Re: Is GRUB2 customizeable enough?

[Richard Owlett]

On 7/22/2016 11:42 AM, Andrei Borzenkov wrote:
> 22.07.2016 18:21, Richard Owlett пишет:
> > I will be experimenting with multiple Linux installs on different
> > partitions of the same hard disk. [initially various tweaks to Debian
> > Jessie from the same physical set of distribution DVDs]
> >
> > The boot menu display *SHALL*:
> >    1. display in partition number order.
>
> GRUB does not provide sort tools on CLI level. You can enumerate
> partitions by simply using (*,*) but due to internal implementation they
> are in reversed order.

Are we talking past each other?
I have exactly one hard drive.
Due to BIOS choices I have made, that *WILL BE* the boot device.
  [have option to boot from CD or flash but those effectively 
disabled]
Debian refers to my hard drive partitions as sda1 thru sdaN [1<n<MAX]
Though new to *nix, my hardware experience goes back to 60's ;/

What I *REQUIRE* is that GRUB2's menu list available OS 
monotonically by partition number. For reasons of logic and 
sanity the menu items should be in the order of
sda1, sda2, ..., sdaMAX. I could work with sdaMAX, ..., sda2, sda1 .

The purpose AND rationale SHALL be that the default OS choice 
*SHALL BE* the first OS installed.

WHY?
No matter how badly I mess up, a "hard reset/cold boot" shall 
*ALWAYS* boot to a known working OS.

That should take care of your other questions.

> Implementing sorting is certainly possible. It is simply nobody needed
> it so far.
>
> >    2. display the correct partition number.
>
> Define "correct".
>
> >    3. display the partition *LABEL*
>
> Define "partition label".
>
> >       a. set during install
> >                           OR
> >       b. set during subsequent run of gparted
> >
> > The above *SHALL NOT* be changed by *ANY* run of "update grub".