MX Linux Forum

jsluk wrote: Sat Sep 02, 2023 2:20 pm Hi all,
I am typing from my MX21 USB flash drive with snapshot dated late Aug. 2023. Using Gparted, all the partitions looked fine but just no boot.

What does "can't boot" or "just no boot" mean? Any error messages?
Have you selected from the UEFI boot menu (on ASUS maybe F8 during POST)?
Or is the MX Linux efiGRUB loader not listed?
Can you boot with help of the MX-23 LiveUSB -> LiveBoot Menu -> Boot Rescue -> Select: efi GRUB loader | GRUB menu?

fehlix wrote: Sat Sep 02, 2023 5:54 pm

jsluk wrote: Sat Sep 02, 2023 2:20 pm Hi all,

What does "can't boot" or "just no boot" mean? Any error messages?
Have you selected from the UEFI boot menu (on ASUS maybe F8 during POST)?
Or is the MX Linux efiGRUB loader not listed?
Can you boot with help of the MX-23 LiveUSB -> LiveBoot Menu -> Boot Rescue -> Select: efi GRUB loader | GRUB menu?

Hi fehlix, I can hit F8 to access the UEFI boot menu. I select the SSD where MX23 is installed. And I get this error message with a black screen for GNU GRUB version 2.06:
"Minimal BASH-like line editing is supported. For the first word. TAB lists possible command completions. Anywhere else TAB lists possible device or file completions.

grub> _"

After this prompt, I have no idea what to do. When I hit TAB, I get a list of commands and I hit reboot to get out of this situation. Do you have any ideas what I should do next? When I first installed MX23, it booted but somehow the rest of my Linux distributions in the other SSD's got all mess up and I could not boot any of them except for the Windows 10 Pro SSD. I was able to repair a couple of them with the suggestions from the other forums. Now, I cannot boot in MX23. Hope that is what you are referring to and thanks.

jsluk wrote: Sat Sep 02, 2023 10:16 pm

fehlix wrote: Sat Sep 02, 2023 5:54 pm
Can you boot with help of the MX-23 LiveUSB -> LiveBoot Menu -> Boot Rescue -> Select: efi GRUB loader | GRUB menu?

Yes, I can boot with the MX-23 LiveUSB and any of the other Linux LiveUSB's. I have not tried Boot Rescue. Not sure I understand the rest of your questions for I am not familiar to the workings of GRUB. Are you suggesting that I boot in this LiveUSB and go to MX tools and start Boot Rescue?

On the LiveUSB GRUB Menu you have a last menu entry "Boot Rescue".
Here you will find two entries for searching efi GRUB loader and a 2nd one for searching GRUB menu's.
The system will scan the attached drive an displays a list of found items.
It may find for MX23 /MX Linux at least two efi-GRUB loader (bootx64.ef and grubx64.efi) for efi loader,
and it also may find a grub.cfg .
Please try all found. and whether it shows you a GRUB menu of the installed system and you can boot into the system.
Also it should work with the MX-21 Live USB, suggest to try it also with the fresh MX-23 LiveUSB.

fehilix, before I do the above precedures, should I disconnect the other SSD's so that they would not be affected by this change. I asked because after I upgraded to MX23, all the other linux distributions on the other SSD's stop booting up when the pc is powered up? Thanks.

jsluk wrote: Sun Sep 03, 2023 11:23 am fehilix, before I do the above precedures, should I disconnect the other SSD's so that they would not be affected by this change. I asked because after I upgraded to MX23, all the other linux distributions on the other SSD's stop booting up when the pc is powered up? Thanks.

Probably an issue with your UEFI firmeware system. Also you mentioned only F8 and selecting the drive.
Normally the UEFI boot menu would list all entries added to the UEFI-NVRAM, e.g. like "MX Linux" or MX23
The "test" with the LiveBoot-Rescue menu is just a check whether you have bootable GRUB with either a working efi-loader or a GRUB menu.
The test when verified with either of efi-loader and/or GRUB menu searching would you give a GRUB menu which boot into the system. If that works, something with the UEFI-system on the motherboard need to be adjusted.
E.g when you go into UEFI System Setup you may find and entry like "Add efi file" or "trust EFI file",
b/c no all UEFI system accept adding entry from Linux with help of efibootmgr. If that's the case,
you may need first to enabled secureboot, reboot again int o the UEFI system and select a trusted efi-File
from the ESP ( e.g. naviagte to .../EFI/mx23/grubx64.efi) - don't choose the falback loader /EFI/BOOT/bootx64.efi), b/c the fallback loader is meant to get loaded when select the drive with F8.
When done disable secureboot again.

Other Linux system like Ubuntu etc do have a bit more "logic" added with the ESP entries, where you may find something like BOOT.CSV, fbx64.efi and shim64.efi. If thos are presend the EFI system dynamical tries to add this system into the NVRAM and folowed by booting those entries, which may fail b/c the triggered logic to add an entry is not bullet proof. So you might also look on the ESP of the other installs and tidy up unused sub-directorires, to avoid such hanger.
Further to you question of disconnecting a drive : UEFI System is dynamical one: If you disconnect drives with ESP, any valid entry from those ESPs within NVRAM may be get deleted by the UEFI system at next boot b/c the system "assumes" those are invalid.

Wow, thanks fehlix. A lot of good stuff to digest. Many terms I am not familiar with such as NVRAM, and when I go into UEFI System Setup, etc. Will study this some before proceeding. Will report back once I get started. Best regards.

Thought that I would share with you all that I was successful in downgrading GRUB to a previous stable version. The guy over at Xerolinux had a very detailed you tube version showing step by step instructions. Once GRUB is reinstalled, all my other distributions came back. I will closed this topic and thanks to all who pitch in was suggestions. Best regards.

I've watched a few videos where he (Steve) was on by himself or a part of a panel of speakers (TheLinuxCast).

Well worth time spent watching.