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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/damianiglesias/amnesiaOS/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

AmnesiaOS ships with a GRUB 2.12 configuration embedded in the ISO. The config presents a 5-second menu allowing selection between a standard boot and a verbose debug boot. If no selection is made within the timeout window, GRUB automatically boots the first entry — the normal RAM boot.

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Boot menu entries

The complete config/grub.cfg used in the ISO is shown below: 
set default=0
set timeout=5

menuentry "AmnesiaOS - RAM Boot" {
    linux /boot/vmlinuz init=/init rw console=tty1
    initrd /boot/initramfs.img
}

menuentry "AmnesiaOS - RAM Boot (verbose)" {
    linux /boot/vmlinuz init=/init rw console=tty1 debug
    initrd /boot/initramfs.img
}
Both entries load the same kernel (/boot/vmlinuz) and the same initramfs image (/boot/initramfs.img). The only difference between them is the debug kernel parameter appended to the verbose entry.

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Kernel parameters

ParameterDescription
init=/initTells the kernel to run /init as PID 1 instead of the default /sbin/init
rwMounts the initramfs read-write — required for /init to create files in tmpfs
console=tty1Directs kernel console output to the first virtual terminal
debugVerbose mode only — enables detailed kernel debug messages during boot

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Customizing the config

config/grub.cfg in the repository is the template consumed by build-iso.sh when assembling the ISO image. Edit this file before running the build script to apply your changes. Change the timeout 
set timeout=10
The value is in seconds. Use 0 for an immediate boot with no menu, or -1 to display the menu indefinitely until a manual selection is made. Change the default entry 
set default=1
Entries are zero-indexed, so set default=1 makes the verbose boot the automatic selection. Add a custom entry Append a new menuentry block to the file: 
menuentry "AmnesiaOS - Custom" {
    linux /boot/vmlinuz init=/init rw console=tty1 loglevel=7
    initrd /boot/initramfs.img
}
Any valid kernel parameter can be appended to the linux line. Refer to the kernel documentation for the full list of available parameters.

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BIOS vs UEFI

The ISO is built with grub-mkrescue, which embeds both the BIOS GRUB core image and an EFI application in the same ISO 9660 image. This means the same .iso file boots correctly on legacy BIOS systems as well as modern UEFI systems — no separate images or firmware configuration is required.
Use AmnesiaOS - RAM Boot (verbose) when troubleshooting boot failures. The debug parameter produces detailed kernel messages that help identify driver or hardware issues, including missing firmware blobs, failing device probes, and early initramfs errors.

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