1 CHEATCODES AND HINTS FOR GRML
2 ==============================================================================
4 Isolinux bootprompt options:
5 ----------------------------
7 These options work from the isolinux bootprompt of Grml based (live) systems.
8 (Do NOT use them as 'grml $OPTION', use them as '$OPTION'!):
10 grml Use default settings (same as just pressing return)
11 grml2ram Copy Grml's squashfs file to RAM and
12 run from there (compare with 'grml toram')
13 memtest Run Memtest86+ instead of Linux
14 fb1280x1024 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (1)
15 fb1024x768 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (2) [notice: Grml's default]
16 fb800x600 Use fixed framebuffer graphics (3)
17 nofb Disable framebuffer
18 floppy Boot from floppydisk
19 hd / hd1 / hd2 / hd3 Boot from (local) primary / secondary /... harddisk
20 debug Get shells during process of booting for debugging
21 forensic Do not touch any harddisks during hardware recognition
22 serial Activate ttyS0 and start a getty
23 grub Boot Grub bootloader (special all-in-one-image)
25 hdt Boot Hardware Detection Tool (from syslinux project)
27 Further documentation regarding the boot process can be found at:
28 * http://git.grml.org/?p=live-initramfs-grml.git;a=blob_plain;f=manpages/live-initramfs.en.7.txt;hb=HEAD
29 * https://manpages.debian.org/live-boot-doc/live-boot.7.en.html
30 * https://manpages.debian.org/initramfs-tools-core/initramfs-tools.7.en.html
31 * https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.html
33 The following boot options can be combined.
34 Notice: not all of them are available on all the Grml flavours.
35 For example the X window system is not part of grml-small.
39 grml lang=at|de|cn|da|es|fr|it Specify language ($LANG, $LC_ALL, $LANGUAGE - utf8) + keyboard
40 grml lang=nl|pl|ru|sk|tr|tw|us Specify language ($LANG, $LC_ALL, $LANGUAGE - utf8) + keyboard
41 grml utc Hardware Clock is set to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)
42 grml localtime Hardware Clock is set to local time (LOCAL), this is the default
43 grml tz=Europe/Vienna Use specified timezone for TZ, defaults to TZ=UTC
44 grml keyboard=us Use different keyboard layout
46 Configuration settings:
47 -----------------------
48 grml myconfig=/dev/fd0 Set the DCS dir (debs, config, scripts) to the root of this device
49 DCS dir defaults to the live image or a device labeled GRMLCFG
50 If a file /config.tbz exists, it is extracted from there.
51 /dev/fd0 for floppy disk
52 /dev/sda1 for USB-stick/first SCSI-device
53 grml autoconfig=SOMELABEL Set the DCS dir to the root of the device labeled with SOMELABEL.
54 If undefined search for a device labeled with GRMLCFG.
55 grml netconfig=server/config.tbz Download file and extract configuration archive
56 grml netscript=server/file Download and execute file
57 grml partconf=/dev/sda2 Copy files specified in /etc/grml/partconf from /dev/sda2
58 to booting grml system
59 grml file=foobar.tbz Use specified file as name for configuration archive
60 instead of the default one (config.tbz)
61 grml extract=/etc Extract only /etc from configuration archive,
62 use it in combination with myconfig or netconfig
63 grml persistence Enable persistency feature, more details available at
64 http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php?id=persistency
65 grml hostname=... Set hostname to given argument
66 grml hostname Set a random hostname
67 [Note: only available with releases newer than 2010.04]
68 grml nonetworking Do not create/overwrite /etc/network/interface during startup
69 grml distri=... Set distribution name to given argument. If a jpg file named like the
70 given distri name can be found in directory desktop on the ISO
71 (/cdrom/desktop/"$DISTRI") it will be taken as wallpaper for grml
72 grml debnet Search through local partitions for file /etc/network/interfaces,
73 copy /etc/network to local system and restart networking then
74 grml dns=8.8.8.8,8.8.4.4 Set DNS resolvers during boot and for live system.
75 grml ip=... Standard Linux kernel ip= boot option. Arguments:
76 clientip:nfsserverip:gwip:netmask:hostname:device:autoconf
77 Valid values for autoconf: off, on, dhcp, bootp, rarp, both.
78 Almost everything is optional. Most common form: ip=dhcp
79 grml mypath=... Add specified option into $PATH of Zsh
80 For example when using "grml mypath=/foobar" then /foobar
81 will be added to the end of $PATH inside Zsh
82 grml debs Install all Debian packages from the "debs" directory of your DCS
83 directory (see myconfig=, typically the root of your ISO image).
84 grml debs=path-name-wildcard Install Debian packages from DCS directory (see myconfig=,
85 typically the root of your ISO image). If path does not contain a
86 "/" the package(s) will be installed from directory "debs" of the
87 DCS directory instead. The "path-name-wildcard" can contain
88 wildcards (e.g. debs=rat* will install a packages starting with "rat"
89 from directory debs/).
90 grml scripts=path-name Execute script (defaulting to grml.sh) inside DCS dir. Path names
91 allowed. If path-name points to a directory, all scripts found in
92 the directory are executed.
93 grml config=path-name Unpack archive that path-name points to
94 grml noautoconfig Disable searching for device labeled GRMLCFG
95 grml nobeep Disable welcome chime, sounded before grml-quickconfig starts.
97 Notice: Take a look at http://grml.org/config/ and 'man 1 grml-autoconfig'
98 for more information regarding the configuration framework of Grml.
100 Booting related options:
101 ------------------------
102 grml toram Copy the whole CD/medium to RAM and run from there
103 grml toram=filename.squashfs Copy the specified file to RAM and run from there
104 Usage example: grml toram=grml-medium.squashfs
105 Notice: grml2ram is an alias for this option which
106 corresponds with the grml flavour settings by default
107 grml bootfrom=/dev/sda1 Use the squashfs file from directory 'live' of the specified device
108 Setup can be done by executing:
109 rsync -a --progress /run/live/medium/live /media/sda1/
110 NOTE: you can can also use bootfrom=/dev/disk/by-label/yourlabel
111 (adjust yourlabel as needed), which should prevent choosing the
112 wrong block device (e.g. if more than one disk is present).
113 grml bootfrom=removable Restrict search for the live media to removable type only.
114 grml bootfrom=removable-usb Restrict search for the live media to usb mass storage only.
115 grml isofrom=[fs:][/device]/grml.iso Use specified ISO image for booting.
116 Useful when booting as a rescue system from a different device.
117 If you want to load the image from a device different from the root device
118 specified through the bootloader, prefix its device path to the path, like
119 in "/dev/sda1/grml.iso".
120 Internally, the initrd will mount the given device, automatically detecting
122 If needed, prefix the file system separated with a colon character to
123 override the automatic detection, like in "reiserfs:/dev/sda1/grml.iso".
124 As an example, boot the according grml kernel and initrd using the
125 bootoptions "boot=live isofrom=btrfs:/dev/vda40/path/to/grml.iso"
126 NOTE: "fromiso" does the same as "isofrom", it's just there
127 to prevent any typing errors
128 NOTE: you can can also use isofrom=/dev/disk/by-label/yourlabel
129 (adjust yourlabel as needed), which should prevent choosing the
130 wrong block device (e.g. if more than one disk is present).
131 grml findiso=/grml_2010.12.iso Look for the specified ISO file on all disks where it usually
132 looks for the .squashfs file (so you don't have to know the device name
134 grml fetch=$IP/filename.squashfs Download a squashfs image from a given url, copying to ram and booting it.
135 [Note: releases before 2011.05 didn't support DNS but IP only.]
136 grml live-media-path=/live/grml... Sets the path to the live filesystem on the medium
137 By default, it is set to /live/$GRML_FLAVOUR/ (where $GRML_FLAVOUR
138 is corresponding to grml64-full, grml32-full, grml64-small,...
139 [Note: this option is mandatory since release 2011.12]
140 grml module=grml Instead of using the default "$name.module" another file can
141 be specified without the extension ".module"; it should be placed
142 on "/live" directory of the live medium
143 Useful for Multiboot USB pen, see
144 http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php?id=tips#multiboot_usb_pen
145 grml bootid=mybootid Use specified argument as identifier for the ISO.
146 mybootid is specified in /conf/bootid.txt on the ISO.
147 [Note: only available since release 2010.04]
148 grml ignore_bootid Disable bootid verification.
149 [Note: only available since release 2010.04]
152 Debugging related settings:
153 ---------------------------
154 grml debug Get shells during process of booting, using GNU screen, be verbose
155 grml debug=1 Get shells during process of booting, using GNU screen, be verbose and
156 display shell code being executed in initramfs.
157 grml debug=noscreen Get shells during process of booting, verbose, but without using GNU screen
158 grml nocolor Disable colorized output while booting
159 Also set SYSTEMD_COLORS=0 to disable colors in systemd output
160 grml log Log error messages while booting to /tmp/grml.log.`date +%Y%m%d`"
162 grml testcd Check CD data integrity and md5sums
164 Security / login related settings:
165 ----------------------------------
167 grml ssh=password Set password for root & grml user and start ssh-server
168 grml passwd=... Set password for root & grml user
169 grml encpasswd=.... Set specified hash as password for root & grml user, use e.g.
170 'mkpasswd -H md5' to generate such a hash (available in Grml >=2013.09)
172 Service related settings:
173 -------------------------
174 grml startup=script Start $script instead of grml-quickconfig on startup
175 grml nosyslog Do not start syslog daemon
176 grml nogpm Disable GPM daemon
177 grml noconsolefont Disable setting of console font (using consolechars)
178 grml noblank Disable console blanking
179 grml noquick Disable grml-quickconfig startup script
180 grml wondershaper=eth0,1000,500 Set up basic traffic shaping
181 grml services={postfix,mysql,...} Start service(s) which have an init-script (/etc/init.d/)
182 grml welcome Welcome message via soundoutput
183 grml noeject Do NOT eject CD after halt/reboot
184 grml noprompt Do NOT prompt to remove the CD when halting/rebooting the system
185 grml startx{=windowmanager} Start X window system automatically
186 Default window manager (if not provided): wm-ng (wrapper around fluxbox)
187 grml nostartx If using startx as default bootoption the nostartx *disables* automatic
188 startup of X again. (This bootoption is relevant for grml based derivatives
189 which decide to enable startx by default only, plain grml does not use
190 automatic startup of X by default.)
191 grml vnc=password Start VNC server with startup of X.org and sets the password to the specified
192 one. To automatically start the VNC server use the startx bootoption.
193 [Note: Grml 2011.12+ doesn't include a VNC server.]
194 grml vnc_connect=host[:port] Connect to a listening VNC client ("vncviewer -listen" reverse connection).
195 Can be used to connect from devices behind firewalls as connection is
196 initiated from the VNC server instead of the VNC client. Has to be
197 combined with the vnc bootoption.
198 [Note: Grml 2011.12+ doesn't include a VNC client.]
199 grml getfile.retries=$NUM Retry the download of the files specified in the netconfig=... +
200 netscript=... options up to $NUM times
203 Accessibility related settings:
204 -------------------------------
205 grml brltty=type,port,table Parameters for Braille device (e.g.: brltty=al,/dev/ttyS0,text.de.tbl)
206 See http://mielke.cc/brltty/guidelines.html for documentation.
208 Hardware related settings:
209 --------------------------
210 grml swap Activate present/detected swap partitions
211 grml noswraid Disable scanning for software raid arrays (creates /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf)
212 grml swraid Enable automatic assembling of software raid arrays
213 grml nodmraid Do not enable present dmraid devices.
214 grml dmraid=on Automatically enable any present dmraid devices.
215 grml dmraid=off Actively try to stop any present dmraid devices.
216 grml nolvm Disable scanning for Logical Volumes (LVM)
217 grml lvm Automatically activate Logival Volumes (LVM) during boot
218 grml read-only Make sure all harddisk devices (/dev/hd* /dev/sd*) are forced to read-only mode
219 grml ethdevice=... Use specified network device for network boot instead of default (eth0)
220 grml ethdevice-timeout=... Use specified network configuration timeout instead of default (15sec)
221 grml xmodule=ati|fbdev|i810|mga Use specified X.org-Module (1)
222 grml xmodule=nv|radeon|savage|s3 Use specified X.org-Module (2)
223 grml xmodule=radeon|svga|i810 Use specified X.org-Module (3)
224 grml no{acpi,cpu,dhcp,fstab,swap} Skip parts of HW-detection
225 grml blacklist=modulename[,module2] Completely disable loading of specified module(s) via
226 blacklisting through udev's /etc/modprobe.d/grml
227 grml nosound Mute sound devices (notice: this does not deactivate loading of sound drivers!)
228 grml vol=number Set mixer volumes to level $number
229 grml micvol=number Set mixer volume of microphone to level $number (default: 0)
230 grml acpi=off Disable ACPI Bios completely
231 grml pci=irqmask=0x0e98 Try this, if PS/2 mouse doesn't work *)
232 grml pci=bios Workaround for bad PCI controllers
233 grml libata.force=[ID:]VAL Force configurations for libata.
234 Usage example: grml libata.force=1:pio4
235 to force pio4 mode on device "ata1:00:"
236 grml libata.dma=0 Disable DMA on PATA and SATA devices
237 grml libata.ignore_hpa=1 Disable host protected area (which should enable the whole disk)
238 grml vga=normal No-framebuffer mode (does not influence X)
239 grml vga=ask Display menu for framebuffer mode
240 grml radeon.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Radeon driver.
241 grml i915.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Intel driver.
242 grml nouveau.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Nouveau driver.
243 grml cirrus.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for Cirrus driver.
244 grml mgag200.modeset=0 nomodeset Disable Kernel Mode Setting (KMS) for MGAG200 driver.
246 Installation related settings:
247 ------------------------------
249 Caution: do *NOT* use the debian2hd bootoption if you do not know what you are doing!
251 Install plain Debian via debian2hd bootoption (which runs grml-debootstrap in non-interactive mode):
253 debian2hd <options> ... whereas valid options for debian2hd are:
255 target= target partition/directory of the new Debian system, e.g.: target=/dev/sda1
256 grub= where to install grub to, e.g.: grub=/dev/sda
257 release= specify release of new Debian system (default is stable), e.g.: release=sid
258 mirror= specify mirror for apt-get/aptitude, e,g.: mirror=http://ftp.debian.org/debian
259 password= set passwort of user root without prompting for it, e.g.: password=AiTh5ahn
261 Usage example for automatic installation:
263 debian2hd target=/dev/sda1 grub=/dev/sda mirror=http://ftp.debian.org/debian password=foobar
265 See http://grml.org/grml-debootstrap/ for more information.
270 *) If your Grml-CD makes strange noises during boot, or you see frequent
271 errors like "squashfs: read error", or programs are crashing randomly,
272 then your CD image is probably defective or incomplete, your CD-burner
273 created a defective CD due to wrong writing speed or bad media or your
274 CD-ROM drive is broken. This is the most common error reported. Please
275 boot with "grml testcd" to check if the CD is OK, and/or even better,
276 verify the MD5 checksums that are present on the mirrors before writing
277 the CD. Check your CD low-level via running 'readcd -c2scan
278 dev=/dev/cdrom'. In some cases, defective IDE controllers cause this
279 error if you have DMA enabled. Also, please read the grml-FAQ.
281 *) In case of a failing hardware autodetection, try booting with any of
282 the "no-" options as shown in the table above, like in
283 grml noagp noapic acpi=off nodma
284 to skip some critical parts of the autodetection system.
286 *) The "myconfig=/dev/partition" option allows you to reconfigure the
287 system after autoconfiguration by running a bourne shell script called
288 "grml.sh" and/or extracting configuration files from a file named
289 config.tbz from the root directory on the given device (or floppy).
290 Take a look at http://grml.org/config/ for more information regarding
291 the configuration framework of grml.
293 *) If you wish to remaster the CD, please don't forget to specify
295 -no-emul-boot -boot-load-size 4 -boot-info-table \
296 -b boot/isolinux/isolinux.bin -c boot/isolinux/boot.cat
298 as option to mkisofs. Otherwise your CD won't be bootable. The
299 directory live, containing the squashfs compressed filesystem file,
300 must be located in the top level directory of the CD.
302 *) Caution: screensavers: Don't start physlock or any other screensaver
303 that requires a password manually. There are no default passwords on
304 the live system - all accounts are LOCKED by default for security reasons.
305 Instead just invoke the script grml-lock which prompts for setting a
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