Invalid loader file! Not found while loading vmlinuz-6.12.x86_64

Support
1

Hi there I actually initially thought to create a new topic, but I was struck here, as my issue is curiosly similar. I’m tackling my issue since a couple of day, still unresolved.

My iMac mid 2011 multiboot OSX and two distro (Manjaro and MX). Boot manager is refind. disk is arramged as:
/dev/sda1 efi
/dev/sda3 OSX
/dev/sda4 Manjaro
/dev/sda5 MX

If I try to launch what refind calls “stub efi loader” present in the linux kernel I get:

Starting vmlinuz-6.12-x86_64
Invalid loader file!
Error: Not found while loading vmlinuz-6.12.x86_64

This is the “stanza”

menuentry "Manjaro" {
    icon     /EFI/refind/myicons/os_Manjaro.png
    volume   "Manjaro"
    loader   /boot/vmlinuz-6.12-x86_64
    initrd   /boot/initramfs-6.12-x86_64.img /boot/intel-ucode.img
    options  "root=UUID=dcd2885d-ae78-4f92-b3e7-c8507caef8a3 rw quiet splash acpi_backlight=native udev.log_priority=3"
}

Seems like the kernel file is found, but the loader provided within kernel is not found.

I also tried to install the kernel 7.0, same issue …
If you have ideas, thanks for helping!

Mod edit: Added code formatting.

/boot/vmlinuz-6.12-x86_64 not found
2

Unless you generate UKI, there is no loader in the kernel. Refind should show you at least 2 entries: the kernel and the manjaro grub? Did you try those? Actually under default conditions refind shouldn’t find anything called efi stub loader.

3

Hi too, but you should have gone with your initial thought – the general rule is: one topic per issue from the same member, irrespective of perceived similarity to another member issue.

Your posts have been moved to a dedicated topic. :wink:

Refind refers to it as an efi stub loader, one of several on your $esp, for example bootx64.efi, grubx64.efi, and others depending on the OS used – these are not “present in the Linux kernel” at all; in fact, they act as an intermediary; a stepping-stone; to the Linux kernel.

One stub will launch the kernel directly and the other will launch GRUB.

Presuming the UUID and kernel reference is correct, this seems OK. Is refind not detecting boot loaders automatically, without the manual stanza?

Is 6.12 (LTS) still installed?

Is the 6.12 (LTS) kernel still selected for use by Refind? You might wish to check refind_linux.conf to make sure. If it isn’t, manjaro-refind-installer is a handy tool to re-select the kernel you prefer Refind to target.

sudo pacman -S manjaro-refind-installer

I had an issue after the recent Stable update, when Refind was updated to v0.14.2-2; while this may seem different at face value, maybe it’s related:

It turns out there was a problem with that release, which was subsequently mentioned (see below); my workaround was to revert to v0.14.2-1 as I describe in the previous quote.

I hope some of this may be hepful.

Regards.

1 Like
5

Hi again and thanks for the hints and moving to a specific topic, I now know the rule :slight_smile:
I think I misread rodsbook website when he says " The Linux EFI stub loader is a way to turn a Linux kernel into an EFI application. In a sense, the kernel becomes its own boot loader."

Details: this is my lsblk:

> lsblk -o +PARTUUID,UUID
NAME          MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE  MOUNTPOINTS PARTUUID                             UUID
sda             8:0    0 465,8G  0 disk                                                   
├─sda1          8:1    0   200M  0 part  /boot/efi   00004d57-1363-0000-8724-0000f2690000 2860-11F4
├─sda2          8:2    0  93,9G  0 part              00000721-1f73-0000-4e1e-0000f6430000 87aeccd7-cb94-4f39-98bb-942c9cfaa3c9
├─sda3          8:3    0 619,9M  0 part              2606f9f5-d882-4947-9242-cff72f1e1456 9db3ecb9-8192-3e57-99bd-5a2711e45985
├─sda4          8:4    0  48,8G  0 part  /           32ce8dcb-7e12-314f-a631-cc14e4160063 dcd2885d-ae78-4f92-b3e7-c8507caef8a3
├─sda5          8:5    0  48,8G  0 part              751cc785-a6ba-4644-9c3b-5b9be3fb2646 d22d3f57-0440-4190-a428-e72091abf0ca

This is /boot:

>ls /boot
efi   grub                       initramfs-6.6-x86_64.img  intel-ucode.img       linux66-x86_64.kver  refind_linux.conf    vmlinuz-6.6-x86_64
grml  initramfs-6.12-x86_64.img  initramfs-7.0-x86_64.img  linux612-x86_64.kver  linux70-x86_64.kver  vmlinuz-6.12-x86_64  vmlinuz-7.0-x86_64

To the questions:
Is refind not detecting boot loaders automatically, without the manual stanza? I used before posting here manjaro-refind-installer and this is possibly how I’m currently booting. More in detail, I see /boot/efi/EFI/Manjaro/grubx64.efi that I see in refind “graphic” prompt when I boot, that is at the moment the only way I can boot. Current limits:

  1. I do not know how to pass parameter to 6.12 when I boot this way
  2. I do not know how to generate the same situation for the other distro
    At the moment I’m on 7.0 kernel, as yesterday evening I gave a try using manjaro utility to install kernels

I’ll give it a go downgrading refind and report here. Still I do not understand why the stanzas are not working. They are actually the same as before.

… I’m now a bit more puzzled. I used manjaro-refind-installer to pick up the 6.12 kernel and rebooted. uname -a shows: Linux manjaro-imac 7.0.3-1-MANJARO #1 SMP PREEMPT_DYNAMIC Thu, 30 Apr 2026 17:29:37 +0000 x86_64 GNU/Linux. I’m still on the 7.0 as if grubx64.efi boots teh highest kernel version found in /boot

6

The manjaro-refind-installer has surprisingly little to do with actually installing Refind. What it does is allow you to set whichever kernel you prefer (from those installed) to be used when booting a kernel directly (bypassing Grub).

So, using manjaro-refind-installer will let you select kernel 6.12 (LTS) for that purpose; or kernel 7.0 – I’d suggest 6.12.

Grub should normally be auto-detected by Refind and another entry/icon appears for that. What you’re telling me is that icon isn’t showing. This could mean that your Refind configuration isn’t ideal for your needs.

Could you post your refind.conf; issue this command:

sudo /boot/efi/efi/refind/refind.conf > myrefindconf.txt

That creates myrefindconf.txt in your User directory – paste its content into the forum.

The manjaro-refind-installer does not install kernels – it only lets you choose the kernel Refind will use (as already mentioned).

You must first install Refind to the $esp using the dedicated tool:

sudo refind-install

Then run manjaro-refind-installer to set kernel 6.12, and reboot.

1 Like
7

… I’m in trouble now. I used manjaro-downgrade to install a refind 0.14.1. refind-install, reboot. The first two reboot I had some garbage on the screen and a message “StartImage failed: Load Error”. From the third reboot just a white screen. System freezed. I now managed to boot with keypress “option” at boot time (after the imac beep) and boot from a recovery sdcard (another distro, not manjaro). atm I’m writing from another laptop. Not sure how at least recover the boot I had before. I’ll read the refind-install manual …

8

I am not quite sure refind is tested and completely compatible with whatever abomination of firmware the guys from Cupertino provide. As we know, they make everything their own way. But i guess you researched thoroughly before deciding to install refind and multiboot the thing?

On a normal PC/uefi, installing refind cannot break anything - its only a couple of files on the ESP partition and an EFI boot entry. For booting from exotic filesystems like Apples, you need drivers, i think some of the them are in a separate package.
White screen should be something from the mac firmware. The default background of refind is grey, and in linux everything is black so you know where to start - the mac firmware and the entries that are listed there (efi variables).

1 Like
9

Previous topic shows use of GRUB bootloader and no mention of Apple hardware, so it may only have a similar cause – incomplete update
[HowTo] Recovering from an interrupted update/upgrade

ArchWiki has more information about refind and Apple hardware

ArchWiki - Refind - Troubleshooting - Apple Macs

Use bless from within macOS to set rEFInd as the default boot entry:

# bless --setBoot --folder *esp*/EFI/refind --file *esp*/EFI/refind/refind_x64.efi

ArchWiki - Refind - Troubleshooting - Error:_Not_Found_while_loading_vmlinuz-linux

2 Likes
10

Dear All, thanks for the tips. I now have back a working computer, but honestly I do not know how I did it and why I went in trouble. So no lessons learned to share with the community.

I think I may have an issue with efibootmgr/NVRAM, something weird happened there.

Anyway after having an unbootable computer (white screen right after power on), the way forward was

  1. relize that after the imac beep, if you press “option” key, you enter the NVRAM boot launcher (I call it like that, may be there si a more precise term)
  2. finding a usb stick with mxlinux live-installer, and being able to boot it thanks to above.
  3. In the usb stick booting menu grub-style I found an entry like “scan uefi or grub entries”. I was able from there to hop-boot in my imac
  4. once back again, I created a new nvram entry, removed refind folder, reinstalled afresh via refind-install

Now the scanning of the various /boot/vmlinuz* works and I find the two distros again.

@Teo : yes since last two years the config was like that. refind as boot manager, in my imac mid 2011 (intel), and booting osx or two different flavour of linux. I can’t say what I did wrong, and why refind stopped working …

3 Likes
12

OP mentioned in the first post that Apple hardware was in the mix though it wasn’t the focus of their Support request.

1 Like