Why would the bootloader install option not appear?

[Rob2D]

Hey guys,

Been doing a few Debian installs for the last couple weeks to feel out different environments and one thing I've noticed is that I never get presented with the option of where to install the bootloader. In calamares the box doesn't appear at the bottom, and in the normal installer it just outright skips the bootloader step. Every install video I watch just has it and I even remember seeing it myself a while back.......but now it's gone.

SOLVED:

Enabled Legacy ONLY for grub option.

[Dai_trying]

I got this screen after software installation in a VM, did you not get that?

[thinman]

Are you doing a BIOS or a UEFI install? You won't get an option on where to install GRUB on a UEFI install.

[Rob2D]

Are you doing a BIOS or a UEFI install? You won't get an option on where to install GRUB on a UEFI install.

Ah, yes thank you!

BIOS's were set to legacy AND uefi. Changed it to legacy only and all is fine now. Stupid me, that's what I get for assuming it would work!

Cheers guys.

[thinman]

Excellent. Glad you got it sorted.

[Head_on_a_Stick]

UEFI installations don't ask for a target device because it can only use the EFI system partition and it's trivial to change the boot order afterwards with efibootmgr(8).

[p.H]

You won't get an option on where to install GRUB on a UEFI install.

Actually you will if you select "expert install" in the Debian installer boot menu or change the question priority to low in the main menu : then it will offer to install GRUB in the removable device path.

UEFI installations don't ask for a target device because it can only use the EFI system partition

What if there are multiple EFI system partitions ?
Also, the installer could ask which bootloader-id to use instead of "debian" for creating both the subdirectory in /EFI and the boot entry in the EFI boot variables. It would be useful when you install multiple instances of Debian.

[Head_on_a_Stick]

UEFI installations don't ask for a target device because it can only use the EFI system partition

What if there are multiple EFI system partitions ?

Yes, it would be useful to have a choice in that situation. But some UEFI firmware implementations will only boot from the "first" ESP anyway, AFAIUI.

the installer could ask which bootloader-id to use instead of "debian" for creating both the subdirectory in /EFI and the boot entry in the EFI boot variables.

What about that bug you reported to Debian involving hard-coded locations for the /EFI subdirectories in the grubx64.efi loader? It had no substantial responses last time I checked. Or am I remembering incorrectly?

[p.H]

Right, fixing this bug would be a prerequisite to the Debian installer evolution I suggested.
There has not been any update but I submitted this bug before buster was released. Maybe there has been some change in the package but I haven't checked since then.