= syslinux-cli(1) =
:doctype: manpage
:revdate: 2012-11-10
:author: H. Peter Anvin
:author-email: [email protected]
:editor1: Gene Cumm
:editor1-email: [email protected]
:editor1-revlast: 2012-11-10
:data-uri:
== NAME ==
syslinux-cli - *Syslinux* boot prompt/command line interface
== DESCRIPTION ==
*Syslinux*'s boot prompt provides a very simplistic command line
interface for loading modules and booting kernels.
== BOOT PROMPT ==
=== COMMAND LINE KEYSTROKES ===
The command line prompt supports the following keystrokes:
<Enter> boot specified command line
<BackSpace> erase one character
<Ctrl-U> erase the whole line
<Ctrl-V> display the current Syslinux version
<Ctrl-W> erase one word
<Ctrl-X> force text mode
<Tab> list matching labels
<F1>..<F12> help screens (if configured)
<Ctrl-F><digit> equivalent to F1..F10
<Ctrl-C> interrupt boot in progress
<Esc> interrupt boot in progress
<Ctrl-N> display network information (PXELINUX only; 3.50-4.06)
=== WORKING DIRECTORY ===
At start, the initial working directory for *SYSLINUX*/*ISOLINUX* will
be the directory containing the initial configuration file. If no
configuration file is found, *SYSLINUX* should default to the
install-time working directory, however this is a known issue with some
versions including 4.06.
At start, the initial working directory for *PXELINUX* will be the
parent directory of pxelinux.0 unless overridden with DHCP option 210.
If no configuration file is found, *PXELINUX* will start a timer to
reboot the system in an attempt to restart the boot process and resolve
a possible transient issue.
=== ALTERNATE FILENAMES ===
For kernel-like file names given on the command line, *Syslinux* will
attempt to append file name extensions to the specified file name when
the file is not found in the following order: .0[*PXELINUX* only],
.bin[*ISOLINUX* only], .bs[*SYSLINUX* only], .bss[*SYSLINUX* only],
.c32, .cbt[Up to 4.06], .com[Up to 4.06] and .img[*ISOLINUX* 1.65-4.04 only].
// Is this true of file names specified in a config? As of when?
=== PATH RULES ===
The current working directory is *always* searched first, before PATH,
when attempting to open a filename. The current working directory is
not affected when specifying a file with an absolute path. For
example, given the following file system layout,
....
/boot/
/bin/
ls.c32
libls.c32
/foo/
libls.c32
....
assuming that the current working directory is /boot/foo, and assuming
that libls.c32 is a dependency of ls.c32, executing /boot/bin/ls.c32
will cause /boot/foo/libls.c32 to be loaded, not /boot/bin/libls.c32,
even if /boot/bin is specified in the PATH directive of a config file.
The reason that things work this way is that typically a user will
install all library files in the Syslinux installation directory, as
specified with the --directory installer option. This method allows
the user to omit the PATH directive from their config file and still
have things work correctly.
== AUTHOR ==
This AsciiDoc derived document is a modified version of the original
*SYSLINUX* documentation by {author} <{author-email}>. The conversion
to an AsciiDoc was made by {editor1} <{editor1-email}>
