com/refind/
|
| Highly recommended.
| noodlesUK wrote:
| I'm surprised that most people even bother with bootloaders like
| grub... On all the machines I've used recently, the UEFI boot
| manager works fine, and you can just use a kernel with an EFI
| stub and initramfs built in. It's obviously a bit much for most
| users, but you'd think Linux distros could just package it all
| up.
| thaumaturgy wrote:
| grub provides a nice interface for adjusting kernel parameters
| before booting, which is essential for some installs on twitchy
| hardware. I don't know of a way to do this in the UEFI boot
| manager.
| krferriter wrote:
| I've found it even easier to manage kernel parameters and
| boot entries in systemd-boot. You can just create another
| boot entry by making a copy of a text file, and changing the
| `title` line of the file. Grub is much more complex to
| manage. systemd-boot entries are very simple text files, so
| editing kernel parameters is far easier than grub.
| kelnos wrote:
| What's the recovery situation? Say my machine is unbootable
| and I need to tweak the kernel commandline or something to
| get things working again? Can I do that from the systemd-
| boot menu like I can with grub?
| maccam94 wrote:
| You can edit the kernel entry at boot time in grub, which
| can be useful when you need to troubleshoot a non-booting
| system.
| akvadrako wrote:
| I don't see how it's easier or better for the user.
|
| It's not a very nice dual booting UI, like a menu with a
| timeout. And no way to set passwords on certain items or enter
| kernel boot parameters.
| parston_michel wrote:
| >how it's easier or better for the user
|
| It really depends who "the user" is.
|
| It's faster, and accidentally hitting a hotkey for grub or
| whatever on boot is just one more problem. These are both
| material advantages, for a certain cohort.
|
| "the user" varies from highly technical people like you or i
| to low income people with laptops wiped to install ubuntu by
| foundations that can't afford windows licenses.
|
| And, if I'm dual booting, I'm probably confident enough to
| configure UEFI to support dual booting.
| TomJansen wrote:
| I do this on my laptop. Press F9 while booting and just select
| Windows or Linux, just like you would boot from an USB stick.
| No more chances of something breaking (on that front atleast)
| throwawaymanbot wrote:
| noooooooooooooooo
| fortran77 wrote:
| I miss LILO.
| iso947 wrote:
| I don't miss building a new kernel and forgetting to run lilo
| to update the boot sector and be stuck in an unbootable state.
| wheybags wrote:
| Do we really need even more stuff delegated to systemd? What's
| wrong with grub?
| fsh wrote:
| Systemd-boot (aka gummiboot) ist completely separate from the
| systemd init system. It can boot any EFI-compatible OS, even
| Windows.
| imglorp wrote:
| Maybe it stick with the gummiboot name instead of inciting
| that other riot.
| Izkata wrote:
| In that case, why was it merged in at all?
| pengaru wrote:
| Ease of maintenance by the same group of people who work in
| that repo? Reuse of shared, low-level components residing
| in that repository?
|
| It's similar to why drivers are preferably merged upstream
| into the linux kernel source tree. Doing so ensures they
| continue to work as the kernel evolves, it makes them more
| likely to get maintained in the long-term.
| coribuci wrote:
| > Do we really need even more stuff delegated to systemd?
| What's wrong with grub?
|
| It's a standalone program. I'm looking forward for systemd-x11.
| I think in the future we will get rid of GNU/Linux. We will
| have systemd-linux.
| lainga wrote:
| perfect for systemd-hurd. the microkernel does barely
| anything, it's all delegated to systemd
| e12e wrote:
| Clearly this is a change of pace, though. While adding a
| bootloader to your init/RPC message bus/syslog/cron-system
| might add a bit of bloat to that lean (modular) megolith - this
| here is presumably more about adding init into your bootloader
| - which probably will add quite a bit of bloat and unwanted
| tight coupling...
|
| Hm, is it still April 1st?
| voldacar wrote:
| soon linux will be systemd-kernel
| wayx wrote:
| I share the systemd concerns, but grub is too large and complex
| for many people.
|
| The first Linux distro I used still had LILO when it was being
| phased out. I felt that I mastered LILO in a very short time.
|
| I've never had that feeling with grub, which is a small OS with
| slightly chaotic config files spread out over many directories.
|
| I found it easier to set up a direct EFIstub boot than
| reinstall grub via live CD when my BIOS somehow had broken the
| Debian install.
| gmueckl wrote:
| The only thing wrong with grub is that it allows you to boot
| almost anything, it seems.
|
| For normal people, that is its greatest feature.
| mrtweetyhack wrote:
| Let's not forget about systemd-gimp
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