Hi all,
I wanted to install a Debian Linux system (with LUKS) on the remaining space
left by a Windows 10 install (with BitLocker and Secure Boot), without messing
with the Windows boot or the main disk (nvme0n1 below) boot sector . As I
needed an unencrypted filesystem to put the Linux kernel+initrd and also the
boot loader, I decided to use a 1 GB pendrive (sda below) for both things
This is how the Debian partition manager looked like (I guess that 'B' means
boot, but I don't know if that implies that GRUB is going to be installed to
the main disk...):
Encrypted volume (nvm0n1p4_crypt) - 104.8 GB Linux device-mapper (crypt)
#1 104.8 GB f ext4 /
/dev/nvme0n1 - 512.1 GB
1.0 MB FREE SPACE
#1 536.9 MB B K ESP EFI system partition
#2 134.2 MB Microsoft reserved partition
#3 406.6 GB Basic data partition
#4 104.9 GB K crypto d10root (nvme0n1p4_crypt)
335.4 KB FREE SPACE
SCSI1 (0,0,0) (sda) - 1.0 GB Mass Storage Device
#1 primary 1.0 GB B F ext4 /boot
Later at the boot loader part, it didn't ask if/where to install GRUB. There
was some message about probing or detecting partitions and at Alt+F4 screen I
saw something like "grub dummy" but I can't remember exactly what the command
was. Then it started installing packages
After completing the installation and rebooting, if the pendrive is not
inserted I see a GRUB screen, which is what I was trying to avoid, and also it
can't boot Windows or Linux ("minimal BASH like line editing is supported"
message). If the pendrive is inserted GRUB works fine.
Linux boots fine but Windows' BitLocker didn't like it and wouldn't boot, it
asked for the BitLocker recovery key, then it "fixed" the boot. After that fix,
and rebooting, both Linux and Windows boot fine.
For the next time, what would be the correct settings to install both GRUB+boot
files on the pendrive and not touching the main disk boot at all, or as an
alternative, install both GRUB+boot files on the main disk and not need the
pendrive to boot? Or even not using GRUB and just using EFI boot manager?
Thanks
