Edit boot stanzas in GRUB

by Vincent Danen | Mar 03, 2005 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Linux, Vincent Danen, Grub, stanza, kernel, Linux Tips Newsletter

Takeaway: Learn to use the GRUB boot manager to manipulate boot commands.

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GRUB is a boot loader for Linux and other operating systems that's growing increasingly popular. It's even becoming the standard for numerous distributions.

Unlike LILO, the other popular boot loader, GRUB is extremely flexible. GRUB allows you to manipulate boot commands during the booting process, which can be quite a help during troubleshooting.

When you start the computer and the GRUB boot manager appears, you can halt the loading of the default boot stanza by pressing [Esc]. Then highlight any stanza, and enter E to edit it.

GRUB will offer a list of options for the specific stanza, taken straight from the /boot/grub/menu.lst file. For example, you may see something like the following:

root (hd0,0)
kernel /vmlinuz ro root=/dev/hdc5 vga=788 noapic acpi=ht
initrd /initrd.img

Use the cursor to highlight each line, and enter E to edit the line.

The advantages are obvious: If you install a kernel that hangs, you can edit the file and provide the name of an alternate kernel, or alternate options for the kernel, without first rebooting and modifying a configuration file, which you would have to do if using LILO.

Once you've edited the file to suit your needs, enter B to boot the entry. If you change your mind about editing a particular entry, press [Esc] to return to the main menu.

Print/View all Posts Comments on this article

Linux single hkphooey | 03/04/05

how inaccurate Jaqui | 03/05/05

Not on my machine using grub v 0.94-25 stress junkie | 03/05/05

depends on the changes. Jaqui | 03/05/05

MBR apotheon | 03/19/05

No need for LILO in MBR on dual-boot TheMonster | 01/19/06

Grub Binary Dumphrey | 10/24/06