i installed Zorin 18 on it's own partition on my Windows 10 hard drive but can not get Grub to work after rebooting...it automatically runs Zorin. Help!
In Zorin, open a terminal and run:
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
(if gedit isn't installed try gnome-text-editor or, if you're comfortable with a terminal text editor, nano instead; I can't remember which text editors come pre-installed with Zorin these days)
Uncomment the following lines, or add them if they don't exist:
GRUB_TIMEOUT=5
GRUB_DISABLE_OS_PROBER=false
(if there is a # at the start of a line, that means it is ignored as a comment when grub updates; delete the # to uncomment it)
Save the file then return to the terminal and execute:
sudo update-grub
This should add Zorin and Windows back into your grub configuration and make them visible on your next reboot.
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Thank you for the reply. I could not get the 'gedit' command to work but in searching, I found a solution the same as yours but using the 'nono' 'nano' command instead of 'gedit'. I folowed the same instructions as yours and now I get a menu on bootup that says to 'go to Zorin normally' or 'choose Zorin options'. The 'options' choice just gives me the choice of booting into older versions of Zorin. So I still do not have the option of choosing Windows.
I have 'quick boot' off as well as 'fast startup' off also.
That is odd.
Please run sudo update-grub in the terminal again and post the output here.
You can highlight the output by selecting the text normally with your mouse, then either right-click > copy or Ctrl+Shift+C. When pasting it into a forum post, put it between two lines of 3 backticks like this:
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
You can copy the following backtick characters if you don't know where they are on your keyboard:
```
This can happen if:
- Windows is installed Legacy (MBR) and Zorin OS is installed EFI.
- Windows OS and Zorin OS bootloaders are being kept on separate partitions (If both installed EFI).
Are both on the same drive? Is there one EFI partition with both bootloaders?
First off, I did a typo in my first post. It was not 'nono'...it was 'nano'. DOH!
I believe I recall seeing the Windows partition as MBR and the partition I left blank for Zorin was UEFI (or something close to that...EFI?) Because I can't boot into Windows and use the 'fdisk' program to see, is the a Linux version so I can check the drive and let you know?
user01@user01-OptiPlex-780:~$ sudo update-grub
[sudo] password for user01:
Sourcing file `/etc/default/grub'
Generating grub configuration file ...
Found theme: /usr/share/grub/themes/zorin/theme.txt
Found linux image: /boot/vmlinuz-7.0.0-31-generic
Found initrd image: /boot/initrd.img-7.0.0-31-generic
Found linux image: /boot/vmlinuz-6.17.0-20-generic
Found initrd image: /boot/initrd.img-6.17.0-20-generic
Warning: os-prober will be executed to detect other bootable partitions.
Its output will be used to detect bootable binaries on them and create new boot entries.
Adding boot menu entry for UEFI Firmware Settings ...
done
user01@user01-OptiPlex-780:~$
Unfortunately, os-prober is running but isn't seeing any Windows partitions at all, not even the Recovery partition.
Can you run efibootmgr in the terminal and post the output please?
Yes, it is called gparted, though again I'm not sure if it's pre-installed on Zorin but it will defintiely be available in the app store.
Sorry, gparted is a graphical partition manager, the terminal equivalent to Windows' fdisk is lsblk and will be pre-installed.
If Windows OS is MBR, but Zorin OS is EFI, then you have the EFI partition that contains the bootloaders for installed Operating Systems, but Windows OS being MBR is not using an EFI Bootloader, therefor not present.
Your options would be to convert Windows OS to EFI or to convert Zorin OS to MBR.
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Welcome to the Forum!
I guess, You mean nano here. That is totally fine to use it.
Could You post the Content of the File /etc/default/grub please? To open it, open the File Manager and go there to ''Other Places''. Then click on the Zorin Drive on the right Side. And there navigate to etc>default and there is a File called grub. Make a Right-Click on it and choose ''Open with...'' and there choose the Text Editor. Then take the Content and copy it here in a Comment.
Some other Things:
- Are Secure Boot and Fast Boot in BIOS disabled?
- If Fast Start-Up in Windows disabled?
- When You go in BIOS to ''Boot Order'', do You see there Entries like ''Zorin'', ''ubuntu'' and ''Windows Boot Manager''? In what Order they are listed? Maybe make a Picture of it.
- You could also check in Zorin in the Terminal with the Command
efibootmgrthe Output and post it here, too - When You installed Zorin, did You choose the ''Install Zorin alongside Windows'' Option or another one?
I would follow @Aravisian's advice.
I had a similar issue when installing Linux Mint on a separate HDD to Windows SSD. OS Prober in LMDE 7 came back with nothing.
I used rEFInd to solve the issue and I also created an entry in GRUB for "Windows Boot Manager" which will only work if Windows Boot Manager is enabled in the BIOS (and also suspect that will need EFI present for Windows).
Just posting this if someone having issues with EFI on both OS's.
rEFInd picks up the OS's usually but not sure in your case.
Welcome to the forum. I have edited your post to change 'nono' to 'nano' for you.
(I'm not sure new users can edit posts, but I can)
I hope that edit may avoid further comments on that simple typo.
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