I have been struggling with this issue for months and tried every possible solution but still haven't found a permanent fix. Here’s a complete breakdown of my problem and what I’ve tried:
System Info:
System: Dell Inspiron 3493 (Intel Core i5-1035G1, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD + 256GB NVMe SSD)
OS: Ubuntu 24.04
Issue:
- I regularly end up at the
grub>minimal bash prompt when booting. - When I type
exit, the system boots up correctly, and after that, there is no issue until I restart my laptop. This doesn’t happen after every restart, but within a period of 1–2 days, the issue comes back. When I typeexitat thegrub>prompt, it boots up, and this problem continues in a cycle. - By default, after installing Ubuntu 24, the system always defaults to
shimx64.efias the boot entry. Even if I manually change it to usegrubx64.efi, after a few reboots or when thegrub>prompt appears, it reverts back toshimx64.efi.
I have already checked that Secure Boot is disabled, and SATA mode is set to AHCI.
There is no issue with my ISO — I downloaded it from the official Ubuntu website and verified the checksum.
During installation, I didn’t manually create root or EFI partitions — I just selected the drive, and Ubuntu handled everything.
I chose the option to completely format and install Ubuntu.
There is no other OS installed on this laptop.
I have tried:
- Multiple fresh installations of Ubuntu 24, Ubuntu 22, and Linux Mint, with Secure Boot disabled.
- Verified no interference from additional drives (I removed the HDD before installation).
- Manually changed EFI boot entries to point to
grubx64.efiusingefibootmgr. - Created custom boot entries pointing directly to
grubx64.efi. - Used different USB creation tools (including Ventoy with Secure Boot support disabled).
- After every reinstall, even if I manually select
grubx64.efias the default, eventually it defaults back toshimx64.efiand thegrub>prompt issue reappears. - I tried to solve this using the Boot-Repair tool, but that didn't work either.
Here are the pastebin boot reports:
Before repair: https://paste.ubuntu.com/p/qCy8KcXCwq/
After repair: https://paste.ubuntu.com/p/tRRWm5PQqx/
============================= Boot Repair Summary ==============================
modprobe: FATAL: Module efivars not found in directory /lib/modules/6.11.0-19-generic
Recommended repair: ____________________________________________________________
The default repair of the Boot-Repair utility will reinstall the grub-efi of
nvme0n1p2,
using the following options: nvme0n1p1/boot/efi
Additional repair will be performed: unhide-bootmenu-10s use-standard-efi-file
/boot/efi added in nvme0n1p2/fstab
Mount /dev/nvme0n1p1 on /boot/efi
Unhide GRUB boot menu in nvme0n1p2/etc/default/grub
=================== Reinstall the grub-efi of /dev/nvme0n1p2 ===================
grub-install --version
grub-install (GRUB) 2.12-1ubuntu7.1
modprobe: FATAL: Module efivars not found in directory /lib/modules/6.11.0-19-generic
modprobe efivars
efibootmgr -v (filtered) before grub install
BootCurrent: 0000
Timeout: 0 seconds
BootOrder: 0001,0000
Boot0000* UEFI IM2P33F3 NVMe ADATA 256GB 2K2529AK29NG 1 PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1d,0x4)/Pci(0x0,0x0)/NVMe(0x1,70-7C-18-00-00-00-00-01)/HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(EFIBootBootX64.efi){auto_created_boot_option}
Boot0001* Ubuntu HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(EFIubuntushimx64.efi)
uname -r
6.11.0-19-generic
grub-install --efi-directory=/boot/efi --target=x86_64-efi
Installing for x86_64-efi platform.
Installation finished. No error reported.
df /dev/nvme0n1p1
mv /boot/efi/EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi /boot/efi/EFI/Boot/bkpbootx64.efi
cp /boot/efi/efi/ubuntu/grubx64.efi /boot/efi/EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi
grub-install --efi-directory=/boot/efi --target=x86_64-efi
Installing for x86_64-efi platform.
Installation finished. No error reported.
efibootmgr -v (filtered) after grub install
BootCurrent: 0000
Timeout: 0 seconds
BootOrder: 0001,0000
Boot0000* UEFI IM2P33F3 NVMe ADATA 256GB 2K2529AK29NG 1 PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1d,0x4)/Pci(0x0,0x0)/NVMe(0x1,70-7C-18-00-00-00-00-01)/HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(EFIBootBootX64.efi){auto_created_boot_option}
Boot0001* Ubuntu HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(EFIubuntushimx64.efi)
Warning: NVram was not modified.
update-grub
Sourcing file `/etc/default/grub'
Found linux image: /boot/vmlinuz-6.11.0-19-generic
Found initrd image: /boot/initrd.img-6.11.0-19-generic
Found memtest86+ 64bit EFI image: /boot/memtest86+x64.efi
Adding boot menu entry for UEFI Firmware Settings ...
Unhide GRUB boot menu in nvme0n1p2/boot/grub/grub.cfg
Boot successfully repaired.
You can now reboot your computer.
Please do not forget to make your UEFI firmware boot on the The OS now in use - Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS entry (nvme0n1p1/efi/ubuntu/grubx64.efi file) !
============================ Boot Info After Repair ============================
=> No boot loader is installed in the MBR of /dev/nvme0n1.
=> No boot loader is installed in the MBR of /dev/sda.
nvme0n1p1: _____________________________________________________________________
File system: vfat
Boot sector type: FAT32
Boot sector info: No errors found in the Boot Parameter Block.
Operating System:
Boot files: /efi/BOOT/bkpbootx64.efi /efi/BOOT/bootx64.efi
/efi/BOOT/fbx64.efi /efi/BOOT/mmx64.efi
/efi/ubuntu/grubx64.efi /efi/ubuntu/mmx64.efi
/efi/ubuntu/shimx64.efi /efi/ubuntu/grub.cfg
nvme0n1p2: _____________________________________________________________________
File system: ext4
Boot sector type: -
Boot sector info:
Operating System: Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS
Boot files: /boot/grub/grub.cfg /etc/fstab /etc/default/grub
sda1: __________________________________________________________________________
File system: ext4
Boot sector type: -
Boot sector info:
Operating System:
Boot files:
================================ 1 OS detected =================================
OS#1 (linux): The OS now in use - Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS on nvme0n1p2
================================ Host/Hardware =================================
CPU architecture: 64-bit
Video: Iris Plus Graphics G1 (Ice Lake) from Intel Corporation
BOOT_IMAGE of the installed session in use:
/boot/vmlinuz-6.11.0-19-generic root=UUID=bc7c3e51-105e-4e19-b18e-e089ec4326c2 ro quiet splash vt.handoff=7
df -Th / : /dev/nvme0n1p2 ext4 233G 13G 209G 6% /
===================================== UEFI =====================================
BIOS/UEFI firmware: 1.30.0(1.30) from Dell Inc.
The firmware is EFI-compatible, and is set in EFI-mode for this installed-session.
SecureBoot disabled (confirmed by mokutil).
BootCurrent: 0000
Timeout: 0 seconds
BootOrder: 0001,0000
Boot0000* UEFI IM2P33F3 NVMe ADATA 256GB 2K2529AK29NG 1 PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1d,0x4)/Pci(0x0,0x0)/NVMe(0x1,70-7C-18-00-00-00-00-01)/HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(\EFI\Boot\BootX64.efi){auto_created_boot_option}
Boot0001* Ubuntu HD(1,GPT,e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e,0x800,0x219800)/File(\EFI\ubuntu\shimx64.efi)
============================= Drive/Partition Info =============================
Disks info: ____________________________________________________________________
nvme0n1 : is-GPT, no-BIOSboot, has---ESP, not-usb, not-mmc, has-os, no-wind, 2048 sectors * 512 bytes
sda : is-GPT, no-BIOSboot, has-noESP, not-usb, not-mmc, no-os, no-wind, 34 sectors * 512 bytes
Partitions info (1/3): _________________________________________________________
nvme0n1p2 : is-os, 64, apt-get, signed grub-efi , grub2, grub-install, grubenv-ok, update-grub, end-after-100GB
nvme0n1p1 : no-os, 64, nopakmgr, no-docgrub, nogrub, nogrubinstall, no-grubenv, noupdategrub, not-far
sda1 : no-os, 64, nopakmgr, no-docgrub, nogrub, nogrubinstall, no-grubenv, noupdategrub, end-after-100GB
Partitions info (2/3): _________________________________________________________
nvme0n1p2 : isnotESP, fstab-has-bad-efi, no-nt, no-winload, no-recov-nor-hid, no-bmgr, notwinboot, ext4
nvme0n1p1 : is---ESP, part-has-no-fstab, no-nt, no-winload, no-recov-nor-hid, no-bmgr, notwinboot, vfat
sda1 : isnotESP, part-has-no-fstab, no-nt, no-winload, no-recov-nor-hid, no-bmgr, notwinboot, ext4
Partitions info (3/3): _________________________________________________________
nvme0n1p2 : not--sepboot, with-boot, fstab-without-boot, not-sep-usr, with--usr, fstab-without-usr, std-grub.d, nvme0n1
nvme0n1p1 : not--sepboot, no---boot, part-has-no-fstab, not-sep-usr, no---usr, part-has-no-fstab, no--grub.d, nvme0n1
sda1 : maybesepboot, no---boot, part-has-no-fstab, not-sep-usr, no---usr, part-has-no-fstab, no--grub.d, sda
fdisk -l (filtered): ___________________________________________________________
Disk sda: 931.51 GiB, 1000204886016 bytes, 1953525168 sectors
Disk identifier: 86A98CE8-8C3E-4A14-8970-EA9AB9915A19
Start End Sectors Size Type
sda1 34 1953523711 1953523678 931.5G Linux filesystem
Disk nvme0n1: 238.47 GiB, 256060514304 bytes, 500118192 sectors
Disk identifier: 0475FCC8-162C-452D-9E58-943D9773776A
Start End Sectors Size Type
nvme0n1p1 2048 2203647 2201600 1G EFI System
nvme0n1p2 2203648 500115455 497911808 237.4G Linux filesystem
parted -lm (filtered): _________________________________________________________
sda:1000GB:scsi:512:4096:gpt:ATA ST1000LM035-1RK1:;
1:17.4kB:1000GB:1000GB:ext4::;
nvme0n1:256GB:nvme:512:512:gpt:IM2P33F3 NVMe ADATA 256GB:;
1:1049kB:1128MB:1127MB:fat32::boot, esp;
2:1128MB:256GB:255GB:ext4::;
blkid (filtered): ______________________________________________________________
NAME FSTYPE UUID PARTUUID LABEL PARTLABEL
sda
└─sda1 ext4 9d52492f-a3c1-4363-a450-9ddeae010695 fceca892-6c4e-4055-a48c-8203049db918 HDD
nvme0n1
├─nvme0n1p1 vfat F3A4-1299 e67e1501-8cbb-48dd-886b-fc5a8fd4248e
└─nvme0n1p2 ext4 bc7c3e51-105e-4e19-b18e-e089ec4326c2 c1940245-54a4-43b7-b9a9-e2b841c39d65
Mount points (filtered): _______________________________________________________
Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/nvme0n1p2 208.4G 5% /
/dev/sda1 869.2G 0% /mnt/boot-sav/sda1
efivarfs 85.5K 76% /sys/firmware/efi/efivars
Mount options (filtered): ______________________________________________________
/dev/nvme0n1p2 ext4 rw,relatime
/dev/sda1 ext4 rw,relatime
=================== nvme0n1p1/efi/ubuntu/grub.cfg (filtered) ===================
search.fs_uuid bc7c3e51-105e-4e19-b18e-e089ec4326c2 root
set prefix=($root)'/boot/grub'
configfile $prefix/grub.cfg
=================== nvme0n1p2/boot/grub/grub.cfg (filtered) ====================
Ubuntu bc7c3e51-105e-4e19-b18e-e089ec4326c2
END /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober
UEFI Firmware Settings uefi-firmware
END /etc/grub.d/30_uefi-firmware
======================== nvme0n1p2/etc/fstab (filtered) ========================
<file system> <mount point> <type> <options> <dump> <pass>
/ was on /dev/nvme0n1p2 during curtin installation
/dev/disk/by-uuid/bc7c3e51-105e-4e19-b18e-e089ec4326c2 / ext4 defaults 0 1
/boot/efi was on /dev/nvme0n1p1 during curtin installation
/swap.img none swap sw 0 0
UUID=F3A4-1299 /boot/efi vfat defaults 0 1
==================== nvme0n1p2/etc/default/grub (filtered) =====================
GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=menu
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""
GRUB_DISABLE_OS_PROBER=false
================= nvme0n1p2: Location of files loaded by Grub ==================
GiB - GB File Fragment(s)
25.266986847 = 27.130220544 boot/grub/grub.cfg 1
13.244743347 = 14.221434880 boot/vmlinuz 1
13.244743347 = 14.221434880 boot/vmlinuz-6.11.0-19-generic 1
13.244743347 = 14.221434880 boot/vmlinuz.old 1
14.919155121 = 16.019320832 boot/initrd.img 1
14.919155121 = 16.019320832 boot/initrd.img-6.11.0-19-generic 1
14.919155121 = 16.019320832 boot/initrd.img.old 1
=================== nvme0n1p2: ls -l /etc/grub.d/ (filtered) ===================
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 18133 Sep 11 2024 10_linux
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 43202 Sep 11 2024 10_linux_zfs
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 14513 Sep 11 2024 20_linux_xen
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 786 Sep 11 2024 25_bli
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 13120 Sep 11 2024 30_os-prober
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 1174 Sep 11 2024 30_uefi-firmware
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 722 Dec 5 21:23 35_fwupd
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 214 Sep 11 2024 40_custom
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 215 Sep 11 2024 41_custom
How can I permanently solve this GRUB issue?
I don’t care if my system uses grubx64.efi or shimx64.efi as the default boot. I just want to use this system without any issues and don't want to go back to Windows.
