DEBEFIVM-UKIFY(1)

💖 DEBEFIVM-UKIFY(1) 💖

okay so bestie, welcome to the debefivm-ukify page — part of the User Contributed Perl Documentation collection, and literally your new fave way to build Unified Kernel Images. grab a snack, we're doing UEFI today 🎀

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✨ NAME ✨

debefivm-ukify — makes Unified Kernel Images for UEFI systems, in basically the same way systemd's ukify does it. same vibe, different implementation. slay 💅

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

debefivm-ukify build --linux=vmlinuz --output=uki.efi [options]

that's it. that's the whole shape of it. build is the only subcommand and honestly she's enough 👑

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so here's the tea, bestie: debefivm-ukify is a reimplementation of parts of systemd-ukify, and it's mainly meant for backports. and like… the maintainers themselves say it: please prefer systemd's implementation. no cap. this one is the understudy, not the main character, and she knows it 😭

what she does not do, so we're all clear:

• she only supports the build subcommand — that's it, that's the menu
• she does not implement any functionality related to secure boot
• she has no configuration file support at all

but other than that? she absolutely ate. you can use her to assemble a Linux kernel image, an initrd, and an EFI stub image from systemd into one glorious EFI-bootable Unified Kernel Image. iconic behaviour fr fr ✨

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💅 OPTIONS 💅

• --deb-arch=debian_architecture — sets the architecture of the artifacts you hand over and the ones she produces, using Debian's architecture nomenclature. want to say it the EFI way instead? peep --efi-arch, she's got you. heads up though: this option is not available on the systemd implementation, so it's our little exclusive 🫶
• --devicetree=devicetree_blob — adds a device tree file as a dtb section in the generated UKI. and bestie, there can be at most one device tree. one. singular. don't be greedy 💀
• --cmdline=kernel_cmdline — supplies extra arguments that get appended to the Linux kernel command line during boot. you can give this at most once. and plot twist: if the value starts with an @, she treats it as a filename and adds that file's contents instead 📄✨
• --efi-arch=efi_architecture — same energy as above but for architecture, set using EFI's architecture nomenclature. want the Debian flavour instead? that's --deb-arch. pick your fighter 💖
• --initrd=initrd — supplies an initrd image to be embedded. at most one initrd. just the one, babe 🎀
• --linux=vmlinuz — supplies a Linux kernel image to be embedded. and this one? this option must be given exactly once. non-negotiable. mandatory. the moment. periodt 🔥
• --os-release=release_information — sets the os-release description in the UKI. at most once, okay? and yep, same @ trick: if the value starts with an @, it's treated as a filename and the contents get added 📝
• --output=<uki.efi> — names the resulting UKI image. must be given exactly once, and the target file must not already exist. like, she will not overwrite your stuff, so don't come for her 🙈
• --section=<name:value> — adds an arbitrary ELF section to the resulting UKI. and yes, the @ thing again: value starting with @ = it's a filename, contents get added. fun fact bestie, most image components actually are such ELF sections — for instance --os-release just adds a section named osrel. iykyk 🧚
• --stub=efi_stub — supplies the location of systemd's EFI stub image. and here's where she's different from the systemd implementation: this option also accepts a directory containing stubs named by architecture. by default, stubs get looked up in /usr/lib/systemd/boot/efi 🌈
• --verbose — prints diagnostic information during image conversion. because sometimes you just need to see what's happening, and honestly, same. this option is not available on the systemd implementation either — another exclusive 💜

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⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

• ukify(1) — go read her too, she's the blueprint 👑

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and that's the whole page, bestie!! you made it to the end, so here's your cute little sign-off: this gorgeous thing runs on perl v5.40.1 and was dated 2026-03-23. take care of her, build something beautiful, and go touch some grass afterwards 🌸🦋💖