GFXBOOT(1)

📦 version 4.5.103, in debian bookworm, debian trixie, ubuntu jammy, ubuntu noble, ubuntu resolute, ubuntu stonking

✨ GFXBOOT(1) ✨ — System configuration

okay bestie, welcome to gfxboot(1), aka the graphical boot screen test and config tool 💖 this is the manual for it, and we're gonna go through it together, no skipping, no cap.

🌸 NAME 🌸

gfxboot — graphical boot screen test and config tool 🎀

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

gfxboot [ OPTIONS ] ARGS

💅 DESCRIPTION 💅

so like, gfxboot modifies and tests graphical boot loader configuration. that's the whole vibe. it's giving "make your boot screen cute and also make sure it actually works" ✨

👑 OPTIONS 👑

🌈 General options 🌈

  • -a, --archive FILE|DIRECTORY — use FILE as the gfxboot archive (the default is /boot/message, iykyk). but if it points at a DIRECTORY instead, it just assumes that's an expanded archive — peep the --expand-archive option down below for the tea 🫖
  • -v, --verbose — increase verbosity. more talking, more info, we love that 💬
  • --save-temp — keep temporary files around instead of yeeting them
  • --version — show the gfxboot version 🏷️
  • --help — print usage

🎀 Switching themes 🎀

  • --new-theme THEME — activate THEME. theme files live in /etc/bootsplash/themes/THEME/bootloader 📁
  • --update-theme THEME — activate THEME, but keep the language settings from the current gfxboot archive. so it's a glow-up that doesn't forget where it came from 💖

🧚 Changing gfxboot config 🧚

  • --show-config — show the gfxboot config file (gfxboot.cfg) 👀
  • --change-config [SECTION1::]OPTION1=FOO1 [SECTION2::]OPTION2=FOO2 ... — change gfxboot config options. if you don't give a section, section "base" gets used, that's the default bestie
  • --rm-config [SECTION1::]OPTION1 [SECTION2::]OPTION2 ... — delete gfxboot config options. same deal: no section means section "base"
  • --rm-section SECTION1 SECTION2 ... — delete whole sections in the gfxboot config file. gone, deleted, not coming back 💀
  • --default-language LANG — make LANG the default language. LANG is a locale string (like en_US)
  • --add-languages LANG1 LANG2 ... — add translation files 🌍
  • --rm-languages LANG1 LANG2 ... — remove translation files
  • --config-file FILE — don't work on the gfxboot.cfg from the gfxboot archive, work on FILE instead.
⚠️ NOTE: FILE will be modified even with "--test". yes fr, even in test mode. be careful with this one bestie 😭

⭐ Preview/test gfxboot setup ⭐

  • -p, --preview — try the current config (needs some virtual machine, so like, have one ready)
  • -t, --test — test only, don't actually change any files 🙈
  • -b, --bootloader BOOTLOADER — use BOOTLOADER for preview. your options are grub, lilo, isolinux, syslinux, pxelinux
  • -m, --vm VM — use virtual machine VM for preview. your options are bochs, qemu, qemu32, qemu64, vbox, vbox64, vmplayer, vmware
  • --grub DIRECTORY|RPM — use grub from DIRECTORY or RPM (default is /)
  • --lilo DIRECTORY|RPM — use lilo from DIRECTORY or RPM (default is /)
  • --syslinux DIRECTORY|RPM — use syslinux from DIRECTORY or RPM (default is /)
  • --isolinux DIRECTORY|RPM — use isolinux from DIRECTORY or RPM (default is /)
  • --pxelinux DIRECTORY|RPM — use pxelinux from DIRECTORY or RPM (default is /)
  • --password PASSWORD — create a test config with PASSWORD for preview 🔐
  • --32 — create a 32 bit test image
  • --64 — create a 64 bit test image
  • --biarch — create a biarch test image (same as using --32 and --64 together, two for one 💅)
  • --cdrom, --dvd — create an iso image for preview 💿
  • --disk — create a harddisk image for preview
  • --floppy — create a floppy image for preview
  • --net — create a tftp directory for preview 🌐
  • --save-image FILE — copy the preview image to FILE
  • --test-add-files FILE1 FILE2 ... — add files to the test directory
  • --test-rm-files FILE1 FILE2 ... — delete files from the test directory

🍓 Adding/removing files from gfxboot archive 🍓

  • --ls, --list-files — list the gfxboot archive files 📋
  • --add-files FILE1 FILE2 ... — add files to the gfxboot archive
  • --rm-files FILE1 FILE2 ... — delete files from the gfxboot archive
  • --extract-files FILE1 FILE2 ... — copy files from the gfxboot archive to the current working directory
  • --show-file FILE — print FILE
  • --expand-archive DIRECTORY — create an expanded gfxboot archive version in DIRECTORY. meaning: only files that cannot be read directly from the file system are kept in a cpio archive, all the others get unpacked. 🫶 use only for isolinux, syslinux, or pxelinux
  • --pack-archive FILE — pack all gfxboot files into the cpio archive FILE 📦

💜 Modifying help files 💜

  • --help-show FILE — print FILE (internal help file format) as HTML 🌈
  • --help-create FILE — convert the HTML files passed as ARGS into FILE (internal format)
  • --used-pages LINK1 LINK2 ... — mark pages as referenced
  • --navi FILE — use FILE as a template for navigation links 🧭
  • --define ENTITY1=VALUE1 ENTITY2=VALUE2 ... — define ENTITYx with VALUEx

🌸 FILES 🌸

  • /boot/message — bootloader graphics archive (actually a cpio achive) 📦
  • /etc/bootsplash/themes — theme directory
  • /etc/sysconfig/bootsplash — default theme

💀 BUGS 💀

None. literally none, she's flawless, periodt 👑

🫶 AUTHOR 🫶

Written by Steffen Winterfeldt.

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

If you want to create your own theme, look at the gfxboot-devel package. go make something iconic bestie 💖

and that's the whole thing!! this was gfxboot, from July 2008, in the GFXBOOT(1) manual, under System configuration — ty for coming to my ted talk, mwah 😘✨

📦 where this page comes from