1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430
431
432
433
434
435
436
437
438
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
493
494
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518
519
520
521
522
523
524
525
526
527
528
529
530
531
532
533
534
535
536
|
<?xml version='1.0'?> <!--*-nxml-*-->
<!DOCTYPE refentry PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd">
<!-- SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1-or-later -->
<refentry id="systemd-boot" conditional='ENABLE_BOOTLOADER'
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude">
<refentryinfo>
<title>systemd-boot</title>
<productname>systemd</productname>
</refentryinfo>
<refmeta>
<refentrytitle>systemd-boot</refentrytitle>
<manvolnum>7</manvolnum>
</refmeta>
<refnamediv>
<refname>systemd-boot</refname>
<refname>sd-boot</refname>
<refpurpose>A simple UEFI boot manager</refpurpose>
</refnamediv>
<refsect1>
<title>Description</title>
<para><command>systemd-boot</command> (short: <command>sd-boot</command>) is a simple UEFI boot
manager. It provides a textual menu to select the entry to boot and an editor for the kernel command
line. <command>systemd-boot</command> supports systems with UEFI firmware only.</para>
<para><command>systemd-boot</command> loads boot entry information from the EFI system partition (ESP),
usually mounted at <filename>/efi/</filename>, <filename>/boot/</filename>, or
<filename>/boot/efi/</filename> during OS runtime, as well as from the Extended Boot Loader partition
(XBOOTLDR) if it exists (usually mounted to <filename>/boot/</filename>). Configuration file fragments,
kernels, initrds and other EFI images to boot generally need to reside on the ESP or the Extended Boot
Loader partition. Linux kernels must be built with <option>CONFIG_EFI_STUB</option> to be able to be
directly executed as an EFI image. During boot <command>systemd-boot</command> automatically assembles a
list of boot entries from the following sources:</para>
<itemizedlist>
<listitem><para>Boot entries defined with <ulink
url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot Loader Specification</ulink> Type #1
description files located in <filename>/loader/entries/</filename> on the ESP and the Extended Boot
Loader Partition. These usually describe Linux kernel images with associated initrd images, but
alternatively may also describe other arbitrary EFI executables.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>Unified kernel images, <ulink url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot
Loader Specification</ulink> Type #2, which are executable EFI binaries in
<filename>/EFI/Linux/</filename> on the ESP and the Extended Boot Loader Partition.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The Microsoft Windows EFI boot manager, if installed.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The Apple macOS boot manager, if installed.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The EFI Shell binary, if installed.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>A reboot into the UEFI firmware setup option, if supported by the firmware.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>Secure Boot variables enrollment if the UEFI firmware is in setup-mode and files are provided
on the ESP.</para></listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para><command>systemd-boot</command> supports the following features:</para>
<itemizedlist>
<listitem><para>Basic boot manager configuration changes (such as timeout
configuration, default boot entry selection, …) may be made directly from the boot loader UI at
boot-time, as well as during system runtime with EFI variables.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The boot manager integrates with the <command>systemctl</command> command to implement
features such as <command>systemctl reboot --boot-loader-entry=…</command> (for rebooting into a
specific boot menu entry, i.e. "reboot into Windows") and <command>systemctl reboot
--boot-loader-menu=…</command> (for rebooting into the boot loader menu), by implementing the <ulink
url="https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_INTERFACE">Boot Loader Interface</ulink>. See
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry> for
details.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>An EFI variable set by the boot loader informs the OS about the EFI System Partition used
during boot. This is then used to automatically mount the correct EFI System Partition to
<filename>/efi/</filename> or <filename>/boot/</filename> during OS runtime. See
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-gpt-auto-generator</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>
for details.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The boot manager provides information about the boot time spent in UEFI firmware using
the <ulink url="https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_INTERFACE">Boot Loader Interface</ulink>. This
information can be displayed using
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-analyze</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry>.
</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The boot manager implements boot counting and automatic fallback to older, working boot
entries on failure. See <ulink url="https://systemd.io/AUTOMATIC_BOOT_ASSESSMENT">Automatic Boot
Assessment</ulink>.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The boot manager optionally reads a random seed from the ESP partition, combines it
with a 'system token' stored in a persistent EFI variable and derives a random seed to use by the OS as
entropy pool initialization, providing a full entropy pool during early boot.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The boot manager allows for Secure Boot variables to be enrolled if the UEFI firmware is
in setup-mode. Additionally, variables can be automatically enrolled if configured.</para></listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para><citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry>
may be used from a running system to locate the ESP and the Extended Boot Loader Partition, list
available entries, and install <command>systemd-boot</command> itself.</para>
<para><citerefentry><refentrytitle>kernel-install</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>
may be used to copy kernel images onto the ESP or the Extended Boot Loader Partition and to generate
description files compliant with the Boot Loader
Specification.</para>
<para><citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-stub</refentrytitle><manvolnum>7</manvolnum></citerefentry>
may be used as UEFI boot stub for executed kernels, which is useful to show graphical boot splashes
before transitioning into the Linux world. It is also capable of automatically picking up auxiliary
credential files (for boot parameterization) and system extension images, as companion files to the
booted kernel images.</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>Key bindings</title>
<para>The following keys may be used in the boot menu:</para>
<!-- Developer commands Q/v/Ctrl+l deliberately not advertised. -->
<variablelist>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>↑</keycap> (Up)</term>
<term><keycap>↓</keycap> (Down)</term>
<term><keycap>j</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>k</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>PageUp</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>PageDown</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>Home</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>End</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Navigate up/down in the entry list</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>↵</keycap> (Enter)</term>
<term><keycap>→</keycap> (Right)</term>
<listitem><para>Boot selected entry</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>d</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Make selected entry the default</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>e</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Edit the kernel command line for selected entry</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>+</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>t</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Increase the timeout before default entry is booted</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>-</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>T</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Decrease the timeout</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>r</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Change screen resolution, skipping any unsupported modes.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>R</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Reset screen resolution to firmware or configuration file default.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>p</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Print status</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>h</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>?</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>F1</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Show a help screen</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>f</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Reboot into firmware interface.</para>
<para>For compatibility with the keybindings of several firmware implementations this operation
may also be reached with <keycap>F2</keycap>, <keycap>F10</keycap>, <keycap>Del</keycap> and
<keycap>Esc</keycap>.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
<para>The following keys may be pressed during bootup or in the boot menu to directly boot a specific
entry:</para>
<variablelist>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>l</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Linux</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>w</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Windows</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>a</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>macOS</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>s</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>EFI shell</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>1</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>2</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>3</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>4</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>5</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>6</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>7</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>8</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>9</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Boot entry number 1 … 9</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
<para>The boot menu is shown when a non-zero menu timeout has been configured. If the menu timeout has
been set to zero, it is sufficient to press any key — before the boot loader initializes — to bring up
the boot menu, except for the keys listed immediately above as they directly boot into the selected boot
menu item. Note that depending on the firmware implementation the time window where key presses are
accepted before the boot loader initializes might be short. If the window is missed, reboot and try
again, possibly pressing a suitable key (e.g. the space bar) continuously; on most systems it should be
possible to hit the time window after a few attempts. To avoid this problem, consider setting a non-zero
timeout, thus showing the boot menu unconditionally. Some desktop environments might offer an option to
directly boot into the boot menu, to avoid the problem altogether. Alternatively, use the command line
<command>systemctl reboot --boot-loader-menu=0</command> from the shell.</para>
<para>In the editor, most keys simply insert themselves, but the following keys
may be used to perform additional actions:</para>
<variablelist>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>←</keycap> (Left)</term>
<term><keycap>→</keycap> (Right)</term>
<term><keycap>Home</keycap></term>
<term><keycap>End</keycap></term>
<listitem><para>Navigate left/right</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>Esc</keycap></term>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>c</keycap></keycombo></term>
<listitem><para>Abort the edit and quit the editor</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>k</keycap></keycombo></term>
<listitem><para>Clear the command line forwards</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>w</keycap></keycombo></term>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>Backspace</keycap></keycombo></term>
<listitem><para>Delete word backwards</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>Del</keycap></keycombo></term>
<term><keycombo><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>d</keycap></keycombo></term>
<listitem><para>Delete word forwards</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><keycap>↵</keycap> (Enter)</term>
<listitem><para>Boot entry with the edited command line</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
<para>Note that unless configured otherwise in the UEFI firmware, systemd-boot will
use the US keyboard layout, so key labels might not match for keys like +/-.
</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>Files</title>
<para>The files <command>systemd-boot</command> processes generally reside on the UEFI ESP which is
usually mounted to <filename>/efi/</filename>, <filename>/boot/</filename> or
<filename>/boot/efi/</filename> during OS runtime. It also processes files on the Extended Boot Loader
partition which is typically mounted to <filename>/boot/</filename>, if it
exists.</para>
<para><command>systemd-boot</command> reads runtime configuration such as the boot timeout and default
entry from <filename>/loader/loader.conf</filename> on the ESP (in combination with data read from EFI
variables). See
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>loader.conf</refentrytitle><manvolnum>5</manvolnum></citerefentry>.</para>
<para>Boot entry description files following the <ulink
url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot Loader Specification</ulink> are read from
<filename>/loader/entries/</filename> on the ESP and the Extended Boot Loader partition.</para>
<para>Unified kernel boot entries following the <ulink
url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot Loader Specification</ulink> are read from
<filename>/EFI/Linux/</filename> on the ESP and the Extended Boot Loader partition.</para>
<para>Optionally, a random seed for early boot entropy pool provisioning is stored in
<filename>/loader/random-seed</filename> in the ESP.</para>
<para>During initialization, <command>sd-boot</command> automatically loads all driver files placed in
the <filename>/EFI/systemd/drivers/</filename> directory of the ESP. The files placed there must have an
extension of the EFI architecture ID followed by <filename>.efi</filename> (e.g. for x86-64 this means a
suffix of <filename>x64.efi</filename>). This may be used to automatically load file system drivers and
similar, to extend the native firmware support.</para>
<para>Enrollment of Secure Boot variables can be performed manually or automatically if files are available
under <filename>/loader/keys/<replaceable>NAME</replaceable>/{db,KEK,PK}.auth</filename>, <replaceable>NAME</replaceable>
being the display name for the set of variables in the menu. If one of the sets is named <filename>auto</filename>
then it might be enrolled automatically depending on whether <literal>secure-boot-enroll</literal> is set
to force or not.</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>EFI Variables</title>
<para>The following EFI variables are defined, set and read by <command>systemd-boot</command>, under the
vendor UUID <literal>4a67b082-0a4c-41cf-b6c7-440b29bb8c4f</literal>, for communication between the boot
loader and the OS:</para>
<variablelist class='efi-variables'>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderBootCountPath</varname></term>
<listitem><para>If boot counting is enabled, contains the path to the file in whose name the boot counters are
encoded. Set by the boot
loader. <citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-bless-boot.service</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>
uses this information to mark a boot as successful as determined by the successful activation of the
<filename>boot-complete.target</filename> target unit.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderConfigTimeout</varname></term>
<term><varname>LoaderConfigTimeoutOneShot</varname></term>
<listitem><para>The menu timeout in seconds. Read by the boot loader. <varname>LoaderConfigTimeout</varname>
is maintained persistently, while <varname>LoaderConfigTimeoutOneShot</varname> is a one-time override which is
read once (in which case it takes precedence over <varname>LoaderConfigTimeout</varname>) and then
removed. <varname>LoaderConfigTimeout</varname> may be manipulated with the
<keycap>t</keycap>/<keycap>T</keycap> keys, see above.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderDevicePartUUID</varname></term>
<listitem><para>Contains the partition UUID of the EFI System Partition the boot loader was run from. Set by
the boot
loader. <citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-gpt-auto-generator</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>
uses this information to automatically find the disk booted from, in order to discover various other partitions
on the same disk automatically.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderEntries</varname></term>
<listitem><para>A list of the identifiers of all discovered boot loader entries. Set by the boot
loader.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderEntryDefault</varname></term>
<term><varname>LoaderEntryOneShot</varname></term>
<listitem><para>The identifier of the default boot loader entry. Set primarily by the OS and read by the boot
loader. <varname>LoaderEntryOneShot</varname> sets the default entry for the next boot only, while
<varname>LoaderEntryDefault</varname> sets it persistently for all future
boots. <citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry>'s
<option>set-default</option> and <option>set-oneshot</option> commands make use of these variables. The boot
loader modifies <varname>LoaderEntryDefault</varname> on request, when the <keycap>d</keycap> key is used, see
above.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderEntrySelected</varname></term>
<listitem><para>The identifier of the boot loader entry currently being booted. Set by the boot
loader.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderFeatures</varname></term>
<listitem><para>A set of flags indicating the features the boot loader supports. Set by the boot loader. Use
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry> to view this
data.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderFirmwareInfo</varname></term>
<term><varname>LoaderFirmwareType</varname></term>
<listitem><para>Brief firmware information. Set by the boot loader. Use
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry> to view this
data.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderImageIdentifier</varname></term>
<listitem><para>The path of executable of the boot loader used for the current boot, relative to the EFI System
Partition's root directory. Set by the boot loader. Use
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry> to view this
data.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderInfo</varname></term>
<listitem><para>Brief information about the boot loader. Set by the boot loader. Use
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry> to view this
data.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderTimeExecUSec</varname></term>
<term><varname>LoaderTimeInitUSec</varname></term>
<term><varname>LoaderTimeMenuUsec</varname></term>
<listitem><para>Information about the time spent in various parts of the boot loader. Set by the boot
loader. Use <citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-analyze</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry>
to view this data. </para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><varname>LoaderSystemToken</varname></term>
<listitem><para>A binary random data field, that is used for generating the random seed to pass to
the OS (see above). Note that this random data is generally only generated once, during OS
installation, and is then never updated again.</para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
<para>Many of these variables are defined by the <ulink
url="https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_INTERFACE">Boot Loader Interface</ulink>.</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>Boot Counting</title>
<para><command>systemd-boot</command> implements a simple boot counting mechanism on top of the <ulink
url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot Loader Specification</ulink>, for automatic and unattended
fallback to older kernel versions/boot loader entries when a specific entry continuously fails. Any boot loader
entry file and unified kernel image file that contains a <literal>+</literal> followed by one or two numbers (if
two they need to be separated by a <literal>-</literal>), before the <filename>.conf</filename> or
<filename>.efi</filename> suffix is subject to boot counting: the first of the two numbers ('tries left') is
decreased by one on every boot attempt, the second of the two numbers ('tries done') is increased by one (if 'tries
done' is absent it is considered equivalent to 0). Depending on the current value of these two counters the boot
entry is considered to be in one of three states:</para>
<orderedlist>
<listitem><para>If the 'tries left' counter of an entry is greater than zero the entry is considered to be in
'indeterminate' state. This means the entry has not completed booting successfully yet, but also hasn't been
determined not to work.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>If the 'tries left' counter of an entry is zero it is considered to be in 'bad' state. This means
no further attempts to boot this item will be made (that is, unless all other boot entries are also in 'bad'
state), as all attempts to boot this entry have not completed successfully.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>If the 'tries left' and 'tries done' counters of an entry are absent it is considered to be in
'good' state. This means further boot counting for the entry is turned off, as it successfully booted at least
once. The
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-bless-boot.service</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>
service moves the currently booted entry from 'indeterminate' into 'good' state when a boot attempt completed
successfully.</para></listitem>
</orderedlist>
<para>Generally, when new entries are added to the boot loader, they first start out in 'indeterminate' state,
i.e. with a 'tries left' counter greater than zero. The boot entry remains in this state until either it managed to
complete a full boot successfully at least once (in which case it will be in 'good' state) — or the 'tries left'
counter reaches zero (in which case it will be in 'bad' state).</para>
<para>Example: let's say a boot loader entry file <filename>foo.conf</filename> is set up for 3 boot tries. The
installer will hence create it under the name <filename>foo+3.conf</filename>. On first boot, the boot loader will
rename it to <filename>foo+2-1.conf</filename>. If that boot does not complete successfully, the boot loader will
rename it to <filename>foo+1-2.conf</filename> on the following boot. If that fails too, it will finally be renamed
<filename>foo+0-3.conf</filename> by the boot loader on next boot, after which it will be considered 'bad'. If the
boot succeeds however the entry file will be renamed to <filename>foo.conf</filename> by the OS, so that it is
considered 'good' from then on.</para>
<para>The boot menu takes the 'tries left' counter into account when sorting the menu entries: entries in 'bad'
state are ordered at the beginning of the list, and entries in 'good' or 'indeterminate' at the end. The user can
freely choose to boot any entry of the menu, including those already marked 'bad'. If the menu entry to boot is
automatically determined, this means that 'good' or 'indeterminate' entries are generally preferred (as the bottom
item of the menu is the one booted by default), and 'bad' entries will only be considered if there are no 'good' or
'indeterminate' entries left.</para>
<para>The <citerefentry><refentrytitle>kernel-install</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry> kernel
install framework optionally sets the initial 'tries left' counter to the value specified in
<filename>/etc/kernel/tries</filename> when a boot loader entry is first created.</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>Using <command>systemd-boot</command> in virtual machines</title>
<para>When using qemu with OVMF (UEFI Firmware for virtual machines) the <option>-kernel</option> switch
works not only for linux kernels, but for any EFI binary, including sd-boot and unified linux
kernels. Example command line for loading <command>systemd-boot</command> on x64:</para>
<para>
<command>qemu-system-x86_64 <replaceable>[ ... ]</replaceable>
-kernel /usr/lib/systemd/boot/efi/systemd-bootx64.efi</command>
</para>
<para>systemd-boot will detect that it was started directly instead of being loaded from ESP and will
search for the ESP in that case, taking into account boot order information from the hypervisor (if
available).</para>
</refsect1>
<refsect1>
<title>See Also</title>
<para>
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>bootctl</refentrytitle><manvolnum>1</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>loader.conf</refentrytitle><manvolnum>5</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-bless-boot.service</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-boot-random-seed.service</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>kernel-install</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<citerefentry><refentrytitle>systemd-stub</refentrytitle><manvolnum>7</manvolnum></citerefentry>,
<ulink url="https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification">Boot Loader Specification</ulink>,
<ulink url="https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_INTERFACE">Boot Loader Interface</ulink>
</para>
</refsect1>
</refentry>
|