[SOLVED] Skip the GRUB menu at startup?

[djc]

At some point, I don't know why, my Linux Mint 18.3 MATE 64-bit computers began booting into the GRUB menu rather than directly into the OS. I'd like to return to booting directly to the OS, but although I've tried several of the contradictory edits to /etc/default/grub visible on the net, nothing I've tried has worked. At this instant, /etc/default/grub on this computer, stripped of its comments, is

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`lsb_release -i -s 2> /dev/null || echo Debian`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

How can I make the computer skip the GRUB menu display and boot directly to the OS?

[all41]

Try setting:
GRUB_TIMEOUT=0.1
You will have to:
sudo update-grub
to effect the change

You can still bring up the grub screen by holding shift at the oem splash screen

I believe this was originally Pjotr's suggestion

[gm10]

Does this help?

Code: Select all

GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden

[djc]

Setting GRUB_TIMEOUT=0.1 did the job on this computer, so I didn't proceed to try GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden. I'll try GRUB_TIMEOUT on another tomorrow.

Curious why GRUB_TIMEOUT=0 doesn't work. 0.1 seems counter-intuitive to me. But it works.

Thanks both for the quick, effective help.

[jackerbes]

What happens if you uninstall grub?

I want the menu and use the grub customizer gui so don't know if grub is mandatory to boot linux or not.

Jack

[gm10]

What happens if you uninstall grub?

I want the menu and use the grub customizer gui so don't know if grub is mandatory to boot linux or not.

Some sort of boot loader is mandatory. It doesn't have to be GRUB, but it does have to be something. Uninstalling GRUB without providing another boot loader will render the system unbootable, therefore this should never be suggested.

Don't try this at home, kids.

[djc]

GRUB_TIMEOUT=0.1 works on a second 18.3 system, so it looks good generally to prevent the menu from displaying before booting Linux.

GRUB's documentation at https://www.gnu.org/software/grub/manual/grub/grub.html says about GRUB_TIMEOUT that a value of 0 boots "immediately without displaying the menu". But this obviously isn't the case. That's where I began, and it didn't work that way.

And just to note: the function of GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden, according to the online manual, is to "wait for the timeout set by 'GRUB_TIMEOUT' to expire" and if "ESC is pressed during that time, [to] display the menu and wait for input." So if the documentation is correct about this, it looks as if using it would hide the menu but keep any GRUB_TIMEOUT delay.

[jackerbes]

..<snip>...

Some sort of boot loader is mandatory. It doesn't have to be GRUB, but it does have to be something. Uninstalling GRUB without providing another boot loader will render the system unbootable, therefore this should never be suggested.

Don't try this at home, kids.

Thanks for explaining that, I slowly getting smarter here. :>)

Jack

[gm10]

And just to note: the function of GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden, according to the online manual, is to "wait for the timeout set by 'GRUB_TIMEOUT' to expire" and if "ESC is pressed during that time, [to] display the menu and wait for input." So if the documentation is correct about this, it looks as if using it would hide the menu but keep any GRUB_TIMEOUT delay.

I'm aware, hence the question mark behind my suggestion to try that parameter. But it is what's present in a default LM GRUB configuration. I'm also using a timeout of 0 and my GRUB menu is not popping up. So I figured it's worth trying out.