href="mailto:rodsmith@rodsbooks.com">rodsmith@rodsbooks.com</a></p>
<p>Originally written: 3/14/2012; last Web page update:
-3/9/2014, referencing rEFInd 0.7.8</p>
+8/14/2014, referencing rEFInd 0.8.3</p>
<p>This Web page is provided free of charge and with no annoying outside ads; however, I did take time to prepare it, and Web hosting does cost money. If you find this Web page useful, please consider making a small donation to help keep this site up and running. Thanks!</p>
<p><b>Don't be scared by the length of this page!</b> Only portions of this page apply to any given user, and most people can install rEFInd from an RPM or Debian package in a matter of seconds or by using the <tt>install.sh</tt> script in minute or two.</p>
-<p>Once you've obtained a rEFInd binary file, you must install it to your computer's ESP (or conceivably to some other location). The details of how you do this depend on your OS and your computer (UEFI-based PC vs. Macintosh). The upcoming sections provide details. See the Contents sidebar to the left for links to specific installation procedures. For most Linux users, an RPM or Debian package is the best way to go. If your Linux system doesn't support these formats, though, or if you're running OS X, using the <tt>install.sh</tt> script can be a good way to go. If you're using Windows, you'll have to install manually.</p>
+<p>Once you've obtained a rEFInd binary file, you must install it to your computer's EFI System Partition (ESP) (or conceivably to some other location). The details of how you do this depend on your OS and your computer (UEFI-based PC vs. Macintosh). The upcoming sections provide details. See the Contents sidebar to the left for links to specific installation procedures. For most Linux users, an RPM or Debian package is the best way to go. If your Linux system doesn't support these formats, though, or if you're running OS X, using the <tt>install.sh</tt> script can be a good way to go. If you're using Windows, you'll have to install manually.</p>
<p class="sidebar" style="width:95%"><b>Important:</b> A rEFInd zip file, when uncompressed, creates a directory called <tt>refind-<i>version</i></tt>, where <tt><i>version</i></tt> is the version number. This directory includes a subdirectory called <tt>refind</tt> that holds the boot loader, along with another that holds documentation, as well as miscellaneous files in <tt>refind-<i>version</i></tt> itself. When I refer to "the <tt>refind</tt> directory" on this page, I mean the directory with that precise name, not the <tt>refind-<i>version</i></tt> directory that is its parent.</p>
<li class="tight"><a href="#clearing">Clearing the NVRAM Entries</a></li>
+ <li class="tight"><a href="#wakeprobs">Fixing Wake Problems</a></li>
+
</ul></li>
+<li class="tight"><a href="#winprob">Fixing Windows Boot Problems</a></li>
+
<li class="tight"><a href="#uninstalling">Uninstalling rEFInd</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>Installing rEFInd Using an RPM or Debian Package File</h2>
</a>
-<p>Beginning with version 0.6.2, I've included RPM and Debian package files for rEFInd. If you have a working RPM-based or Debian-based Linux installation that boots in EFI mode, using one of these files is likely to be the easiest way to install rEFInd: You need only download the file and issue an appropriate installation command. In some cases, double-clicking the package in your file manager will install it. If that doesn't work, a command like the following will install the RPM on an RPM-based system:</p>
+<p>Beginning with version 0.6.2, I've included RPM and Debian package files for rEFInd; and starting with version 0.8.3, I'm maintaining an Ubuntu PPA for rEFInd. If you have a working RPM-based or Debian-based Linux installation that boots in EFI mode, using one of these files is likely to be the easiest way to install rEFInd: You need only download the file and issue an appropriate installation command. In some cases, double-clicking the package in your file manager will install it. If that doesn't work, a command like the following will install the RPM on an RPM-based system:</p>
-<pre class="listing"># <tt class="userinput">rpm -Uvh refind-0.7.8-1.x86_64.rpm</tt></pre>
+<pre class="listing"># <tt class="userinput">rpm -Uvh refind-0.8.3-1.x86_64.rpm</tt></pre>
<p>On a Debian-based system, the equivalent command is:</p>
-<pre class="listing"># <tt class="userinput">dpkg -i refind_0.7.8-1_amd64.deb</tt></pre>
+<pre class="listing"># <tt class="userinput">dpkg -i refind_0.8.3-1_amd64.deb</tt></pre>
<p>Either command produces output similar to that described for <a href="#installsh">using the <tt>install.sh</tt> script,</a> so you can check it for error messages and other signs of trouble. The package file installs rEFInd and registers it with the EFI to be the default boot loader. The script that runs as part of the installation process tries to determine if you're using Secure Boot, and if so it will try to configure rEFInd to launch using shim; however, this won't work correctly on all systems. Ubuntu 12.10 users who are booting with Secure Boot active should be wary, since the resulting installation will probably try to use Ubuntu's version of shim, which won't work correctly with rEFInd.</p>
+<a name="ppa">
+<p>If you're using Ubuntu, you should be able to install the PPA as follows:</p></a>
+
+<pre class="listing">$ <tt class="userinput">sudo apt-add-repository ppa:rodsmith/refind</tt>
+$ <tt class="userinput">sudo apt-get update</tt>
+$ <tt class="userinput">apt-get install refind</tt></pre></pre>
+
+<p>The PPA version will update automatically with your other software, which you might or might not want to have happen. It's also built with GNU-EFI rather than with TianoCore. This last detail <i>should</i> have no practical effects, but it might be important if you've got a buggy EFI or if there's some undiscovered rEFInd bug that interacts with the build environment.</p>
+
<p>Since version 0.6.3, the installation script makes an attempt to install rEFInd in a bootable way even if you run the script from a BIOS-mode boot, and therefore the RPM and Debian packages do the same. I cannot guarantee that this will work, though, and even if it does, some of the tricks that <tt>install.sh</tt> uses might not last for long. You might therefore want to use <tt><a href="#mvrefind">mvrefind.sh</a></tt> to move your rEFInd installation to another name after you boot Linux for the first time from rEFInd.</p>
-<p>Since version 0.6.2-2, my package files have installed the rEFInd binaries to <tt>/usr/share/refind-<tt class="variable">version</tt></tt>, the documentation to <tt>/usr/share/doc/refind-<tt class="variable">version</tt></tt>, and a few miscellaneous files elsewhere. Upon installation, the package runs the <tt>install.sh</tt> script to copy the files to the ESP. This enables you to re-install rEFInd after the fact by running <tt>install.sh</tt>, should some other tool or OS wipe the ESP or should the installation go awry. In such cases you can <a href="#installsh">use <tt>install.sh</tt></a> or <a href="#manual">install manually.</a></p>
+<p>Since version 0.6.2-2, my package files have installed the rEFInd binaries to <tt>/usr/share/refind-<tt class="variable">version</tt></tt>, the documentation to <tt>/usr/share/doc/refind-<tt class="variable">version</tt></tt>, and a few miscellaneous files elsewhere.
(The PPA package omits the version number from the file paths.) Upon installation, the package runs the <tt>install.sh</tt> script to copy the files to the ESP. This enables you to re-install rEFInd after the fact by running <tt>install.sh</tt>, should some other tool or OS wipe the ESP or should the installation go awry. In such cases you can <a href="#installsh">use <tt>install.sh</tt></a> or <a href="#manual">install manually.</a></p>
<a name="installsh">
<h2>Installing rEFInd Using <tt>install.sh</tt> under Linux or Mac OS X</h2>
<li>Rename the configuration file by typing <tt><b>mv refind.conf-sample refind.conf</b></tt>. Consult the <a href="configfile.html">Editing the rEFInd Configuration File</a> page for information on how to adjust your options.</li>
-<p class="sidebar"><b>Weird:</b> A <a href="http://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/20187.html">bug exists</a> in some Lenovo computers (and perhaps in some others, too) that causes the firmware's boot manager to refuse to boot any boot loader that doesn't have the name <tt>Windows Boot Manager</tt> or <tt>Red Hat Enterprise Linux</tt>. If you have such a system, you must pass one of those names (in quotes) rather than <tt>rEFInd</tt> to <tt>efibootmgr</tt> via its <tt>-L</tt> option. This bug was reported to Lenovo in mid-November 2012, so with any luck updated firmware without this bug will be available later this year or early in 2013. I can make no promises about this, though.</p>
+<p class="sidebar"><b>Weird:</b> A <a href="http://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/20187.html">bug exists</a> in some Lenovo computers (and perhaps in some others, too) that causes the firmware's boot manager to refuse to boot any boot loader that doesn't have the name <tt>Windows Boot Manager</tt> or <tt>Red Hat Enterprise Linux</tt>. If you have such a system, you must pass one of those names (in quotes) rather than <tt>rEFInd</tt> to <tt>efibootmgr</tt> via its <tt>-L</tt> option. This bug was reported to Lenovo in mid-November 2012, and by late 2013, at least some Lenovos were mercifully free of this bug.</p>
<a name="efibootmgr">
<li>On a UEFI-based system, type <tt><b>efibootmgr -c -l \\EFI\\refind\\refind_x64.efi -L rEFInd</b></tt> to add rEFInd to your EFI's list of available boot loaders, which it stores in NVRAM. Adjust the path to the binary as required if you install somewhere else. You may also need to include additional options if your ESP isn't on <tt>/dev/sda1</tt> or if your configuration is otherwise unusual; consult the <tt>efibootmgr</tt> man page for details. You may need to install this program on some systems; it's a standard part of most distributions' repositories. Also, if you're installing in Secure Boot mode, you must normally register <tt>shim.efi</tt> rather than the rEFInd binary, and rename <tt>refind_x64.efi</tt> to <tt>grubx64.efi</tt>.</li>
<li>Type <b><tt>cd EFI\refind</tt></b> to change into the <tt>refind</tt> subdirectory</li>
-<li>Type <b><tt>del refind_ia32.efi</tt></b> to delete the unused 32-bit version of rEFInd. (Windows only supports EFI boots on 64-bit EFI implementations and in 64-bit versions of Windows.)</li>
-
-<li>Optionally type <tt class="userinput">rd /s drivers_ia32</tt> to delete the <tt>drivers_ia32</tt> directory and its contents. You may also want to selectively delete some of the drivers in the <tt>drivers_x64</tt> directory, depending on your needs. Unnecessary drivers may slow the rEFInd start process. See the <a href="drivers.html">page on drivers</a> for more on this topic.</li>
+<li>You may want to selectively delete some of the drivers in the <tt>drivers_x64</tt> or <tt>drivers_ia32</tt> directory, depending on your architecture and needs. Unnecessary drivers will slow the rEFInd start process. See the <a href="drivers.html">page on drivers</a> for more on this topic.</li>
<li>Type <b><tt>rename refind.conf-sample refind.conf</tt></b> to rename rEFInd's configuration file.</li>
-<li>Type <b><tt>bcdedit /set {bootmgr} path \EFI\refind\refind_x64.efi</tt></b> to set rEFInd as the default EFI boot program. Note that <tt>{bootmgr}</tt> is entered as such; that's not a notation for a variable.</li>
+<li>Type <b><tt>bcdedit /set {bootmgr} path \EFI\refind\refind_x64.efi</tt></b> to set rEFInd as the default EFI boot program. Note that <tt>{bootmgr}</tt> is entered as such; that's not a notation for a variable. Also, change <tt>refind_x64.efi</tt> to <tt>refind_ia32.efi</tt> on systems with 32-bit EFIs. Such computers are rare, and most of them are tablets. Check your Windows bit depth to determine which binary you should use.</li>
<li>If you like, type <b><tt>bcdedit /set {bootmgr} description "<i>rEFInd description</i>"</tt></b> to set a description (change <tt><i>rEFInd description</i></tt> as you see fit).</li>
<li>You can rename files on the ESP. as described in the next section, <a href="#naming">Alternative Naming Options.</a></li>
-<li>You can boot from an optical disc into an emergency OS to do the job. Ubuntu, for instance, provides an EFI-bootable installer with a "try before installation" mode. You'll need to type <b><tt>sudo apt-get install efibootmgr</tt></b> to install <tt>efibootmgr</tt>, but you can then use that program as described <a href="#efibootmgr">earlier</a>. (If you're using Ubuntu, you'll need to precede the command with <b><tt>sudo</tt></b>.</li>
+<li>You can boot from an optical disc into an emergency OS to do the job. Ubuntu, for instance, provides an EFI-bootable installer with a "try before installation" mode. You'll need to type <b><tt>sudo apt-get install efibootmgr</tt></b> to install <tt>efibootmgr</tt>, but you can then use that program as described <a href="#efibootmgr">earlier</a>. (If you're using Ubuntu, you'll need to precede the command with <b><tt>sudo</tt></b>. If you use an Ubuntu image, you can install rEFInd <a href="#ppa">via its PPA,</a> which is an easy way to do the job. (In fact, the rEFInd PPA depends on the <tt>efibootmgr</tt> package, so you shouldn't need to manually install it.) The PPA approach may even be easier than installing from Windows using its tools, at least if you're familiar with Linux and have an Ubuntu desktop image handy.</li>
<li>You may be able to use rEFInd's bootable CD image to use rEFInd to boot an OS that's been installed but rendered inoperable because of changes to your boot order. You can then use <tt>efibootmgr</tt>, <tt>bless</tt>, or some other tool to restore rEFInd as the default boot loader.</li>
<h3>Installing rEFInd Manually Using an EFI Shell</h3>
</a>
+<p class="sidebar"><b>Warning:</b> Do not attempt to use the procedure described in this section on a Macintosh. Macs have a strange EFI implementation that does not use the EFI variables that this procedure manipulates. Therefore, chances are this procedure simply won't work. It's conceivable that this procedure will actually cause problems, but I'm not curious enough to try it and risk damaging my Mac!</p>
+
<p>If you can't currently boot any OS (say, because a firmware update has wiped your NVRAM entries), you may find it convenient to install rEFInd using an EFI version 2 shell. Unfortunately, the <tt>bcfg</tt> command described here is not available in the EFI version 1 shell, and the version 2 shell is unusable on many firmware implementations prior to 2.3.1. Thus, this procedure won't work for all systems.</p>
<p>In addition to emergency situations, using <tt>bcfg</tt> can be desirable if <tt>efibootmgr</tt> or other OS-hosted tools don't do the job. This happens under VirtualBox, for instance. An alternative in such cases can be to use <a href="#naming">alternative names for rEFInd.</a></p>
<p>I've seen links to other versions of these tools from time to time on the Web, so if you try one of these programs and it crashes or behaves strangely, try performing a Web search; you may turn up something that works better for you than the one to which I've linked.</p>
<a name="sluggish">
-<h2>Fixing a Sluggish Macintosh Boot</h2>
+<h2>Fixing Macintosh Boot Problems</h2>
</a>
-<p>I've received a few reports of a sluggish boot process (a delay of about 30 seconds before starting rEFInd) on some Macs after installing rEFInd. I've been unable to replicate this problem myself, and its true cause remains mysterious to me. I have found three possible solutions, though: <a href="#moving">moving rEFInd to an HFS+ volume,</a> <a href="#fallback">using the fallback filename,</a> and <a href="#clearing">clearing NVRAM entries.</a></p>
+<p>I've received a few reports of a sluggish boot process (a delay of about 30 seconds before starting rEFInd) on some Macs after installing rEFInd
, as well as some other Mac-specific peculiarities. I've been unable to replicate this problem myself, and its true cause remains mysterious to me. I have found three possible solutions, though: <a href="#moving">moving rEFInd to an HFS+ volume,</a> <a href="#fallback">using the fallback filename,</a> and <a href="#clearing">clearing NVRAM entries.</a></p>
<a name="moving">
<h3>Moving rEFInd to an HFS+ Volume</h3>
<p>Most of the reports of sluggish Macintosh boots I've seen note that the user installed rEFInd to the ESP rather than to the OS X root partition. Some users have reported that re-installing rEFInd to the OS X root partition clears up the problem. This is obviously a straightforward solution to the problem, if it works. Note that rEFInd can launch boot loaders that are stored on any partition that the EFI can read no matter where it's installed; therefore, you'll still be able to launch boot loaders stored on the ESP (or elsewhere) if you install it in this way.</p>
-<p>The biggest drawback to this approach is that you won't be able to edit the rEFInd configuration file or move rEFInd-related binaries from an EFI shell if you install it in this way, since Apple's HFS+ driver for EFI is read-only. (The same is true of rEFInd's HFS+ driver, so it won't help you overcome this limitation.) You may also be limited in making changes to your rEFInd configuration from Linux or other OSes, too, since Linux's HFS+ drivers disable write support by default on volumes with an active journal. You can force write access by using the <tt>force</tt> option to <tt>mount</tt>; however, this procedure is noted as being risky in the Linux HFS+ documentation, so I don't recommend doing this on a regular basis. As a compromise, you might try creating a small non-journaled HFS+ volume that's dedicated to holding rEFInd. You could even mount it as the Linux <tt>/boot</tt> partition, in which case it would also hold the Linux kernel and related files. You'll need to install rEFInd manually if you try this.</p>
+<p>A variant of this solution is to create a small (~100MiB) HFS+ volume to be used exclusively by rEFInd. You can then install rEFInd to that volume with the <tt>--ownhfs</tt> option to <tt>install.sh</tt>, as in <tt class="userinput">./install.sh --ownhfs /dev/disk0s6</tt> if the volume is <tt>/dev/disk0s6</tt>. This approach has the advantage that it can be managed via OS X's own Startup Disk tool in System Preferences.</p>
+
+<p>The biggest drawback to storing rEFInd on an HFS+ volume is that you won't be able to edit the rEFInd configuration file or move rEFInd-related binaries from an EFI shell if you install it in this way, since Apple's HFS+ driver for EFI is read-only. (The same is true of rEFInd's HFS+ driver, so it won't help you overcome this limitation.) You may also be limited in making changes to your rEFInd configuration from Linux or other OSes, too, since Linux's HFS+ drivers disable write support by default on volumes with an active journal. You can force write access by using the <tt>force</tt> option to <tt>mount</tt>; however, this procedure is noted as being risky in the Linux HFS+ documentation, so I don't recommend doing this on a regular basis on the OS X boot volume. This isn't as risky if you use a dedicated HFS+ rEFInd partition, though. You could even mount it as the Linux <tt>/boot</tt> partition, in which case it would also hold the Linux kernel and related files. If you use disk encryption, you can't store rEFInd on the OS X root (<tt>/</tt>) partition, but you could still use an (unencrypted) separate HFS+ partition.</p>
<p>A variant of this solution is suggested in <a href="http://www.sparxeng.com/blog/software/fixing-slow-boot-on-a-triple-boot-mountain-lion-mac">this blog post,</a> which recommends placing rEFInd on an HFS+ volume on the first SATA channel. (In the blogger's case, that channel used to hold an optical drive, but that drive was replaced by a hard disk.)</p>
<p>Some sources suggest that delayed launches of rEFInd on Macs are more common when installing rEFInd to the ESP, so if you've done this, you could try re-installing it to your OS X boot partition.</p>
+<a name="wakeprobs">
+<h3>Fixing Wake Problems</h3>
+</a>
+
+<p>Some people have reported that installing rEFInd causes problems with resuming from a suspended OS X session. I know of two workarounds to such problems:</p>
+
+<ul>
+
+<li>Install rEFInd to an HFS+ volume using the <tt>--ownhfs</tt> option to <tt>install.sh</tt>. Unfortunately, this solution requires either creating a small HFS+ volume for rEFInd or using an already-existing non-bootable HFS+ volume (if you've got one for data storage, for example).</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">sudo pmset -a autopoweroff 0</tt> in a Terminal window. This solution is likely to work if sleep operations work normally up to a point, but fail after about three hours.</li>
+
+</ul>
+
+<p>Unfortunately, I lack a recent Mac and so can't investigate these issues myself, so I'm dependent upon others (mostly non-programmers) to offer workarounds. This is the type of problem that really requires hands-on interactive debugging sessions with the code to stand any chance of finding a better solution.</p>
+
+<a name="winprob">
+<h2>Fixing Windows Boot Problems</h2>
+</a>
+
+<p>Most Windows boot problems are best addressed on Windows-specific sites, so I recommend you make the rounds of Windows forums to solve such problems. There is one that deserves mention here, though: If you accidentally erase the Windows boot loader file, <tt>EFI/Microsoft/Boot/bootmgfw.efi</tt>, you won't be able to boot Windows. The simplest solution is to restore this file from a backup you prepared ahead of time. If you don't have such a backup, though, you can restore it as follows:</p>
+
+<ol>
+
+<li>Boot from an emergency Windows recovery disk. If you don't have one, you can prepare one from a working Windows system as described <a href="http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/create-a-system-repair-disc">here.</a></li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">diskpart</tt> to enter the Windows disk-partitioning tool.</li>
+
+<li>In <tt>diskpart</tt>, type <tt class="userinput">sel disk 0</tt> followed by <tt>list vol</tt>. You should see a set of partitions. This step is intended to help you identify your ESP, which will probably be the only FAT32 partition on the disk. (If you have multiple disks, you may need to try again with <tt class="userinput">sel disk 1</tt> or higher.) Note the volume number of your ESP.</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">sel vol 1</tt>, changing <tt>1</tt> to whatever the ESP's volume number is.</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">assign letter=S:</tt> to assign the ESP a Windows disk identifier of <tt>S:</tt>. (You can use another letter if you prefer.)</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">exit</tt> to exit from <tt>diskutil</tt>.</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">cd /d s:\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\</tt> to change into the Windows boot loader directory. (If this directory doesn't exist, you may need to create it first with <tt>mkdir</tt>. If rEFInd or some other boot loader occupies this directory, back it up first.</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">bootrec /fixboot</tt>.</li>
+
+<li>Type <tt class="userinput">bcdboot c:\Windows /s s: /f ALL</tt>. Note that this command should set the Windows boot loader as the default. Omit <tt>/f ALL</tt> if you don't want to adjust the EFI's default boot program.</li>
+
+<li>Reboot and hope it works! If the computer boots straight to Windows and you want to use rEFInd, use <tt>bcdedit</tt> in Windows, as described in step 9 of the <a href="#windows">Installing rEFInd Manually Using Windows</a> section of this page.</li>
+
+</ol>
+
+<p>For more information, see <a href="http://superuser.com/questions/460762/how-can-i-repair-the-windows-8-efi-bootloader">this SuperUser question and answer.</a></p>
+
<a name="uninstalling">
<h2>Uninstalling rEFInd</h2>
</a>
<p><a href="index.html">Go to the main rEFInd page</a></p>
-<p><a href="using.html">Learn how to use rEFInd</a></p>
+<p><a href="yosemite.html">Comments on rEFInd and OS X 10.10 (Yosemite)</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.rodsbooks.com/">Return</a> to my main Web page.</p>
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