Is there a toolbox to create a UEFI iso?

[quirkian2new]

I was wondering how to create a UEFI bootable iso, I have only 3 files vmlinuz, initrd.gz, main_puppy.sfs

Does anyone know if there is a toolbox which has a folder containing all the files to create a UEFI bootable iso.

Imagine it Ideally, :

- the folder contains files such as efi.img bootx64.efi... etc etc (we are lazy and not intend go deep into each details)
- folder also contains a sample grub.cfg file (or something like that) that we can edit according to our need.
- it contains a script, when being clicked, generated a UEFI hybrid bootable iso immediately above the folder
- folder also contains a simple enough txt readme file explaining what need to do
- we just drop our puppy files(vmlinuz, initrd.gz, main_puppy.sfs) into the folder, edit grub.cfg(if needed) and then click

Any thoughts ?

[jamesbond]

If you're asking for bootable flash drive, I have something to tell you. If it's a bootable ISO you're looking for, I'll have to give it a pass.

[quirkian2new]

If it's a bootable ISO you're looking for, I'll have to give it a pass.

James, can you explain a little bit ? Is it a technical issue, a legal issue or ...

[nic007]

All the files you need should be on the original released ISO. The original iso is normally also uploaded to the archive.org website. There you can view the content inside the ISO and download only the files you still need.

If you have a running Puppy you can use one of my remaster scripts to create an ISO later on in the process. When you get to that stage, just add the files you want in the new iso to the folder as directed. See here: http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 61#1056561

[mikeslr]

nic007 is correct. But if you are trying to create an "UEFI" bootable ISO starting with a Puppy ISO which wasn't:

Try Limbomusic's recipe, http://helledussen.com/linux/files/UEFI ... e_usb.html or his recommendation, http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic. ... 227#989227.

Or, Frugalpup 20, http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 85#1005485: Frugalpup creates a bootloader.

But other than Frugalpup I think you'll have to acquire an EFI image. Remember, even if generic, it must be either 32 or 64 bit.

Here's what I did with a Slacko 5.7.1 remaster. The Slacko's ISO only had initrd.gz, vmlinuz, and puppy_xxx_sfs files. I don't have a UEFI computer, so couldn't test. And no one has reported either success or failure:

Downloaded and decompressed, IIRC, the 32-bit Slacko-6.3.2-uefi.iso as --the uefi inclusion in its name suggested --it already had an efi.img and properly written grub.cfg and isolinux.cfg files. I remember opening those cfg files and double-checking that they did not only specify slacko-6.3.2. I don't recall having to make any edits. These were copied to a folder along with the initrd.gz, vmlinuz, and puppy_xxx.sfs. Download a "dir2ISO" pet such as, http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 748#638748, if your Puppy doesn't already have that capability via ISOmaster or others.

[jamesbond]

James, can you explain a little bit ? Is it a technical issue, a legal issue or ...

Nothing like that at all. I happened to play with the creation of bootable BIOS/UEFI flash drives recently, where you can put vmlinuz, initrd, grub.cfg and it just boots, no questions asked. So if that's what you're after I can share it with you.

Making bootable uefi iso is a bit more complicated, mainly because of the variability of the tools involved. There as __so many__ tools that call themselves as "mkisofs", and then each __version__ of every tool has a different capabilities. Some of them supports UEFI in an easy way, some supports it in a hard way, and some doesn't support it __at all__. So it's a big hassle to make a generic tool that works across all Puppies (models, builds, and version).

But here is the gist. If all you want is to make UEFI-only iso, __and__ don't worry about other capabilities (isohybrid, etc), __and__ you have a recent-enough version of mkisofs from the __"cdrtools"__ package (not from "cdrkit" package), then this will do:

Code: Select all

mkisofs -o /path/to/your/output.iso -eltorito-platform efi -b efiboot.img -no-emul-boot /path/to/your/iso_root/

where /path/to/your/iso_root/ is the folder that contains your vmlinuz, initrd, grub.cfg, and also efiboot.img.

That's it, really. Nothing much. The rest is just icing on the cake. Make sure your delete our old output.iso before running the command above to make sure you're creating a clean slate.

Now where to find efiboot.img? Steal it from any of the recent UEFI Puppy isos (sometimes they call it efi.img instead of efiboot.img), or from Fatdog iso, etc. There is one here but it is a bit old now; so use newer one if you can help it.

[quirkian2new]

If all you want is to make UEFI-only iso, __and__ don't worry about other capabilities (isohybrid, etc)...

@James, thanks for the explanation.

Yes, you are right, I want other capabilities (isohybrid, etc) as well so that the resulting CD (containing a 32bit puppy and a 64bit puppy or Fatdog) can boot as many different computers as possible.

The iso generated by Fatdog64's remaster is quite satisfactory and also convenient because I can boot the CD on at least 4 different machines(both uefi and legacy) while no need to disable secure boot or enroll shim certificate etc etc...

Is is possible that you can adopt Fatdog64's remaster script and related efiboot.img files etc etc... to compose such a toolbox and make it available to fourm members (when you have time, of course ) ?

[jamesbond]

Thanks for the compliment.

Unfortunately I may not have the time for that. That's why I said earlier that if you want bootable USB stick, I already have it; but if you want ISO, I'll pass because I don't have it yet and I may not have the time to do anything about it.

You may want to try frugalpup or nic007's remaster as suggested ...