2. Changing your Boot-Up Configuration

Abstract

This tool allows you to configure the bootloader and the boot menu entries.

Figure 19.2. Choosing the Boot Mode

Choosing the Boot Mode

2.1. Configuring the Bootloader

You can choose between two bootloaders: GRUB and LILO. For the latter you can either choose a text or a graphical menu. Either one will allow you to boot Mandrakelinux, it's just a question of taste.

Unless you know what you are doing, you should not change the default Boot device shown, since that is where the bootloader installs itself. The next field allows you to set the time (in seconds) before the bootloader starts the default OS. If more than one OS is installed on your machine, it's a good idea to leave at least 5 seconds so that you can easily select a different menu item, if needed.

[Note]Note

Unless you really know what you are doing, it is not recommended that you change these settings as this may prevent you from booting your machine the next time you try to power it on.

The dialog finally shows a few options which can be useful depending on your specific hardware.

Enable ACPI

Enable this option to allow better power management support if your hardware is ACPI compatible. ACPI is often needed for new laptops which no longer support APM.

Force No APIC

The IO-APIC is only really useful for multi-processor systems. It may cause problems on single processor systems and should be deactivated in that case by checking this box.

Force No Local APIC

The Local APIC can be used by Linux to program interruptions to wake up threads. On multi-processor machines it can be used to send interrupts to another processor.

These relatively new APIC features are known to cause problems on some computers because of badly designed chip sets or poor support in Linux kernel drivers. These problems can cause system freezes or incorrect device detection. So you may need to deactivate them by checking the corresponding box.

2.2. Managing Boot Entries

After clicking Next, the list of entries which will be available at boot time is displayed. You can either Add, Modify or Remove entries.

It is also possible to make an entry the default one by checking the Default check-box in the Modify dialog.

[Warning]Warning

Be careful with what you modify with this tool: you could prevent your system from booting!