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How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader?


71

How do I set the bootloader so that in my dualboot with Windows 7/Ubuntu 11.04, Windows start up as
standard instead of Ubuntu?
grub2

45

share improve this question

Linked
7

Set older kernel as default


grub entry

How do I edit GRUB menu

GRUB and making windows


the default OS

How to make Windows boot


first?

Dual Boot Default Question


(W7 & Ubuntu)

How to make Windows the


default OS in grub menu?

How can I make Windows


boot first and Ubuntu
second?

Boot which ever operating system you booted last time, the "saved method"

This is the on I use. It lets me decide which one I going to use and will allow me to reboot into that
system, handy when I'm updating.

can i use windows boot


manager to boot into ubuntu
11.10

How to set Windows the


default OS on dual boot
system?

How do I change the the


boot default from Ubuntu to
Windows?

edited Dec 24 '13 at 23:23


Braiam
1

asked Jul 13 '11 at 17:13


Rasmus Peter Mathiesen
392
1
5
9

add comment

16 Answers

ACTIVE

OLDEST

VOTES

There are two ways of doing this using editing a grub file.

58

asked 2 years ago


viewed 148952 times
active 3 months ago

These are described in the Ubuntu Communuity Documentation Grub2 page


The two ways are

Boot a specific operating system by default, your exact question


To start we need to find out what we are booting, open a terminal (dash, type terminal, ) and type in
grep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
user@YourComputer:~$ grep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.35-31-generic' --class ubuntu --class gnu-linux
--class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.35-31-generic (recovery mode)' --class ubuntu -class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.35-30-generic' --class ubuntu --class gnu-linux
--class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.35-30-generic (recovery mode)' --class ubuntu -class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+)" {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)" {
menuentry "Windows NT/2000/XP (loader) (on /dev/sda1)" {
menuentry "Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.32-34-generic (on /dev/sdb1)" {
menuentry "Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.32-34-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sdb1)" {
menuentry "Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.32-33-generic (on /dev/sdb1)" {
menuentry "Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.32-33-generic (recovery mode) (on /dev/sdb1)" {
menuentry "Windows Vista (loader) (on /dev/sdc1)" {
From mine you can see why I prefer the "saved" method.

see more linked questions

Related
0

GRUB doesn't boot-up


Windows as default even
though I modified it using
Start-up manager

How do I set windows to


boot as default in the boot
loader? Unable to locate
theme engine?

How to change default boot


with two Ubuntus?

How to Load ubuntu with


windows 8 boot loader

recovering linux boot loader


after reinstalling windows

How to set Windows the


default OS on dual boot
system?

Must go through Windows


Boot Loader to get to Grub

Boot Loader doesn't offer


windows 7?

Making Windows Boot Loader


the default instead of Grub 2

How to set GRUB default, not

Now you are ready to edit the grub file


Type in the terminal sudo nano -B /etc/default/grub and your password if asked
user@YourComputer:~$ sudo nano -B /etc/default/grub
and the nano editor will open, thus (for mine)...
# If you change this file, run 'update-grub' afterwards to update

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

# /boot/grub/grub.cfg.
GRUB_DEFAULT=saved
#GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_HIDDEN_TIMEOUT_QUIET=true
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`lsb_release -i -s 2> /dev/null || echo Debian`
#GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="delayacct"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""
# Uncomment to enable BadRAM filtering, modify to suit your needs
# This works with Linux (no patch required) and with any kernel that obtains
# the memory map information from GRUB (GNU Mach, kernel of FreeBSD ...)
#GRUB_BADRAM="0x01234567,0xfefefefe,0x89abcdef,0xefefefef"
# Uncomment to disable graphical terminal (grub-pc only)
#GRUB_TERMINAL=console
# The resolution used on graphical terminal
# note that you can use only modes which your graphic card supports via VBE
# you can see them in real GRUB with the command `vbeinfo'
#GRUB_GFXMODE=640x480
GRUB_GFXMODE=1280x800
GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=1280x800x8
# Uncomment if you don't want GRUB to pass "root=UUID=xxx" parameter to Linux
#GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_UUID=true
# Uncomment to disable generation of recovery mode menu entries
#GRUB_DISABLE_LINUX_RECOVERY="true"
# Uncomment to get a beep at grub start
In my preferred way, I made these changes from the standard grub file:
I changed the value of GRUB_DEFAULT to "saved"

Windows Boot Manager

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GRUB_SAVEDEFAULT=true

Almost Equilaterial Heronian


Triangles

GRUB_DEFAULT=saved

In the way you are asking far to this


Change the value of GRUB_DEFAULT to the name of the Windows system you want to always boot.
This will be found in the previous grep output prior. For my system if I wanted to only allways
boot my Window XP, I set GRUB_DEFAULT to "Windows NT/2000/XP (loader) (on /dev/sda1)",
everything between the "'s.
GRUB_DEFAULT="Windows NT/2000/XP (loader) (on /dev/sda1)"
You could set GRUB_DEFAULT to the line number in the menu entry list (with 0 being the first), but when
the kernel in Ubuntu is updated grub adds the new kernel to the top of the list, you would have to
change the number, since Windows is the last one in the menu entry list. You can see this in my menu
entry list.
Important last step
Now you have to run update-grub to update the system generated grub.cfg file in the /boot/grub
directory.
Type into your computer sudo update-grub and your password if asked
user@YourComputer:~$ sudo update-grub
Generating grub.cfg ...
Found background: /usr/share/images/grub/Apollo_17_The_Last_Moon_Shot_Edit1.tga
Found linux image: /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.35-31-generic
Found initrd image: /boot/initrd.img-2.6.35-31-generic
Found linux image: /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.35-30-generic
Found initrd image: /boot/initrd.img-2.6.35-30-generic
Found memtest86+ image: /boot/memtest86+.bin
Found Windows NT/2000/XP (loader) on /dev/sda1
Found Ubuntu 10.04.3 LTS (10.04) on /dev/sdb1
Found Windows Vista (loader) on /dev/sdc1
done
Notes on nano

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

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grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

nano is especally easy to use in the terminal. Move around with the arrow keys. Type in you addtions,
delete the unwanted.
The " -B" (or " --backup") option backs up the previous version of it to the current filename suffixed with
a ~. Very handy in case of the dreaded Fat pfinger effect .
When you are though, Crtl-O will allow you to save your edits by hitting Enter. Closing nano without
saving, Ctrl-X These and other options are shown at the bottom of the terminal screen with the ^
indicating Ctrl
^G Get Help
Pos
^X Exit
Spell

^O WriteOut

^R Read File

^Y Prev Page

^K Cut Text

^C Cur

^J Justify

^W Where Is

^V Next Page

^U UnCut Text

^T To

Notes about nano, sudoeditor, and other editors.


Some in the Ubuntu community suggest sudoedit instead of nano. I recommend nano (which is the
default sudoedit editor in later distributions of Ubuntu) instead of sudoedit because the default can be
overridden in non-obvious ways (unless you are an administrator). sudoedit is safer in that it
automatically saves a backup copy of the edited file, but the " -B " command line option in nano does
the same thing. nano is safer than other editors like vi or emacs because it doesn't have scary shell
escapes.
If you prefer not to use the nano editor and prefer the Gnome Text Editor, instead of sudo nano -B use
gksu gedit. I generally do this for large files, and /etc/default/grub could easily be considered a
large file. Thus type in gksu gedit /etc/default/grub instead of sudo nano -B /etc/default/grub.
Note that the Gnome text editor does not automatically make a backup!
Notes on my grub file
I made some changes to grub for my personal needs. Such as the background picture of the moon
launch. How to do these are discussed at the Ubuntu Community Documentation page on Grub2,
recommended.
Good luck!
share improve this answer

edited Nov 28 '11 at 20:39

answered Nov 26 '11 at 18:53


keepitsimpleengineer
2,026
17
45

This incredibly complex, but excellently written answer makes a mockery of your username, sir. Well done!
Scaine Nov 27 '11 at 12:13

1 Keep it simple is based on the Einstein quote: "Things should be as simple as possible, but not too simple."
(The last three words are omitted when some quote this). Thanks for the kudo... keepitsimpleengineer
Nov 28 '11 at 20:24
love it help me a lot , but as i saw , GRUB customizer it much easy :P XD Rani.Shemer Dec 2 '11 at
20:38
This is an absolutely brilliant answer. Thanks so much for providing all that useful context; it's really, really
appreciated. twome Apr 13 '13 at 9:02
add comment

38

With a bit of command line trickery, you can get the default of grub to always be a particular grub entry for example Windows - no matter when a new kernel is installed.
In a terminal type:
fgrep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
This will display all your grub entries - for example

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

Highlight the entry you want to default to - for example Windows 7 in the screen-shot. Right click and
choose copy
Type
gksu gedit /etc/default/grub
Change the entry
GRUB_DEFAULT=0
to
GRUB_DEFAULT="Windows 7 (loader) (on /dev/sda2)"
i.e. paste the entry you want (including the quotes)
Save, then type
sudo update-grub
source
share improve this answer

edited Jul 13 '11 at 21:19

answered Jul 13 '11 at 20:51


fossfreedom
93.1k
15
200
251

add comment

12

You need to edit the /etc/default/grub file to set Windows as your default OS.
First Step. Determine the Windows OS' position in the grub menu. To do this, open a terminal by
pressing Ctrl+Alt+T and type the following:
grep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
This will list the grub menu entries. I'll use my grub menu as an example:
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.38-8-generic' --class ubuntu --class gnu-linux -class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.38-8-generic (recovery mode)' --class ubuntu -class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+)" {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)" {
menuentry "Windows 7 (loader) (on /dev/sda1)" --class windows --class os {
You will then select the Windows partition, in my case "Windows 7 (loader) (on /dev/sda1)" including the
double quotes and copy it.
Second Step. Open the /etc/default/grub file. To do this, type the following on the terminal:
gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub
It will open the /etc/default/grub file with gedit. Look for the GRUB_DEFAULT=0 line and change it's value
from 0 to the selected Windows menu entry by pasting it. .
GRUB_DEFAULT="Windows 7 (loader) (on /dev/sda1)"

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

Alternatively, you can use an integer value specifying the index position of the Windows OS, take note
that index starts counting at 0, so in my example, the Windows OS value would be 4, therefore you can
also set
GRUB_DEFAULT=4
After which, you need to update grub by typing
sudo update-grub
share improve this answer

edited Jul 16 '12 at 14:42


Anwar Shah
19.5k
6
52
107

answered Jul 12 '12 at 11:51


Peachy
3,112
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20
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Use startup manager, which you can start from the dash. There you can use the OS to start with in the
dropdown menu.

share improve this answer

answered Nov 26 '11 at 17:24


dago
1,560
11
17

2 Sorry I just saw that you said that startup manager is not working in the 64bit version. you can try instead
grub customizer Install Grub Customizer in ubuntu Open the terminal and run the following command sudo
add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install grubcustomizer Once you install you can open from Applications -> System Toiols -> Grub Customize dago
Nov 26 '11 at 17:50
add comment

You can follow this nitstorm answer here ,

You will have to add Grub-customizer through


sudo add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install grub-customizer
Then launch it from dash , application lens.

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

the above menu will be different to yours, so choose wisely and select the Windows 7 entry and from the
top Menu bar , select the ^ arrow to move it upward to have the top position , while booting.
For booting into Windows directly select the preference and reduce the boot-time to load windows.

share improve this answer

edited Jul 12 '12 at 6:54

answered Jul 12 '12 at 6:31


tijybba
7,441
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Change the value of GRUB_DEFAULT in /etc/default/grub to whatever windows is on grubs list of


available operating systems when you boot. For example in my case I would have to change that line
from
GRUB_DEFAULT=0
to
GRUB_DEFAULT=5
After that, run sudo update-grub .
share improve this answer

edited Nov 28 '11 at 8:40

answered Nov 26 '11 at 16:52


imbaer
1,564
1
11
22

1 This method needs to be modified to always correctly identify the correct menu entry (for windows). This
method will only work in the simplest setup, and may NOT survive a kernel update or other changes. See:
ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1195275 david6 Nov 27 '11 at 5:52

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

1 Today only the newest kernel has 2 entries (recovery and normal boot), all other kernel's are grouped in
"other kernels" (or something similar, I don't recall the name). So I have to disagree, it survives kernel
updates. imbaer Nov 27 '11 at 10:40
I added the comment because your example used =6 david6 Nov 27 '11 at 20:35
That's right, it should be =5. imbaer Nov 28 '11 at 8:40
add comment

It can be done easily with a GUI tool called "Grub Customizer".

What is Grub Customizer?


Grub Customizer is a graphical interface to configure the grub2. The application allows the user to add,
remove, freeze, rename and reorder boot menu items
How to install?
Hit

Alt

Ctrl

to open terminal and run following commands one by one:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer


sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install grub-customizer
How to use?
Once installed, Hit Super key (Windows key) to open Unity dash and search for "" and open it.
Select the Linux group by clicking on Linux and move it down by clicking on down arrow in toolbar.
Once done, Click on save. That's it!

Remember that you can't move single entries out of their respective group like Ubuntu can't be moved
out of Linux group.
share improve this answer

answered May 17 '12 at 4:05


Basharat Sial
9,258
4
26
48

Nice, didn't know there was a GUI for GRUB2 configuration. +1 on this one ;) ruffEdgz May 17 '12 at
13:43
add comment

Grub-Customizer:

Is a very easy to use graphical GRUB2 settings manager. For now, it only allows you to edit the GRUB2

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

menu entries: reorder, rename or add/remove entries. It will also allow changes to background image and
menu timeout. Since these are actually scripts which generate the boot.cfg file, Grub Customizer changes
the actual script order and then generates a new boot.cfg so if you then run "sudo update-grub", your
customization won't be overwritten.
share improve this answer

answered Jul 13 '11 at 23:21


13east
1,342
7
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Identify the name of the Windows entry


On the GRUB, there should be an entry like Windows 7 (loader) (/dev/sda1) . We need to know
what's that name on your machine, so open a Terminal and run the following command:
$ fgrep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
The output should be something like this:
if [ x"${feature_menuentry_id}" = xy ]; then
menuentry_id_option="--id"
menuentry_id_option=""
export menuentry_id_option
menuentry 'Linux Mint 14 Cinnamon 64-bit, 3.5.0-17-generic (/dev/sda6)' --class
linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Linux Mint 14 Cinnamon 64-bit, 3.5.0-17-generic (/dev/sda6) -- recovery
mode' --class linuxmint --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+)" {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)" {
menuentry 'Windows 8 (loader) (en /dev/sda1)' --class windows --class os
$menuentry_id_option 'osprober-chain-06B66EA8B66E97C7' {
menuentry 'Microsoft Windows XP Embedded (en /dev/sda4)' --class windows --class os
$menuentry_id_option 'osprober-chain-7246B3A846B36C0B' {
Look at the line we were talking about! In my machine, it is Windows 8 (loader) (en /dev/sda1) .
Write the name of your entry somewhere, and now let's set is as the default.

Setting the Windows entry as the default


That's easy!
First, open our configuration file with gedit (a text editor) as root, running this command:
$ gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub
Search for this line:
GRUB_DEFAULT=0
And modify the 0 with the name of your Windows entry. In my computer:
GRUB_DEFAULT=Windows 8 (loader) (en /dev/sda1)
Now just save the file, close gedit, and update grub.

Updating GRUB
Just run this command:
$ sudo update-grub
Now just restart, and the Windows entry should be highlighted as the default!
share improve this answer

answered Jan 26 '13 at 19:34


Addison Montgomery
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From my experience, I noticed that it's not so easy to change boot priority for Win7/Ubuntu 11.04. Utility,
like Startup Manager seems like isctrying to change the default boot system, yet nothing happens after
restart (11.04 continue to boot by default). I such case I suggest Grub Customiser Grub Customised on
WebUpd8, which works well with Grub2. I just removed all absolete boot options (there are many),
leaving only 11.04 and Win7. And then changed a boot priority. Now, everything works well :)

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

Good luck.
share improve this answer

answered Jul 13 '11 at 20:06


Vincenzo
1,518
2
12
33

I have used Startup Manager on my parents' desktop dual-booting Windows XP and Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, and
aside from the fact that you have to re-run it every time you upgrade to a new kernel, it has worked nicely.
WarriorIng64 Jul 14 '11 at 18:54
Hi ! I suppose it's a matter of how Grub2 treat new kernel installs. It does not take in account new grub2
menu inserts :) Vincenzo Jul 16 '11 at 8:28
add comment

This is actually quite easy to do. First, you need to find out what Grub names your Windows entry. You
can do that by looking in /boot/grub/grub.cfg or by running this command:
sudo cat /boot/grub/grub.cfg | grep -i Windows | sed -e 's/^.* "//g' -e 's/".*$//g'
What that command does is search for Windows in /boot/grub/grub.cfg and remove the text
outside of the " characters.
The command will output something like Microsoft Windows XP Professional (on /dev/sdb2) .
Now, open /etc/default/grub by running:
gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub
and change:
GRUB_DEFAULT=0
to
GRUB_DEFAULT="Name of your Windows menu entry"
Lastly, run:
sudo update-grub
to regenerate the Grub menu. And that's it! Future upgrades won't mess this up. Your Windows menu
entry will always be selected by default.
share improve this answer

answered Jul 13 '11 at 20:54


Xiao-Long Chen
2,208
1
9
18

add comment

edit the file /etc/grub/default

there you find the entry


GRUB_DEFAULT=0
when you first start your computer and get the grub menu the first entry in your boot menu is 0 so if the
second entry in your boot menu is Windows change this digit to 1
save, quit, run the: update-grub command and reboot to behold your new changes!
share improve this answer

answered May 16 '12 at 20:08


tomodachi
2,750
8
26

@ Daniel Guzman You seem new to Linux/Ubuntu.(judging from your choice of keeping windows the default
OS.I am sorry if i am wrong) So when you carry out the above procedure,be careful and take care that you
do not mess up with anything other than what is written.You might get into trouble. :) Nirmik May 16 '12
at 20:12
I could be wrong but didn't 11.10 use grub2 and isn't the /etc/grub/default more of an older grub1
change? Just wondering. ruffEdgz May 16 '12 at 21:29
11.10 uses grub2, my examples are from 12.04. But it's the same tomodachi May 20 '12 at 13:22

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

add comment

You don't need to install the grub-customizer!!!

i do not know what ubuntu you have installed, so I am not sure that your OS is using grub2 or the old
grub, but it is more likely that you have grub2.
So, this is what you have to do for grub2:
grep menuentry /boot/grub/grub.cfg
This command gives you an output saying what startup possibilities / OSes you have.
this is a sample output:
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.38-8-generic' --class ubuntu --class gnu-linux -class gnu --class os {
menuentry 'Ubuntu, with Linux 2.6.38-8-generic (recovery mode)' --class ubuntu -class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+)" {
menuentry "Memory test (memtest86+, serial console 115200)" {
menuentry "Windows 7 (loader) (on /dev/sda1)" --class windows --class os {
As you may can observe, Windows 7 is on the 5th line of the output.
Next, you open the /etc/default/grub file with your text editor and sudo priviledges and modify the
GRUB_DEFAULT value to (the number of the line where you have Windows 7 minus one, because the
grub option index starts from 0)
So, if windows 7 is on the 5th line, you need GRUB_DEFAULT=4
if windows 7 is on the 7th line, you need GRUB_DEFAULT=6
To save the changes, type sudo update-grub . AND this is everything.
share improve this answer

edited Apr 7 '13 at 21:37

answered Apr 6 '13 at 23:54


fromnaboo
408
3
7

add comment

Next time you boot your machine, count in shich position Windows 7 is placed in GRUB menu. (remember
you have to count from 0 - i.e. if Windows is in the third row, then its position is 2 and so on). Boot into
ubuntu, open a terminal and write
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
then modify the line
GRUB_DEFAULT="0"
to
GRUB_DEFAULT="N"
where N is the position (starting from 0) of Windows7 entry in grub menu. Tell me if you need more info
about this.
share improve this answer

answered Jul 13 '11 at 17:37


Juan Sebastian Totero
590
4
12

So if my windows is placed in position 2 then i will write "2" in the command where you wrote "N"?
Rasmus Peter Mathiesen Jul 13 '11 at 17:42
if it's in the second row, then you have to put 1 (the first row is numbered 0) Juan Sebastian Totero Jul
13 '11 at 17:47
thus the formula for "N" is: <line its on in human numbering> - 1 Thomas W. Jul 13 '11 at 17:53

http://askubuntu.com/questions/52963/how-do-i-set-windows-to-boot-as-the-default-in-the-boot-loader[21/4/2014 8:58:25 ]

grub2 - How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? - Ask Ubuntu

1 Right right, thats what i ment ;) Rasmus Peter Mathiesen Jul 13 '11 at 17:54
1 Actually it doesn't, because when upgrading warns you the file it's installing has changed, and prompts you
if you want to change it, modify it or install a new one. Never had problems upgrading.
Juan Sebastian Totero Jul 14 '11 at 9:53
show 1 more comment

I use grub customizer to do that. You can have it automatically boot into a certain OS every time or just
boot into whichever OS was booted last. It is easy to install and use.
In ubuntu, open your package manager; under settings you should find "Configure Software Sources."
Click on that and enter your password. Now click on the second tab entitled "Other Software" and press
the add button toward the bottom. Enter in the PPA for grub customizer :
ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer
Click OK and a couple of new lines will show up; close the Software Sources dialog now and push the
check for updates button on your package manager if it didn't already start to update the available
packages. Type into the search function : "grub-cus" and you will see the grub customizer at the top of
the list. Mark it for installation then click apply to start the process. Agree to install any dependencies so
they get installed automatically as well.
After installation, you can find grub-customizer by typing "grub" into the search dialog or you can also
find it in the menu under Applications>Settings>Grub-Customizer.
Alternately you could just open a terminal and run the following commands:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install grub-customizer
You may want to pick out a pretty picture to use as background to your grub boot menu.
Here are some links if you want to learn more before starting:
Launchpad PPA for Grub Customizer
Guide on How to Geek with walk through and pictures
share improve this answer

answered Jan 26 '13 at 20:07


starrysky
52
1
1
8

add comment

-1

Normally when I have to "mess up" the Grub I use "Grub Customizer", it has a GUI so you can see easily
what you are changing. Just type this into the terminal:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install grub-customizer
Then search in the Dash for grub customizer and change the predefined entry to Windows.
share improve this answer

edited Apr 6 '13 at 23:35


Seth
11.3k
14
44

82

answered Apr 6 '13 at 22:52


s0ldier
1

I haven't used this, but I think this should be merged in to the other question as an answer if this closes.
hbdgaf Apr 6 '13 at 22:57
it is not necesarry to install software for changing the grub order. you can do it also with grub-customizer,
but it is more difficult than by command line, i think fromnaboo Apr 6 '13 at 23:56
add comment

protected by Community Sep 22 '13 at 22:17


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12.04 - How do I edit GRUB menu - Ask Ubuntu


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How do I edit GRUB menu [duplicate]


6

asked 1 year ago


viewed 72568 times
active 1 year ago

This question already has an answer here:


How do I set Windows to boot as the default in the boot loader? 16 answers
I have a dual boot on my computer of Windows 7 and Xubuntu 12.10. The Linux boot is 1st and the
Windows 2nd. I would like to reverse the boot order in the GRUB menu. I need to know the steps to go
about editing GRUB.I do most of my work on Windows and need it to be 1st so I can boot up and not
watch it.
12.04

12.10

grub2

dual-boot

share improve this question

Linked
71

How do I set Windows to


boot as the default in the
boot loader?

After installation of Ubuntu


alongside windows 7 boot
menu shows Ubuntu, memory
tester, Windows 7 how can I
edit it?

Windows 7 is not shown in


GRUB menu after 13.04 install

windows-7

edited Mar 7 '13 at 8:25


BuZZ-dEE
3,478
8

27

asked Mar 7 '13 at 7:58


49

user138310
31
1
1

add comment

Related

marked as duplicate by vasa1, hhlp, con-f-use, Stephen Myall, Chris Wilson Mar 7 '13
at 13:09
This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address
your question, please ask a new question.

2 Answers

ACTIVE

OLDEST

VOTES

Windows 7 and Ubuntu 12.04


Dual boot, Grub not showing!

Selecting Windows in grub


redirects to bootmgr

Dual Boot - No GRUB

Grub menu editing help

Grub menu doesn't appear on


HP Z220 Workstation

Dual boot Win7/Ubuntu GRUB menu flashes; cannot


select

Dual-boot computer runs


Windows Boot Manager
followed by grub menu: how
to change to just grub?

How to prevent GRUB from


appearing after selecting
Ubuntu from Windows' Dual
Boot menu?

How to re-enable GRUB when


installed Ubuntu system won't
boot?

Not getting into Grub


anymore after running BootRepair

I dont know if you can change the order of the menu in an easy way, but you can set the default entry.

in terminal
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
I dont know what your grub menu looks like but lets say:

Ubuntu
Memory test
Windows 7

in this case if you want windows 7 to boot by default you replace GRUB_DEFAULT=0 with
GRUB_DEFAULT=2
save file and in terminal:

Draw the shadows of buildings


What should I buy to get in a
D&D crowd?

sudo update-grub

Why are laptop screens sized


the way they are?

reboot
share improve this answer

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answered Mar 7 '13 at 8:11


Kempe
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What to do when a player


dislikes his character, that is
vital for the story?
How do I practice harmonizing
in singing?

should be gksu gedit endolith Mar 11 at 0:36

http://askubuntu.com/questions/265010/how-do-i-edit-grub-menu[21/4/2014 8:59:41 ]

12.04 - How do I edit GRUB menu - Ask Ubuntu

more hot questions


also 13.10 doesn't have etc/default/grub? endolith Mar 11 at 1:15
add comment

The menu entry of "Windows 7" in /boot/grub/grub.cfg may look like this:

...
menuentry "Windows 7 (/dev/sda1)" { #it's depend on your config
...
You can also write GRUB_DEFAULT="Windows 7 (/dev/sda1)" to /etc/default/grub to avoid the
order problem in grub.cfg .
share improve this answer

edited Mar 7 '13 at 9:03


BuZZ-dEE
3,478
8
27

49

answered Mar 7 '13 at 8:43


Oling Cat
51
1

Just what I was looking for today! Thanks a lot bro :) Spirit Dec 7 '13 at 13:34
add comment

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windows-7 or ask your own question.

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