[Solved] PC now automatically boots to Bios screen on power up

[WM7793]

Hi everyone, I am hoping that you could shed some light on a problem that has only recently surfaced. On power up the PC (more often than not) boots direct to the bios screen. I don't have windows installed alongside Mint (20.1) and have not experienced any real problems prior to now. I have blindly accepted all updates that have appeared and it's maybe one of those that has affected the pc. I seem to remember a grub update, but whether or not this has had any difference I do not know. Although a user I am not fully up to speed with the technical aspects of the linux coding.

When in the bios screen, I have had a quick look and the boot order is as it should be. Once this has been accepted, and exiting from bios the pc starts up as normal.

I realise that it is not a major problem compared to many others on this forum, but if anyone has some ideas why this is happening and what to do to correct this, I would be very grateful for their help.

Best regards,
WM7793

[senjoz]

Please provide more details about your system. Run Menu - Administration - System Reports. Click on the System information and then on the Copy. Paste that information in your replay.

When your machine boots directly in the BIOS, are date and time in the BIOS correct?

Regards, Jože

[WM7793]

Hi Joze, and thank you for your swift reply.

On boot up today, the same happened. booted directly into Bios. I then got your email to check on a couple of things (and sods law) rebooted 6 times as normal into the Linux screen !

Anyway the date was correct but the time clock was 1 hour slow, (maybe the pc has not caught up with british summer time here in the UK).

The system check ran ok, and here is the system information you requested:

Code: Select all

System:    Kernel: 5.4.0-72-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 9.3.0 Desktop: Cinnamon 4.8.6 
           wm: muffin dm: LightDM Distro: Linux Mint 20.1 Ulyssa base: Ubuntu 20.04 focal 
Machine:   Type: Desktop Mobo: ASUSTeK model: P8Z68-V LE v: Rev X.0x serial: <filter> 
           BIOS: American Megatrends v: 4102 date: 09/09/2013 
CPU:       Topology: Quad Core model: Intel Core i5-2500K bits: 64 type: MCP arch: Sandy Bridge 
           rev: 7 L2 cache: 6144 KiB 
           flags: avx lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx bogomips: 26486 
           Speed: 3501 MHz min/max: 1600/3700 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 3502 2: 3550 3: 3589 
           4: 3511 
Graphics:  Device-1: AMD Cedar [Radeon HD 5000/6000/7350/8350 Series] vendor: ASUSTeK 
           driver: radeon v: kernel bus ID: 01:00.0 chip ID: 1002:68f9 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.9 driver: ati,radeon unloaded: fbdev,modesetting,vesa 
           resolution: 1920x1080~60Hz 
           OpenGL: renderer: AMD CEDAR (DRM 2.50.0 / 5.4.0-72-generic LLVM 11.0.0) 
           v: 3.3 Mesa 20.2.6 compat-v: 3.1 direct render: Yes 
Audio:     Device-1: Intel 6 Series/C200 Series Family High Definition Audio vendor: ASUSTeK P8H67 
           driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus ID: 00:1b.0 chip ID: 8086:1c20 
           Device-2: AMD Cedar HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 5400/6300/7300 Series] vendor: ASUSTeK 
           driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus ID: 01:00.1 chip ID: 1002:aa68 
           Sound Server: ALSA v: k5.4.0-72-generic 
Network:   Device-1: Qualcomm Atheros AR9285 Wireless Network Adapter driver: ath9k v: kernel 
           port: e000 bus ID: 03:00.0 chip ID: 168c:002b 
           IF: wlp3s0 state: down mac: <filter> 
           Device-2: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet 
           vendor: ASUSTeK P8P67 and other motherboards driver: r8169 v: kernel port: d000 
           bus ID: 06:00.0 chip ID: 10ec:8168 
           IF: enp6s0 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter> 
Drives:    Local Storage: total: 1.42 TiB used: 204.68 GiB (14.0%) 
           ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Crucial model: M4-CT064M4SSD2 size: 59.63 GiB speed: 6.0 Gb/s 
           serial: <filter> 
           ID-2: /dev/sdb vendor: Western Digital model: WD5000AAKX-001CA0 size: 465.76 GiB 
           speed: 3.0 Gb/s serial: <filter> 
           ID-3: /dev/sdc vendor: Samsung model: HD103SJ size: 931.51 GiB speed: 3.0 Gb/s 
           serial: <filter> 
Partition: ID-1: / size: 42.84 GiB used: 15.52 GiB (36.2%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2 
           ID-2: /boot size: 9.10 GiB used: 5.76 GiB (63.3%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda1 
           ID-3: /home size: 916.77 GiB used: 140.14 GiB (15.3%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sdc1 
           ID-4: swap-1 size: 6.54 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda3 
USB:       Hub: 1-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 2.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0002 
           Hub: 1-1:2 info: Intel Integrated Rate Matching Hub ports: 6 rev: 2.0 
           chip ID: 8087:0024 
           Device-1: 1-1.1:3 info: Integrated Express SD/MMC Cardreader type: Mass Storage 
           driver: usb-storage rev: 2.0 chip ID: 048d:1336 
           Hub: 2-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 2.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0002 
           Hub: 2-1:2 info: Intel Integrated Rate Matching Hub ports: 8 rev: 2.0 
           chip ID: 8087:0024 
           Hub: 3-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 2.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0002 
           Hub: 4-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 3.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0003 
           Hub: 5-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 2.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0002 
           Device-2: 5-1:2 info: Microsoft Basic Optical Mouse v2.0 type: Mouse 
           driver: hid-generic,usbhid rev: 1.1 chip ID: 045e:00cb 
           Device-3: 5-2:3 info: Microsoft Wired Keyboard 600 type: Keyboard,HID 
           driver: microsoft,usbhid rev: 1.1 chip ID: 045e:0750 
           Hub: 6-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 3.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0003 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 49.0 C mobo: N/A gpu: radeon temp: 51 C 
           Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A 
Repos:     No active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list 
           Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list 
           1: deb http: //packages.linuxmint.com ulyssa main upstream import backport #id:linuxmint_main
           2: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal main restricted universe multiverse
           3: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           4: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse
           5: deb http: //security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse
           6: deb http: //archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/ focal partner
Info:      Processes: 225 Uptime: N/A Memory: 7.74 GiB used: 1.22 GiB (15.7%) Init: systemd v: 245 
           runlevel: 5 Compilers: gcc: 9.3.0 alt: 7/9 Client: Unknown python3.8 client 
           inxi: 3.0.38 

Hope this helps, and thank you once again.

Best regards,
WM7793

[senjoz]

I remember from old days that machines with expunged cmos batteries booted directly in the bios because bios lost user settings. Time and date on those boots were wrong. I guess that something similar could be on your machine. But you should check the wrong date and time only on direct boots in the bios. If you rebooted in the Mint, it is possible that date and time are correctly reset in bios with Mint ntp service and in immediately reboots date and time are correct because cmos battery can save settings for a short time.

If that is not the case (your machine looks not extremely old) we should consider other things.

Regards, Jože


EDIT: Your partition sda1, /boot, has 5.8 GiB used space. Have you a lot of kernels installed?

[WM7793]

Thanks Joze,
When I returned to my machine later this evening and restarted it, the same happened and booted to bios. The date was correct again but the time reverted to an hour incorrect. I built the pc around 7 years ago, so I presume that it's old and outdated by today's standards. But being Linux, it still performs well enough for my requirements. I maybe need to upgrade a few bits and pieces !

I have the latest kernel 5.4.0.72 active, and 5.4.0.71 installed.

I tend to uninstall older kernels as newer ones are offered via the updates. Not too sure whether I ought to have two kernels present, or whether it makes any difference to the pc.

Many thanks again for your help.

Best regards,
WM7793

[ajgreeny]

Two kernels is both normal and the recommended way just in case a new kernel version fails to boot after installing; it's not often seen but does occasionally happen so it's good to still have the previous version available to choose from grub if you need it.

Is your machine BIOS or UEFI? I assume it is using BIOS as there is not EFI/ESP partition shown, but I note you have a separate /boot partition which is usually not necessary unless you use LVM or encryption.

However, if I have missed something, and you are using UEFI with the EFI partition on a separate Windows drive, please show the output of command

Code: Select all

efibootmgr

[mikaelrask]

hey additional tip WM7793 update your bios could be a good think aswell. and also check your boot order so its set to boot from the ssd.

[WM7793]

Hi ajgreeny and mikaelrask and thank you for your input, it's most appreciated !

The result from the terminal is this:
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$ efibootmgr
EFI variables are not supported on this system.
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$

I do have the ssd as the default boot drive, and have a couple of additional drives installed for applications and back up, as only Linux mint is installed on the ssd. I also have a windows drive that is installed in the pc, but having had problems with dual boot (probably my own doing) I only reconnect the windows drive when there is the odd application that will not run on Linux. I have tried virtualbox previously and had problems with usb drives and then thrown the towel in and reconnect the windows drive when the odd occasion arose.

My pc is not set up for anything special as far as I am aware (I'm not that smart!).

Thanks again for your help.

Best regards,
WM7793

[senjoz]

When I returned to my machine later this evening and restarted it, the same happened and booted to bios.

Was it reboot or cold boot?

Maybe something is wrong with the keyboard, maybe the key for booting into bios is sometimes stuck. Can you check that with the use of another keyboard?

ID-2: /boot size: 9.10 GiB used: 5.76 GiB (63.3%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda1

I also have two kernels installed and my /boot directory has only 208 MiB used. Your boot partition, sda1 /boot, has 5.8 GiB used. I wonder what is on that partition besides two kernels?

Regards, Jože

[WM7793]

Hi Jose, and thank you for once again for your reply. I am away from home at present and unable to check out your suggestions.
The problem arises on a cold boot.
As regarding sda/boot Memory usage I installed Mint onto the ssd drive and point everything else to the other drives.
I don’t know whether that accounts for the larger use of memory, I am by no means sufficiently up to speed on Linux.
Best regards,
WM7793

[AndyMH]

Anyway the date was correct but the time clock was 1 hour slow, (maybe the pc has not caught up with british summer time here in the UK).

Linux works off UTC = GMT and adjusts appropriately, nothing wrong there.

From the suggestions so far, a dead/dying CMOS battery sounds the most promising to me.

[bendipa]

This sounds like a hardware issue, nothing to do with Linux. If you have a bootable USB drive for Live Mint or Windows PE, when in BIOS put device first in boot order and save BIOS settings. Make sure USB drive is plugged in then try a reboot. If it still goes to BIOS then you have a hardware issue. Could be anything from a dying CMOS battery to a faulty SATA cable.

Have a read of this.

[ricardogroetaers]

I built the pc around 7 years ago, ...

The battery of the "watch" (CMOS) is probably worn out (7 years discharging!).
Clock delay is the first signal (unless the delay is always the same value).
Other setup configurations may be missing.
Replace the battery.

[WM7793]

Many thanks to all the people who have contributed to solving the problem.
Still not Back home as yet, but a failing battery sounds very reasonable to me. I will get one ordered and see where we are after that.
I will update the post and keep everyone informed.
I’m very grateful for all your help.
Many thanks and best regards,
WM7793

[WM7793]

Hi everyone. Sorry to have to report that the new battery has not solved the boot up problem.

I have also checked whether the delete key is sticky and it's ok as I've tried another keyboard.

Well if there's no other possible solution, it's not the end of the world !

I may have to upgrade the machine in the future.

Thanks again for all the posters who have tried to help me.

Best regards,
WM7793

[senjoz]

What additional checks should we do?

Look at capacitors on the motherboard of your machine. If they have not flat top surface, if they are inflated, that is not a good sign. Also check all connections on the motherboard, sata cables, ram modules, power cables, fans, inserted cards, etc.

We could also check Grub files of your system. Open terminal, make it full screen and execute commands cat /etc/default/grub and cat /boot/grub/grub.cfg. Mark all outputs with mouse, including commands and copy them. When you post those outputs in your replay, please click on the button marked with </> in the mini toolbar above the edit box where you type your reply, place cursor between the code tags and paste outputs of commands between the code tags, [code]paste terminal outputs here[/code]. I do not expect something unusual there, but anyway, maybe there will be something suspicious.

Regards, Jože


EDIT: Information, if direct booting to the bios happens only after a longer machine shutdown or if it is present also on the immediate reboots, will be welcome.

[WM7793]

Wow, Joze, I really admire your knowledge and perseverance !

Here is the first request:
# Uncomment to enable BadRAM filtering, modify to suit your needs
# This works with Linux (no patch required) and with any kernel that obtains
# the memory map information from GRUB (GNU Mach, kernel of FreeBSD ...)
#GRUB_BADRAM="0x01234567,0xfefefefe,0x89abcdef,0xefefefef"

# Uncomment to disable graphical terminal (grub-pc only)
#GRUB_TERMINAL=console

# The resolution used on graphical terminal
# note that you can use only modes which your graphic card supports via VBE
# you can see them in real GRUB with the command `vbeinfo'
#GRUB_GFXMODE=640x480

# Uncomment if you don't want GRUB to pass "root=UUID=xxx" parameter to Linux
#GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_UUID=true

# Uncomment to disable generation of recovery mode menu entries
#GRUB_DISABLE_RECOVERY="true"

# Uncomment to get a beep at grub start
#GRUB_INIT_TUNE="480 440 1"
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$

Here is your second request:
}
### END /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+ ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_uefi-firmware ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_uefi-firmware ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###
# This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries. Simply type the
# menu entries you want to add after this comment. Be careful not to change
# the 'exec tail' line above.
### END /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
if [ -f ${config_directory}/custom.cfg ]; then
source ${config_directory}/custom.cfg
elif [ -z "${config_directory}" -a -f $prefix/custom.cfg ]; then
source $prefix/custom.cfg;
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$

Now hold your breath as we speak !!
I have had to start up my pc twice since replacing the battery, and has booted up as normal !!

Joze, I am very grateful for all your help in tracing this relatively minor problem. I admire your expertise in Linux, and your capacity in wanting to help a total stranger. Thank you it's very much appreciated !

Best regards,
WM7793

[senjoz]

WM7793, unfortunately outputs of terminal commands are not complete. Before copying outputs you should scroll terminal output to the beginning, to the command. You can do that with a mouse wheel. With left mouse button mark output from including command to the end. If you go with the left mouse button pressed to the bottom of the terminal window, it will scroll.

You should also learn how to paste terminal outputs between code tags. When posting outputs in your replay, please click on the button marked with </> in the mini toolbar above the edit box where you type your reply, place cursor between the code tags and paste outputs of commands between the code tags, [code]paste terminal outputs here[/code].
Please see the next screenshots!

In the replying window click on the code display button (button marked with mouse pointer in next screenshot, click on the picture to enlarge it)

In edit box you will get next code tags

Then paste terminal output between code tags

Regards, Jože

[WM7793]

Hi Joze, thank you for your understanding. As a retired 66 year old, I know I have a lot to learn about Linux, and learn I will, thanks to people like you to teach me.

here is the output of the command line for your first request:

Code: Select all

[clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$ cat /etc/default/grub
# If you change this file, run 'update-grub' afterwards to update
# /boot/grub/grub.cfg.
# For full documentation of the options in this file, see:
#   info -f grub -n 'Simple configuration'

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`lsb_release -i -s 2> /dev/null || echo Debian`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# Uncomment to enable BadRAM filtering, modify to suit your needs
# This works with Linux (no patch required) and with any kernel that obtains
# the memory map information from GRUB (GNU Mach, kernel of FreeBSD ...)
#GRUB_BADRAM="0x01234567,0xfefefefe,0x89abcdef,0xefefefef"

# Uncomment to disable graphical terminal (grub-pc only)
#GRUB_TERMINAL=console

# The resolution used on graphical terminal
# note that you can use only modes which your graphic card supports via VBE
# you can see them in real GRUB with the command `vbeinfo'
#GRUB_GFXMODE=640x480

# Uncomment if you don't want GRUB to pass "root=UUID=xxx" parameter to Linux
#GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_UUID=true

# Uncomment to disable generation of recovery mode menu entries
#GRUB_DISABLE_RECOVERY="true"

# Uncomment to get a beep at grub start
#GRUB_INIT_TUNE="480 440 1"
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$ 




[b]Here is the output of your second request (I hope that I have done this correctly !)[/b]
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$ cat /boot/grub/grub.cfg
#
# DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE
#
# It is automatically generated by grub-mkconfig using templates
# from /etc/grub.d and settings from /etc/default/grub
#

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/00_header ###
if [ -s $prefix/grubenv ]; then
  set have_grubenv=true
  load_env
fi
if [ "${initrdfail}" = 2 ]; then
   set initrdfail=
elif [ "${initrdfail}" = 1 ]; then
   set next_entry="${prev_entry}"
   set prev_entry=
   save_env prev_entry
   if [ "${next_entry}" ]; then
      set initrdfail=2
   fi
fi
if [ "${next_entry}" ] ; then
   set default="${next_entry}"
   set next_entry=
   save_env next_entry
   set boot_once=true
else
   set default="0"
fi

if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then
  menuentry_id_option="--id"
else
  menuentry_id_option=""
fi

export menuentry_id_option

if [ "${prev_saved_entry}" ]; then
  set saved_entry="${prev_saved_entry}"
  save_env saved_entry
  set prev_saved_entry=
  save_env prev_saved_entry
  set boot_once=true
fi

function savedefault {
  if [ -z "${boot_once}" ]; then
    saved_entry="${chosen}"
    save_env saved_entry
  fi
}
function initrdfail {
    if [ -n "${have_grubenv}" ]; then if [ -n "${partuuid}" ]; then
      if [ -z "${initrdfail}" ]; then
        set initrdfail=1
        if [ -n "${boot_once}" ]; then
          set prev_entry="${default}"
          save_env prev_entry
        fi
      fi
      save_env initrdfail
    fi; fi
}
function recordfail {
  set recordfail=1
  if [ -n "${have_grubenv}" ]; then if [ -z "${boot_once}" ]; then save_env recordfail; fi; fi
}
function load_video {
  if [ x$feature_all_video_module = xy ]; then
    insmod all_video
  else
    insmod efi_gop
    insmod efi_uga
    insmod ieee1275_fb
    insmod vbe
    insmod vga
    insmod video_bochs
    insmod video_cirrus
  fi
}

insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='hd0,msdos1'
if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
else
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
fi
if loadfont /grub/fonts/UbuntuMono16.pf2 ; then
  set gfxmode=auto
  load_video
  insmod gfxterm
  set locale_dir=$prefix/locale
  set lang=en_GB
  insmod gettext
fi
terminal_output gfxterm
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='hd0,msdos1'
if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
else
  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
fi
insmod gfxmenu
insmod png
set theme=($root)/grub/themes/linuxmint/theme.txt
export theme
if [ "${recordfail}" = 1 ] ; then
  set timeout=30
else
  if [ x$feature_timeout_style = xy ] ; then
    set timeout_style=hidden
    set timeout=10
  # Fallback hidden-timeout code in case the timeout_style feature is
  # unavailable.
  elif sleep --interruptible 10 ; then
    set timeout=0
  fi
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/00_header ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/05_debian_theme ###
set menu_color_normal=white/black
set menu_color_highlight=black/light-gray
### END /etc/grub.d/05_debian_theme ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
function gfxmode {
	set gfxpayload="${1}"
	if [ "${1}" = "keep" ]; then
		set vt_handoff=vt.handoff=7
	else
		set vt_handoff=
	fi
}
if [ "${recordfail}" != 1 ]; then
  if [ -e ${prefix}/gfxblacklist.txt ]; then
    if hwmatch ${prefix}/gfxblacklist.txt 3; then
      if [ ${match} = 0 ]; then
        set linux_gfx_mode=keep
      else
        set linux_gfx_mode=text
      fi
    else
      set linux_gfx_mode=text
    fi
  else
    set linux_gfx_mode=keep
  fi
else
  set linux_gfx_mode=text
fi
export linux_gfx_mode
menuentry 'Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-simple-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
	recordfail
	load_video
	gfxmode $linux_gfx_mode
	insmod gzio
	if [ x$grub_platform = xxen ]; then insmod xzio; insmod lzopio; fi
	insmod part_msdos
	insmod ext2
	set root='hd0,msdos1'
	if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	else
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	fi
	linux	/vmlinuz-5.4.0-72-generic root=UUID=97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a ro  quiet splash 
	initrd	/initrd.img-5.4.0-72-generic
}
submenu 'Advanced options for Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon' $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-advanced-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
	menuentry 'Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon, with Linux 5.4.0-72-generic' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-5.4.0-72-generic-advanced-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
		recordfail
		load_video
		gfxmode $linux_gfx_mode
		insmod gzio
		if [ x$grub_platform = xxen ]; then insmod xzio; insmod lzopio; fi
		insmod part_msdos
		insmod ext2
		set root='hd0,msdos1'
		if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		else
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		fi
		echo	'Loading Linux 5.4.0-72-generic ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-5.4.0-72-generic root=UUID=97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a ro  quiet splash 
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/initrd.img-5.4.0-72-generic
	}
	menuentry 'Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon, with Linux 5.4.0-72-generic (recovery mode)' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-5.4.0-72-generic-recovery-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
		recordfail
		load_video
		insmod gzio
		if [ x$grub_platform = xxen ]; then insmod xzio; insmod lzopio; fi
		insmod part_msdos
		insmod ext2
		set root='hd0,msdos1'
		if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		else
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		fi
		echo	'Loading Linux 5.4.0-72-generic ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-5.4.0-72-generic root=UUID=97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a ro recovery nomodeset dis_ucode_ldr 
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/initrd.img-5.4.0-72-generic
	}
	menuentry 'Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon, with Linux 5.4.0-71-generic' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-5.4.0-71-generic-advanced-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
		recordfail
		load_video
		gfxmode $linux_gfx_mode
		insmod gzio
		if [ x$grub_platform = xxen ]; then insmod xzio; insmod lzopio; fi
		insmod part_msdos
		insmod ext2
		set root='hd0,msdos1'
		if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		else
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		fi
		echo	'Loading Linux 5.4.0-71-generic ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-5.4.0-71-generic root=UUID=97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a ro  quiet splash 
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/initrd.img-5.4.0-71-generic
	}
	menuentry 'Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon, with Linux 5.4.0-71-generic (recovery mode)' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os $menuentry_id_option 'gnulinux-5.4.0-71-generic-recovery-97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a' {
		recordfail
		load_video
		insmod gzio
		if [ x$grub_platform = xxen ]; then insmod xzio; insmod lzopio; fi
		insmod part_msdos
		insmod ext2
		set root='hd0,msdos1'
		if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		else
		  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
		fi
		echo	'Loading Linux 5.4.0-71-generic ...'
		linux	/vmlinuz-5.4.0-71-generic root=UUID=97e4cf2b-39bd-4a0b-a237-c01b3c1eee8a ro recovery nomodeset dis_ucode_ldr 
		echo	'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
		initrd	/initrd.img-5.4.0-71-generic
	}
}

### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux_zfs ###
### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux_zfs ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###

### END /etc/grub.d/20_linux_xen ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+ ###
menuentry 'Memory test (memtest86+)' {
	insmod part_msdos
	insmod ext2
	set root='hd0,msdos1'
	if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	else
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	fi
	knetbsd	/memtest86+.elf
}
menuentry 'Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)' {
	insmod part_msdos
	insmod ext2
	set root='hd0,msdos1'
	if [ x$feature_platform_search_hint = xy ]; then
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root --hint-bios=hd0,msdos1 --hint-efi=hd0,msdos1 --hint-baremetal=ahci0,msdos1  3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	else
	  search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set=root 3661f176-79b2-4fcc-9d8a-2727cb2ce01c
	fi
	linux16	/memtest86+.bin console=ttyS0,115200n8
}
### END /etc/grub.d/20_memtest86+ ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/30_uefi-firmware ###
### END /etc/grub.d/30_uefi-firmware ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###
# This file provides an easy way to add custom menu entries.  Simply type the
# menu entries you want to add after this comment.  Be careful not to change
# the 'exec tail' line above.
### END /etc/grub.d/40_custom ###

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
if [ -f  ${config_directory}/custom.cfg ]; then
  source ${config_directory}/custom.cfg
elif [ -z "${config_directory}" -a -f  $prefix/custom.cfg ]; then
  source $prefix/custom.cfg;
fi
### END /etc/grub.d/41_custom ###
clive@clive-System-Product-Name:~$ 

I hope that this means something more to you than it does to me !
As mentioned previously, I really admire people like yourself who are really smart and understand coding. I had a go at machine code when I was a young lad and realised quite quickly my limitations. I ended up working for Rockwell and Siemens selling programmable logic controllers, software and Scada systems but I always had enormous respect for the application guys who supported me.

Best regards,
WM7793 
/code]

[WM7793]

The second request is embedded in my first response, sorry!
Best regards,
WM7793