Benefit of installing NeoGrub vs using what's already there?

R

RonCam

Active Member
I have two questions about NeoGrub and can't find the answers on the Wiki -- but if I missed it, links will be fine. I see there's an option to install it from inside EasyBCD, but since my inclination is to ask, before checking 'all the boxes' I thought this is the best place.

1) Here is a quote from the LinuxMint forum on a problem with using a partition boot record in combination with GRUB2:
... running Grub in a PBR is not recommended by the grub designers. It is unreliable because the ext4 filesystem (unlike NTFS) does not provide enough space for a full grub. The concise grub it uses cannot read ext4 and so uses a fixed sector address to find it's core.img file that is in the /boot/grub partition. Over time, certain filesystem operations can cause the sector address of core.img to change and this will break grub and you won't be able to boot Mint.
Click to expand...

Is this problem resolved if we elect to install NeoGrub? Or, is it resolved in some other way, or does it remain unresolved (comments will be helpful and welcome)? And, if we do, am I correct in guessing that it completely substitutes for GRUB2, rather than working alongside it?

2) If I recall correctly (in version 2 stable -- don't know about the 'betas') installing NeoGrub is an option to be selected, and not something that happens automatically. For EasyBCD to run reliably and correctly, is it recommended that NeoGrub be installed -- or, should it make no difference?
 
EasyBCD can either connect the Windows boot loader to an existing GRUB installation, or if you did not install GRUB with your Linux, you can install and configure NeoGrub.

If you add a Linux entry as GRUB2 in EasyBCD, it automatically uses NeoGrub (invisibly, behind the scenes) to fix the issue with GRUB2 being unable to locate its core.img
 
Thanks! Just to make sure I understand:
Computer Guru said:
... If you add a Linux entry as GRUB2 in EasyBCD, it automatically uses NeoGrub (invisibly, behind the scenes) to fix the issue with GRUB2 being unable to locate its core.img
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So, does that mean EasyBCD/neogrub can't do anything to prevent core.img from getting lost, as in the example given, but if/when this does happen, it's easily repaired by deleting and then replacing the menu entry, using EasyBCD?

RonCam said:
... 2) If I recall correctly (in version 2 stable -- don't know about the 'betas') installing NeoGrub is an option to be selected, and not something that happens automatically. For EasyBCD to run reliably and correctly, is it recommended that NeoGrub be installed -- or, should it make no difference?
Click to expand...
It makes no difference, because it will automatically be used if grub2 exists and needs to be repaired.

Any clarification will be appreciated, if I'm 'off the mark'. :|
 
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No, as long as you are using the entry created by EasyBCD to load GRUB2, core.img will never be lost.
 
:joy:Great!
Then, it's back to the drawing board, to get EasyBCD to create a working menu entry, if at all possible. I was about to do it the 'old fashioned' way but you've given me a valid reason it'll be worthwhile to trouble-shoot the present problem, having created a non-functional LinuxMint entry on the boot menu.
 
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