This example shows that /dev/sda1 is mounted at /boot/efi, which is a typical configuration. (The ESP can be on another disk or partition, but /dev/sda1 is the most common place for an ESP.) If your output shows /boot or / under the Mounted on column, then your ESP isn't mounted. (An exception is if you're mounting the ESP at /boot. This is an unusual configuration. If you're using it, you can proceed, making suitable adjustments to subsequent commands.) If you get a df: `/boot/efi': No such file or directory error message, then the /boot/efi directory doesn't even exist. In such cases, you may need to jump through some extra hoops, as described on my EFI Boot Loader Installation page.
@@ -481,7 +511,7 @@ Filesystem 1K-blocks Used Available Use% Mounted on -Installing rEFInd Manually Using Mac OS X
+ +Before installing rEFInd on a Mac, you must determine whether it uses a 32-bit or 64-bit EFI implementation. Most Intel-based Macs have 64-bit EFIs, so you should use the refind_x64.efi file with them; but very early Intel-based Macs have 32-bit EFIs (and sometimes 32-bit CPUs), which require the refind_ia32.efi file. You can determine whether your Mac needs the x86-64 or IA32 build by typing the following command in a Mac Terminal window:
@@ -562,8 +594,8 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi
- If you're installing rEFInd on the ESP, type sudo bless --mount /Volumes/esp --setBoot --file - /Volumes/esp/efi/refind/refind_x64.efi, adjusting the mount - point and exact path to the file as appropriate for your + /Volumes/esp/efi/refind/refind_x64.efi --shortform, adjusting + the mount point and exact path to the file as appropriate for your installation.
- If you're installing rEFInd to an ordinary HFS+ volume, type sudo bless --setBoot --folder /efi/refind --file
@@ -596,6 +628,12 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi
+
I know relatively little about Windows EFI management tools; however, I do know that at least two relevant tools exist: the standard bcdedit and the third-party EasyUEFI.
+ +The EasyUEFI tool is a free (as in beer) GUI tool for managing EFI boot programs. I've only tried it once, and it seemed fairly intuitive and easy to use, but I don't have detailed instructions on how to use it. If you want to use EasyUEFI, you'll have to use it in place of bcdedit at the end of the following procedure.
+ + +Attempt this method of installation only on a UEFI-based PC; this method will not work on Windows that's installed on a Mac in BIOS/CSM/legacy mode. To install rEFInd under Windows, you must first find a way to access the ESP, which Windows normally hides from view. One way to accomplish this goal, and to proceed forward once the ESP is accessible, is as follows:
-
@@ -616,6 +654,8 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi
- Type rename refind.conf-sample refind.conf to rename rEFInd's configuration file. + +
- Type bcdedit /set {bootmgr} path \EFI\refind\refind_x64.efi to set rEFInd as the default EFI boot program. Note that {bootmgr} is entered as such; that's not a notation for a variable. Also, change refind_x64.efi to refind_ia32.efi 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.
- If you like, type bcdedit /set {bootmgr} description "rEFInd description" to set a description (change rEFInd description as you see fit). @@ -857,7 +897,12 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi this just wastes some disk space; but if you've customized your icons, you'll need to copy your altered icons back. Under Linux, versions 0.6.2 and later of install.sh search for rEFInd in several - locations on the ESP, and will upgrade whatever is found.
+ locations on the ESP, and will upgrade whatever is found. The same is
+ true with versions 0.8.5 and later under OS X when installing to the
+ ESP. If you install to a location other than the ESP under OS X, be
+ sure to include the same option to install.sh
+ (--notesp or --ownhfs) to replace the original rather
+ than create a new installation to the ESP.
- Under an RPM- or Debian-based Linux distribution, you can use your
package system to install a newer version of the RPM or Debian package
@@ -983,13 +1028,21 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi
Fixing Macintosh Boot Problems
-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 thess problems myself, and their true causes remains mysterious to me. I have found several possible solutions, though: using the fallback filename, moving rEFInd to an HFS+ volume, clearing NVRAM entries, and fixing wake problems.
+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 thess problems myself, and their true causes remains mysterious to me. I have found several possible solutions, though: Using the --shortform option, using the fallback filename, moving rEFInd to an HFS+ volume, clearing NVRAM entries, fixing wake problems, and fixing a failure to find Linux.
+ + +Using the --shortform Option
+ + +Prior to version 0.8.5, these instructions and the install.sh script omitted the --shortform option from the bless command when installing rEFInd to the ESP. An rEFInd user, however, discovered that using the option eliminated the 30-second delay, so it is now the default with 0.8.5's install.sh, and is specified in the instructions. If you installed rEFInd 0.8.4 or earlier, you may want to re-install or re-bless rEFInd using this option.
+ +There is one caveat, though: The man page for bless notes that --shortform notes that its use can come "at the expense of boot time performance." Thus, it's not clear to me that this option might not actually create problems on some computers. (It's eliminated the boot delay on my 2014 MacBook Air and has no detrimental effect on an old 32-bit Mac Mini that's never had a boot delay problem, though.) Thus, if you have problems with rEFInd 0.8.5 or later, you might try running bless, as described in Installing rEFInd Manually Using OS X's step 8, but omit the --shortform option.
Using the Fallback Filename
-I've received a few reports that installing rEFInd to the ESP using the fallback filename (EFI/BOOT/bootx64.efi on most systems, or EFI/BOOT/bootia32.efi on very old Macs) can work around a sluggish boot problem. In fact, since version 0.8.4, the install.sh script copies the rEFInd binary to this name when run under OS X. If you installed manually to another name, though, renaming (and re-blessing) the installation is worth trying.
+I've received a few reports that installing rEFInd to the ESP using the fallback filename (EFI/BOOT/bootx64.efi on most systems, or EFI/BOOT/bootia32.efi on very old Macs) can work around a sluggish boot problem. In fact, version 0.8.4's install.sh script copied the rEFInd binary to this name when run under OS X. (Version 0.8.5 switches to using --shortform with the more conventional EFI/refind/refind_x64.efi or EFI/refind/refind_ia32.efi name, as just noted.) If you installed to a name other than EFI/BOOT/BOOT{ARCH}, either manually or by using the 0.8.5 or later install.sh, renaming (and re-blessing) the installation is worth trying.
Moving rEFInd to an HFS+ Volume
@@ -1035,7 +1088,27 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abi
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.
+I've recently acquired a 2014 MacBook Air, but I haven't yet had the chance to try to reproduce this problem and find a workaround. It's on my to-do list, though.
+ + +Fixing a Failure to Find Linux
+ + +Some users report that rEFInd doesn't detect Linux, or won't boot it when it is found. Broadly speaking, there are two common causes of this problem:
+ +-
+
+
- A malfunctioning BIOS/legacy boot—If you installed Linux in BIOS/legacy mode, as most online documentation suggests, it could be that your hybrid MBR is missing or damaged. The usual symptom of this problem is that rEFInd shows a generic Linux penguin icon and that selecting it produces a message to the effect that a bootable OS could not be found. As hybrid MBRs are ugly and dangerous, I recommend avoiding them if possible, so my preferred solution to this problem is to set up EFI filesystem drivers and boot that way; however, fixing the hybrid MBR may be an easier solution. This is especially true if you installed a 32-bit version of Linux on a 64-bit Mac (or a 64-bit version on a rare Mac with a 64-bit CPU but a 32-bit EFI). + +
- EFI filesystem driver problems—Ideally, rEFInd should be able to load and run your Linux kernel directly, but this approach normally requires you to have a working EFI driver for the filesystem that holds your Linux kernel. This won't always be the case; and even if it is installed, there can be interference from other drivers, so you may need to remove the drivers that you don't use. If drivers are the root of your problem, you won't see any Linux options, or you'll see the one penguin icon (as above) with no others that point to your Linux kernel(s). + +
If you suspect that your hybrid MBR is damaged, you can try re-creating it with my GPT fdisk (gdisk) program. The GPT fdisk hybrid MBR documentation covers this procedure in detail. You can run gdisk from either OS X or Linux, although you may need to install it, particularly in OS X.
+ +If you suspect driver problems, you'll need to mount your ESP (as described in the manual OS X installation instructions), locate the rEFInd drivers_x64 directory, and adjust its contents. Make sure you have a driver for the filesystem that holds your Linux kernel. If you don't know what filesystem this is, it's probably ext4fs. rEFInd ships with several filesystem drivers, including one for ext4fs. You should also remove unnecessary filesystem drivers. I've seen several reports of one driver interfering with others' operation. The biggest culprit seems to be the HFS+ driver when used on Macs.
+ +Fixing Windows Boot Problems
@@ -1073,27 +1146,103 @@ $ ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep firmware-abiUninstalling rEFInd
-If you decide you don't want to keep rEFInd, you can uninstall it. Doing so is a matter of removing the rEFInd files from your ESP (or from your OS X boot partition, if you installed the program there). In Linux, a command like the following, typed as root, should do the trick:
+If you decide you don't want to keep rEFInd, you can uninstall it. Doing so is a matter of removing the rEFInd files from your ESP (or from your OS X boot partition, if you installed the program there). The exact details of how to do this vary from one OS to another, though; and in some cases there are alternatives to completely uninstalling rEFInd that are easier to implement.
+ + +Uninstalling rEFInd from Linux
+ + +In Linux, a command like the following, typed as root, should remove rEFInd:
# rm -r /boot/efi/EFI/refind-
This example assumes that your ESP is mounted at /boot/efi and that rEFInd is installed in EFI/refind on that partition. If you've mounted your ESP elsewhere, or installed rEFInd elsewhere, you should adjust the command appropriately.
+You must type this command as root (or use sudo in some environments, such as under Ubuntu). This example assumes that your ESP is mounted at /boot/efi and that rEFInd is installed in EFI/refind on that partition. If you've mounted your ESP elsewhere, or installed rEFInd elsewhere, you should adjust the command appropriately.
-The same procedure works in OS X, with the caveat that the ESP isn't normally mounted in OS X. Thus, you must first mount the ESP, as described earlier, in the section on manually installing rEFInd in OS X. (You can forego this step if you installed to the OS X root partition.) You'll also need to use sudo to acquire root privileges. Thus, you'd probably use a command like the following in OS X:
+If you installed via an RPM or Debian package in Linux, using your package manager will remove the package files, but not the files that the installer places on your ESP. Thus, you must uninstall those files manually, as just described. To complete the job, you'll also have to remove /boot/refind_linux.conf, and perhaps the /etc/refind.d directory.
--$ sudo rm -r /Volumes/esp/EFI/refind -+ +
Uninstalling rEFInd from OS X
+ -Many variants of both of these commands are possible on both OS X and Linux. For instance, you'd probably use sudo on Ubuntu. Note that dragging the rEFInd files to the Trash in OS X does not delete them; it just moves them to a different folder. Given the way that Macs reference boot loaders, this means that rEFInd may still launch. If you want to use the Finder to delete rEFInd, be sure to empty the trash after you drag the files there. That should do the job, provided there's no second installation hiding somewhere.
+The easiest way to restore the standard OS X boot loader on a Mac is not to uninstall rEFInd; it's to bypass it. This can be accomplished with the Startup Disk item in the System Preferences panel:
-If you installed via an RPM or Debian package in Linux, using your package manager will remove the package files, but not the files that the installer places on your ESP. Thus, you must uninstall those files manually, as just described. To complete the job, you'll also have to remove /boot/refind_linux.conf, and perhaps the /etc/refind.d directory.
+
+ +
Select your startup disk (Macintosh HD OS X, 10.10.1 in this example) and then click Restart. The computer should reboot into OS X, bypassing rEFInd.
+ +I recommend stopping here, because the procedure for completely removing rEFInd from a Mac depends on your installation method and tends to be challenging for many Mac users, who are unfamiliar with the necessary command-line tools. Basically, you must reverse the steps described earlier, in Installing rEFInd Manually Using Mac OS X:
+ +-
+
+
- You must first determine where rEFInd is installed. This can be any of
+ several locations:
+
+
-
+
+
- If you installed rEFInd 0.8.3 or earlier with the default options, + or if you used the --notesp option with rEFInd 0.8.4 or + later, it will be /EFI/refind on your main partition + +
- If you installed rEFInd 0.8.4 or later with the default options, or + if you used the --esp option with rEFInd 0.8.3 or earlier, + it will be in EFI/refind or EFI/BOOT on the + ESP. + +
- If you used the --ownhfs option to install.sh, + rEFInd will be in the System/Library/CoreServices + directory on the volume you specified. + +
- If you installed rEFInd manually, it will be wherever you put + it. + +
- In all cases, there could be duplicate (inactive) rEFInd files in + unexpected places. This is particularly true if you tried + installing rEFInd multiple times, each with different options to + install.sh. Thus, if you delete rEFInd and it still comes + up, you may have deleted the wrong files. (Note that dragging files + to the Trash may have no effect, though—at least, not until + you empty the Trash.) + +
- If necessary, mount the ESP or rEFInd-specific HFS+ volume, as + described in Installing rEFInd Manually Using Mac OS + X. + +
- Verify that rEFInd is installed in the directory noted in step #1. If a + refind.conf file is present, rEFInd is almost certainly + installed in that directory. If not, it's not rEFInd there and you + should not proceed. Be extra cautious about deleting the + System/Library/CoreServices directory, since that's + the default location of the OS X boot loader! Never delete this + directory from your OS X root (/) partition, only from the + partition you specified to install.sh using the + --ownhfs option. + +
- Once you've identified the rEFInd directory, delete it, or at least the + rEFInd boot file. This file may be called refind_x64.efi, + bootx64.efi, boot.efi, or conceivably something else. + You may need to use sudo rm at the command line to accomplish + this task, as in sudo rm -r + /Volumes/esp/EFI/refind. + +
Uninstalling rEFInd from Windows
+From Windows, you must reverse the directions for installing in Windows—type mountvol S: /S to mount your ESP as S:, then navigate to the S:\EFI directory and delete the refind subdirectory.
-In any of these cases, when the computer boots and cannot find the rEFInd files, it should move on to the next boot loader in its list. In my experience, some EFI firmware implementations remove boot loaders they can't find from their NVRAM lists, so nothing else will be required, provided you have another working boot loader in your firmware's list. If your firmware doesn't automatically clean up its NVRAM entries, rEFInd's entry will do little harm; however, you can delete it with the efibootmgr utility in Linux:
+ +Post-Uninstallation Activity (UEFI-Based PCs)
+ + +On a UEFI-based PC, when the computer boots and cannot find the rEFInd files, it should move on to the next boot loader in its list. In my experience, some EFI firmware implementations remove boot loaders they can't find from their NVRAM lists, so nothing else will be required, provided you have another working boot loader in your firmware's list. If your firmware doesn't automatically clean up its NVRAM entries, rEFInd's entry will do little harm; however, you can delete it with the efibootmgr utility in Linux:
# efibootmgr --verbose @@ -1110,11 +1259,14 @@ Boot0007* CD/DVD Drive
This example shows use of efibootmgr's --verbose (-v) option to display boot programs so as to identify which one is rEFInd, followed by --delete-bootnum (-B) to delete a boot program and --bootnum (-b) to identify which one to delete. Of course, in this example there's not much else left, so you'd presumably want to install another boot program at this point! If you already have another one installed, you may want to check the BootOrder line to determine which one will take precedence when you reboot. If you don't like what it shows, you can adjust it with the --bootorder (-o) option; consult efibootmgr's man page for details.
-If you're not using Linux, you may be able to find a utility that serves a similar function. The OS X bless utility (or its GUI equivalent, the Startup Disk item in System Preferences) should do the trick; but Macs pick up standard OS X boot loaders when they boot and find that a configured non-standard boot loader is missing, so this shouldn't be necessary on Macs. Under Windows, the bcdedit command, described in the section on installing rEFInd under Windows, may work, although I've not attempted this.
+If you're not using Linux, you may be able to find a utility that serves +a similar function. Under Windows, the bcdedit command, described +in the section on installing rEFInd under Windows, +may work, although I've not attempted this.
-
copyright © 2012–2014 by Roderick W. Smith
+copyright © 2012–2015 by Roderick W. Smith
This document is licensed under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License (FDL), version 1.3.