1 CHEATCODES AND HINTS FOR GRML
2 ==============================================================================
4 These options work from the (isolinux/grub) bootprompt of Grml based (live) systems.
6 The following kernel options are available (do NOT use them as 'grml $OPTION',
7 use them as '$OPTION'!):
9 grml Use default settings (same as just pressing return)
10 grml2ram Copy Grml's squashfs file to RAM and
11 run from there (compare with 'grml toram')
12 memtest Run Memtest86+ instead of Linux
13 fb1280x1024 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (1)
14 fb1024x768 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (2) [notice: Grml's default]
15 fb800x600 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (3)
16 nofb Disable framebuffer
17 floppy Boot from floppydisk
18 hd / hd1 / hd2 / hd3 Boot from (local) primary / secondary /... harddisk
19 failsafe Boot with (almost) no HW-detection
20 debug Get shells during process of booting for debugging
21 bootchart Create chart of booting sequence in /var/log/bootchart.tgz
22 forensic Do not touch any harddisks during hardware recognition
23 serial Activate ttyS0 and start a getty
24 grub Boot Grub bootloader (special all-in-one-image)
27 hdt Boot Hardware Detection Tool (from syslinux project)
29 Further documentation regarding the boot process can be found at:
30 * http://git.grml.org/?p=live-initramfs-grml.git;a=blob_plain;f=manpages/live-initramfs.en.7.txt;hb=HEAD
31 * http://git.grml.org/?p=live-boot-grml.git;a=blob;f=manpages/en/live-boot.7;hb=HEAD
32 * http://git.debian.org/?p=kernel/initramfs-tools.git;a=blob_plain;f=initramfs-tools.8;hb=HEAD
33 * http://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt
35 The following boot options can be combined.
36 Notice: not all of them are available on all the Grml flavours.
37 For example the X window system is not part of grml-small.
41 grml lang=at|de|cn|da|es|fr|it Specify language ($LANG, $LC_ALL, $LANGUAGE - utf8) + keyboard
42 grml lang=nl|pl|ru|sk|tr|tw|us Specify language ($LANG, $LC_ALL, $LANGUAGE - utf8) + keyboard
43 grml lang=$LANG-iso Activate $LANG (use like in lines above) with iso-mode instead of utf8
44 grml gmt Use GMT-based time (UTC=yes)
45 grml utc Use Coordinated Universal Time (UTC=yes)
46 grml localtime Use local time (UTC=no)
47 grml tz=Europe/Vienna Use specified timezone for TZ
48 grml keyboard=us xkeyboard=us Use different keyboard layout (text-console/X)
50 Configuration settings:
51 -----------------------
52 grml myconfig=/dev/fd0 Set the DCS dir (debs, config, scripts) to the root of this device
53 DCS dir defaults to the live image or a device labeled GRMLCFG
54 If a file /config.tbz exists, it is extracted from there.
55 /dev/fd0 for floppy disk
56 /dev/sda1 for USB-stick/first SCSI-device
57 grml autoconfig=SOMELABEL Set the DCS dir to the root of the device labeled with SOMELABEL.
58 If undefined search for a device labeled with GRMLCFG.
59 grml netconfig=server/config.tbz Download file and extract configuration archive
60 grml netscript=server/file Download and execute file
61 grml partconf=/dev/sda2 Copy files specified in /etc/grml/partconf from /dev/sda2
62 to booting grml system
63 grml file=foobar.tbz Use specified file as name for configuration archive
64 instead of the default one (config.tbz)
65 grml extract=/etc Extract only /etc from configuration archive,
66 use it in combination with myconfig or netconfig
67 grml persistent=nofiles Enable persistency feature, more details available at
68 http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php?id=persistency
69 Notice that the "=nofiles" argument is optional, though recommended
71 grml hostname=... Set hostname to given argument
72 grml hostname Set a random hostname
73 [Note: only available with releases newer than 2010.04]
74 grml nodhcphostname Do not to set the hostname according to the dns information
75 grml nonetworking Do not create/overwrite /etc/network/interface during startup
76 grml distri=... Set distribution name to given argument. If a jpg file named like the
77 given distri name can be found in directory desktop on the ISO
78 (/cdrom/desktop/"$DISTRI") it will be taken as wallpaper for grml
79 grml debnet Search through local partitions for file /etc/network/interfaces,
80 copy /etc/network to local system and restart networking then
81 grml dns=8.8.8.8,8.8.4.4 Set DNS resolvers during boot and for live system.
82 grml ip=... Standard Linux kernel ip= boot option. Arguments:
83 clientip:nfsserverip:gwip:netmask:hostname:device:autoconf
84 Valid values for autoconf: off, on, dhcp, bootp, rarp, both.
85 Almost everything is optional. Most common form: ip=dhcp
86 grml mypath=... Add specified option into $PATH of Zsh
87 For example when using "grml mypath=/foobar" then /foobar
88 will be added to the end of $PATH inside Zsh
89 grml debs Install all Debian packages from the "debs" directory of your DCS
90 directory (see myconfig=, typically the root of your ISO image).
91 grml debs=path-name-wildcard Install Debian packages from DCS directory (see myconfig=,
92 typically the root of your ISO image). If path does not contain a
93 "/" the package(s) will be installed from directory "debs" of the
94 DCS directory instead. The "path-name-wildcard" can contain
95 wildcards (e.g. debs=rat* will install a packages starting with "rat"
96 from directory debs/).
97 grml scripts=path-name Execute script (defaulting to grml.sh) inside DCS dir. Path names
98 allowed. If path-name points to a directory, all scripts found in
99 the directory are executed.
100 grml config=path-name Unpack archive that path-name points to
101 grml noautoconfig Disable searching for device labeled GRMLCFG
102 grml nobeep Disable welcome chime, sounded before grml-quickconfig starts.
104 Notice: Take a look at http://grml.org/config/ and 'man 1 grml-autoconfig'
105 for more information regarding the configuration framework of Grml.
107 Booting related options:
108 ------------------------
109 grml toram Copy the whole CD/medium to RAM and run from there
110 grml toram=filename.squashfs Copy the specified file to RAM and run from there
111 Usage example: grml toram=grml-medium.squashfs
112 Notice: grml2ram is an alias for this option which
113 corresponds with the grml flavour settings by default
114 grml tohd=/dev/sda1 Copy Grml's squashfs file to harddisk partition for later
115 use via "grml bootfrom=/dev/sda1"
116 grml bootfrom=/dev/sda1 Use the squashfs file from directory 'live' of the specified device
117 Setup can be done booting 'grml tohd=/dev/sda1' or
118 running 'rsync -a --progress /live/image/live /mnt/sda1/'
119 grml bootfrom=removable Restrict search for the live media to removable type only.
120 grml bootfrom=removable-usb Restrict search for the live media to usb mass storage only.
121 grml isofrom=/dev/sda1/grml.iso Use specified ISO image for booting
122 Useful when booting as a rescue system from harddisk - just boot
123 the according grml kernel and initrd using the bootoptions
124 "boot=live isofrom=/dev/sda1/grml.iso"
125 Notice: "fromiso" does the same as "isofrom", it's just there
126 to prevent any typing errors
127 grml findiso=/grml_2010.12.iso Look for the specified ISO file on all disks where it usually
128 looks for the .squashfs file (so you don't have to know the device name
130 grml fetch=$IP/filename.squashfs Download a squashfs image from a given url, copying to ram and booting it.
131 [Note: releases before 2011.05 didn't support DNS but IP only.]
132 grml live-media-path=live Sets the path to the live filesystem on the medium
133 By default, it is set to /live
134 grml nostats Don't send any information to the Grml project at startup.
135 Parameters sent are Grml version, if the cpu supports 64bit,
136 anonymized boot parameters and boot source (remote or local).
137 [Note: only available since release 2011.12]
138 grml module=grml Instead of using the default "$name.module" another file can
139 be specified without the extension ".module"; it should be placed
140 on "/live" directory of the live medium
141 Useful for Multiboot USB pen, see
142 http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php?id=tips#multiboot_usb_pen
143 grml bootid=mybootid Use specified argument as identifier for the ISO.
144 mybootid is specified in /conf/bootid.txt on the ISO.
145 [Note: only available since release 2010.04]
146 grml ignore_bootid Disable bootid verification.
147 [Note: only available since release 2010.04]
150 Debugging related settings:
151 ---------------------------
152 grml debug Get shells during process of booting, using GNU screen, be verbose
153 grml debug=1 Get shells during process of booting, using GNU screen, be verbose and
154 display shell code being executed in initramfs.
155 grml debug=noscreen Get shells during process of booting, verbose, but without using GNU screen
156 grml nocolor Disable colorized output while booting
157 grml log Log error messages while booting to /tmp/grml.log.`date +%Y%m%d`"
159 grml testcd Check CD data integrity and md5sums
161 Service related settings:
162 -------------------------
163 grml ssh=password Set password for user grml and start ssh-server
164 grml startup=script Start $script instead of grml-quickconfig on startup
165 grml nosyslog Do not start syslog daemon
166 grml nogpm Disable GPM daemon
167 grml noconsolefont Disable setting of console font (using consolechars)
168 grml noblank Disable console blanking
169 grml noquick Disable grml-quickconfig startup script
170 grml small Do not start that many consoles
171 grml wondershaper=eth0,1000,500 Set up basic traffic shaping
172 grml services={postfix,mysql,...} Start service(s) which have an init-script (/etc/init.d/)
173 grml welcome Welcome message via soundoutput
174 grml noeject Do NOT eject CD after halt/reboot
175 grml noprompt Do NOT prompt to remove the CD when halting/rebooting the system
176 grml distcc=$NETWORK,$INTERFACE Activate distcc-daemon to listen on specified network
177 and interface, usage example:
178 distcc=192.168.0.1/24,eth0
179 grml gcc=3.4 gpp=3.4 Link /usr/bin/gcc, /usr/bin/cpp and /usr/bin/c++ to specified version
180 grml startx{=windowmanager} Start X window system automatically
181 Default window manager (if not provided): wm-ng (wrapper around fluxbox)
182 grml nostartx If using startx as default bootoption the nostartx *disables* automatic
183 startup of X again. (This bootoption is relevant for grml based derivatives
184 which decide to enable startx by default only, plain grml does not use
185 automatic startup of X by default.)
186 grml vnc=password Start VNC server with startup of X.org and sets the password to the specified
187 one. To automatically start the VNC server use the startx bootopion.
188 grml vnc_connect=host[:port] Connect to a listening VNC client ("vncviewer -listen" reverse connection).
189 Can be used to connect from devices behind firewalls as connection is
190 initiated from the VNC server instead of the VNC client. Has to be
191 combined with the vnc bootoption.
192 [Note: only available since release 2011.12]
195 Hardware related settings:
196 --------------------------
197 grml swap Activate present/detected swap partitions
198 grml noswraid Disable scanning for software raid arrays (creates /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf)
199 grml swraid Enable automatic assembling of software raid arrays
200 grml nodmraid Do not enable present dmraid devices.
201 grml dmraid=on Automatically enable any present dmraid devices.
202 grml dmraid=off Actively try to stop any present dmraid devices.
203 grml nolvm Disable scanning for Logical Volumes (LVM)
204 grml lvm Automatically activate Logival Volumes (LVM) during boot
205 grml readonly Make sure all harddisk devices (/dev/hd* /dev/sd*) are forced to read-only mode
206 grml ethdevice=... Use specified network device for network boot instead of default (eth0)
207 grml xmodule=ati|fbdev|i810|mga Use specified X.org-Module (1)
208 grml xmodule=nv|radeon|savage|s3 Use specified X.org-Module (2)
209 grml xmodule=radeon|svga|i810 Use specified X.org-Module (3)
210 grml no{acpi,agp,cpu,dhcp} Skip parts of HW-detection (1)
211 grml no{dma,fstab,modem} Skip parts of HW-detection (2)
212 grml no{pcmcia,scsi,swap,usb} Skip parts of HW-detection (3)
213 grml blacklist=modulename[,module2] Completely disable loading of specified module(s) via
214 blacklisting through udev's /etc/modprobe.d/grml
215 grml fwtimeout=50 Set firmware timeout via /sys/class/firmware/timeout to specified value
216 grml nosound Mute sound devices (notice: this does not deactivate loading of sound drivers!)
217 grml vol=number Set mixer volumes to level $number
218 grml micvol=number Set mixer volume of microphone to level $number (default: 0)
219 grml pnpbios=off No PnP Bios initialization
220 grml acpi=off Disable ACPI Bios completely
221 grml nofirewire Disable initialization of firewire devices in booting sequence
222 grml pci=irqmask=0x0e98 Try this, if PS/2 mouse doesn't work *)
223 grml pci=bios Workaround for bad PCI controllers
224 grml ide2=0x180 nopcmcia Boot from PCMCIA-CD-ROM (some notebooks)
225 grml mem=128M Specify Memory size in MByte
226 grml libata.force=[ID:]VAL Force configurations for libata.
227 Usage example: grml libata.force=1:pio4
228 to force pio4 mode on device "ata1:00:"
229 grml libata.dma=0 Disable DMA on PATA and SATA devices
230 grml libata.ignore_hpa=1 Disable host protected area (which should enable the whole disk)
231 grml vga=normal No-framebuffer mode (does not influence X)
232 grml vga=ask Display menu for framebuffer mode
233 grml radeon.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Radeon driver.
234 grml i915.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Intel driver.
235 grml nouveau.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Nouveau driver.
237 Installation related settings:
238 ------------------------------
240 Caution: do *NOT* use the debian2hd bootoption if you do not know what you are doing!
242 Install plain Debian via debian2hd bootoption (which runs grml-debootstrap in non-interactive mode):
244 debian2hd <options> ... whereas valid options for debian2hd are:
246 target= target partition/directory of the new Debian system, e.g.: target=/dev/sda1
247 grub= where to install grub to, e.g.: grub=/dev/sda
248 release= specify release of new Debian system (default is stable), e.g.: release=sid
249 mirror= specify mirror for apt-get/aptitude, e,g.: mirror=http://cdn.debian.net/debian
250 password= set passwort of user root without prompting for it, e.g.: password=AiTh5ahn
252 Usage example for automatic installation:
254 debian2hd target=/dev/sda1 grub=/dev/sda mirror=http://cdn.debian.net/debian password=foobar
256 See http://grml.org/grml-debootstrap/ for more information.
261 *) If your Grml-CD makes strange noises during boot, or you see frequent
262 errors like "squashfs: read error", or programs are crashing randomly,
263 then your CD image is probably defective or incomplete, your CD-burner
264 created a defective CD due to wrong writing speed or bad media or your
265 CD-ROM drive is broken. This is the most common error reported. Please
266 boot with "grml testcd" to check if the CD is OK, and/or even better,
267 verify the MD5 checksums that are present on the mirrors before writing
268 the CD. Check your CD low-level via running 'readcd -c2scan
269 dev=/dev/cdrom'. In some cases, defective IDE controllers cause this
270 error if you have DMA enabled. Also, please read the grml-FAQ.
272 *) In case of a failing hardware autodetection, try booting with any of
273 the "no-" options as shown in the table above, like in
274 grml noagp noapic acpi=off nodma
275 to skip some critical parts of the autodetection system.
277 *) Some boards (especially those with E-ISA slots) apparently don't pass
278 the proper memory size to the linux-kernel. It may cause the message
279 "Panic: cannot mount root file system" and the system hangs. Use "grml
280 mem=128M" to solve that problem if your system has 128MByte memory for
281 example (caution: you MUST use a capital "M" here).
283 *) The "myconfig=/dev/partition" option allows you to reconfigure the
284 system after autoconfiguration by running a bourne shell script called
285 "grml.sh" and/or extracting configuration files from a file named
286 config.tbz from the root directory on the given device (or floppy).
287 Take a look at http://grml.org/config/ for more information regarding
288 the configuration framework of grml.
290 *) If you wish to remaster the CD, please don't forget to specify
292 -no-emul-boot -boot-load-size 4 -boot-info-table \
293 -b boot/isolinux/isolinux.bin -c boot/isolinux/boot.cat
295 as option to mkisofs. Otherwise your CD won't be bootable. The
296 directory live, containing the squashfs compressed filesystem file,
297 must be located in the top level directory of the CD.
299 *) Caution: screensavers: Don't start vlock or any other screensaver
300 that requires a password manually. There are no default passwords on
301 the live system - all accounts are LOCKED by default for security reasons.
302 Instead just invoke the script grml-lock which prompts for setting a
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