x86 Boot Architecture

The open source GNU GRand Unified Bootloader (GRUB) is implemented on x86 based systems that are running the Solaris Operating System. GRUB is the boot loader that is responsible for loading a boot archive into a system's memory. The boot archive contains the kernel modules and configuration files that are required to boot the system.

The GRUB main menu is based on the /boot/grub/menu.lst configuration file. For more information on GRUB, see Chapter 11, Modifying Solaris Boot Behavior (Tasks), in System Administration Guide: Basic Administration and grub(5).

Whether to run Solaris as a virtualized control domain or as a standalone operating system is a boot-time decision. To run the Solaris operating system as a standalone system, continue to use the same GRUB menu entries that you use currently.

In the Solaris xVM entry for booting Solaris as a control domain with the hypervisor, the kernel$ line refers to the hypervisor, and there are two module$ lines. The first module$ line must list the path to unix twice, with any arguments. The second module$ line lists the path to the boot archive.

In some situations, the GRUB menu.lst file might not reside in /boot/grub. To determine the location of the active GRUB menu.lst file, use the bootadm command with the list-menu subcommand.

For more information on the GNU GRand Unified Bootloader (GRUB) boot menu and its components, see System Administration Guide: Basic Administration.