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Overview

rEFInd is a UEFI boot manager that provides a graphical interface for selecting operating systems and boot options. This guide covers installation and configuration specific to Arch Linux.

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Installation

Install rEFInd from the official Arch repositories: 
sudo pacman -S refind
Install rEFInd to your ESP (EFI System Partition): 
refind-install
This will modify your EFI boot configuration. Ensure you have a backup boot method available before proceeding.

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Configuration

The main configuration file is located at /boot/efi/EFI/refind/refind.conf.

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Key Settings

Timeout Configuration Set the boot menu timeout (in seconds): 
timeout 20
  • 0 = disable automatic booting
  • -1 = immediate boot unless a key is pressed
NVRAM Usage Control whether rEFInd stores variables in NVRAM or on disk: 
use_nvram false
Setting this to false reduces NVRAM wear and is recommended for systems with buggy EFI or worn NVRAM.

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Scanning Configuration

Kernel Detection rEFInd automatically scans for Linux kernels with EFI stub support: 
# Scan for kernels without .efi extensions
#scan_all_linux_kernels true

# Combine multiple kernels in the same directory
#fold_linux_kernels true
Volume and File Exclusions Exclude specific volumes or files from scanning: 
#dont_scan_volumes "Recovery HD"
#dont_scan_dirs ESP:/EFI/boot,EFI/Dell,EFI/memtest86
#dont_scan_files shim.efi,MokManager.efi

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Manual Boot Entries

For Arch Linux, you can create a manual boot entry: 
menuentry "Arch Linux" {
    icon     /EFI/refind/icons/os_arch.png
    volume   "Arch Linux"
    loader   /boot/vmlinuz-linux
    initrd   /boot/initramfs-linux.img
    options  "root=PARTUUID=YOUR-PARTUUID-HERE rw add_efi_memmap"
    submenuentry "Boot using fallback initramfs" {
        initrd /boot/initramfs-linux-fallback.img
    }
    submenuentry "Boot to terminal" {
        add_options "systemd.unit=multi-user.target"
    }
}
Replace YOUR-PARTUUID-HERE with your actual partition UUID. Find it using:
blkid /dev/sdXY

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Tools Configuration

Configure which tools appear in the boot menu: 
#showtools shell, bootorder, gdisk, memtest, mok_tool, about, reboot, firmware
Available tools:
  • shell - EFI shell
  • memtest - Memory testing utility
  • gdisk - Partitioning tool
  • mok_tool - Machine Owner Key management
  • firmware - Reboot into firmware settings
  • shutdown / reboot - Power options

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Custom Themes

Install a custom rEFInd theme: 
git clone https://gitlab.com/joaopedroaa/pers-rEFInd.git refind-theme
sudo cp -r refind-theme /boot/efi/EFI/refind/
Include the theme in refind.conf: 
include refind-theme/theme.conf

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Visual Customization

Banner and Icons 
#banner hostname.bmp
#icons_dir myicons
#icons_dir icons/snowy
Screen Resolution 
#resolution 1024 768
#resolution 1440 900
#resolution max
Icon Sizes 
#small_icon_size 96
#big_icon_size 256

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Graphics Mode

Control which operating systems boot in graphics mode vs text mode: 
#use_graphics_for osx,linux
Valid options: osx, linux, elilo, grub, windows

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Troubleshooting

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rEFInd Not Appearing

Check your UEFI boot order: 
efibootmgr -v
Manually set rEFInd as the default: 
sudo efibootmgr -o 0000,0001  # Adjust boot order numbers as needed

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Logging

Enable logging for troubleshooting: 
log_level 1
Logs are written to refind.log in the rEFInd directory on the ESP.
Leave log_level at 0 during normal operation. Higher values increase boot time and wear on the ESP.

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File Location

Configuration file: /boot/efi/EFI/refind/refind.conf

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Additional Resources

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