BOOTCTL(1) bootctl BOOTCTL(1)
NAME
bootctl - Control the firmware and boot manager settings
SYNOPSIS
bootctl [OPTIONS...] {COMMAND}
DESCRIPTION
bootctl can check the EFI boot loader status, list available boot
loaders and boot loader entries, and install, update, or remove the
systemd-boot(7) boot loader on the current system.
COMMANDS
status
Shows brief information about the system firmware, the boot loader
that was used to boot the system, the boot loaders currently
available in the ESP, the boot loaders listed in the firmware's
list of boot loaders and the current default boot loader entry. If
no command is specified, this is the implied default.
install
Installs systemd-boot into the EFI system partition. A copy of
systemd-boot will be stored as the EFI default/fallback loader at
ESP/EFI/BOOT/BOOT*.EFI. The boot loader is then added to the top of
the firmware's boot loader list.
update
Updates all installed versions of systemd-boot(7), if the available
version is newer than the version installed in the EFI system
partition. This also includes the EFI default/fallback loader at
ESP/EFI/BOOT/BOOT*.EFI. The boot loader is then added to end of the
firmware's boot loader list if missing.
remove
Removes all installed versions of systemd-boot from the EFI system
partition and the firmware's boot loader list.
is-installed
Checks whether systemd-boot is installed in the ESP. Note that a
single ESP might host multiple boot loaders; this hence checks
whether systemd-boot is one (of possibly many) installed boot
loaders -- and neither whether it is the default nor whether it is
registered in any EFI variables.
random-seed
Generates a random seed and stores it in the EFI System Partition,
for use by the systemd-boot boot loader. Also, generates a random
'system token' and stores it persistently as an EFI variable, if
one has not been set before. If the boot loader finds the random
seed in the ESP and the system token in the EFI variable it will
derive a random seed to pass to the OS and a new seed to store in
the ESP from the combination of both. The random seed passed to the
OS is credited to the kernel's entropy pool by the system manager
during early boot, and permits userspace to boot up with an entropy
pool fully initialized very early on. Also see systemd-boot-system-
token.service(8).
See Random Seeds[1] for further information.
systemd-efi-options [VALUE]
When called without the optional argument, prints the current value
of the "SystemdOptions" EFI variable. When called with an argument,
sets the variable to that value. See systemd(1) for the meaning of
that variable.
list
Shows all available boot loader entries implementing the Boot
Loader Specification[2], as well as any other entries discovered or
automatically generated by the boot loader.
set-default ID, set-oneshot ID
Sets the default boot loader entry. Takes a single boot loader
entry ID string as argument. The set-oneshot command will set the
default entry only for the next boot, the set-default will set it
persistently for all future boots.
OPTIONS
The following options are understood:
--esp-path=
Path to the EFI System Partition (ESP). If not specified, /efi/,
/boot/, and /boot/efi/ are checked in turn. It is recommended to
mount the ESP to /efi/, if possible.
--boot-path=
Path to the Extended Boot Loader partition, as defined in the Boot
Loader Specification[2]. If not specified, /boot/ is checked. It is
recommended to mount the Extended Boot Loader partition to /boot/,
if possible.
-p, --print-esp-path
This option modifies the behaviour of status. Only prints the path
to the EFI System Partition (ESP) to standard output and exits.
-x, --print-boot-path
This option modifies the behaviour of status. Only prints the path
to the Extended Boot Loader partition if it exists, and the path to
the ESP otherwise to standard output and exit. This command is
useful to determine where to place boot loader entries, as they are
preferably placed in the Extended Boot Loader partition if it
exists and in the ESP otherwise.
Boot Loader Specification Type #1 entries should generally be
placed in the directory "$(bootctl -x)/loader/entries/". Existence
of that directory may also be used as indication that boot loader
entry support is available on the system. Similarly, Boot Loader
Specification Type #2 entries should be placed in the directory
"$(bootctl -x)/EFI/Linux/".
Note that this option (similar to the --print-booth-path option
mentioned above), is available independently from the boot loader
used, i.e. also without systemd-boot being installed.
--no-variables
Do not touch the firmware's boot loader list stored in EFI
variables.
--graceful
Ignore failure when the EFI System Partition cannot be found, or
when EFI variables cannot be written. Currently only applies to
random seed operations.
--no-pager
Do not pipe output into a pager.
-h, --help
Print a short help text and exit.
--version
Print a short version string and exit.
EXIT STATUS
On success, 0 is returned, a non-zero failure code otherwise.
ENVIRONMENT
If $SYSTEMD_RELAX_ESP_CHECKS=1 is set the validation checks for the ESP
are relaxed, and the path specified with --esp-path= may refer to any
kind of file system on any kind of partition.
Similarly, $SYSTEMD_RELAX_XBOOTLDR_CHECKS=1 turns off some validation
checks for the Extended Boot Loader partition.
SEE ALSO
systemd-boot(7), Boot Loader Specification[2], Boot Loader
Interface[3], systemd-boot-system-token.service(8)
NOTES
1. Random Seeds
https://systemd.io/RANDOM_SEEDS
2. Boot Loader Specification
https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_SPECIFICATION
3. Boot Loader Interface
https://systemd.io/BOOT_LOADER_INTERFACE
systemd 245 BOOTCTL(1)