Score:0

GRUB menu selection moves two lines for up/down arrow press

jp flag

On this computer (ASUS Zenith II Extreme Alpha, dual boot) the GRUB menu selection moves two lines when I press the up or down arrow key. This isn't a problem when I want to boot the default OS, but is a hassle with I'm trying to select the non-default OS. I have to keep hitting up / down until it moves just one line (which happens once is a dozen or so key hits). I'm using logitech USB wired keyboard and mouse. I've also tried a wireless version, but same results. My GRUB version is: grub-install (GRUB) 2.04-1ubuntu26.12

My bios has legacy USB support enabled. I've done quite a bit of searching online, but nobody else seems to have this issue. Does anyone know how to fix this?

Haotian Liu avatar
de flag
I am having a similar issue: ASUS X570 PLUS, dual boot. I wonder if you managed to solve this?
Mark W. avatar
jp flag
No, I was not able to solve the problem. However, I don't use Linux on that computer anymore.
cn flag
I have the same issue. And for me, it's not just the arrow keys - it's also enter that gets pressed twice. This means that it's essentially impossible to select a non-default os, because even if I highlight the "custom" options menu, I then hit enter, and then the second enter selects the first item on the next menu - which is my default os.
Score:1
nc flag

This has got to do with the grub screen resolution. Grub struggles with higher resolutions (such as 3840x2160, etc). In order to fix, first determine what resolutions grub supports on your machine. In order to do this, disable secure boot in BIOS and then go to GRUB command line (type "c" on the GRUB menu) and type "videoinfo" or "vbeinfo", depending on the available command (which can be determined by hitting the "TAB" button). In my experience, 1920x1200 was GRUB's sweet spot (my video card supports it) --> zero lag, grub feels snappy and the keyboard cursor does not keep skipping places.

Now reboot (ctrl-alt-del), boot normally into Ubuntu and open up /etc/default/grub in your favorite editor as root and change the following line:

#GRUB_GFXMODE="640x480"

to

GRUB_GFXMODE="<resolution that works well on your machine>"

Remember to replace the phrase "resolution that works well on your machine" in the line above with the actual resolution. Save the file, exit and run

sudo update-grub

Now reboot your computer and test the changes. You might need to play with different supported resolutions to find out which one works best.

Philipp avatar
za flag
Your suggested 1920x1200 helped my case as well. It might be a problem specifically with ultrawide monitors.
mangohost

Post an answer

Most people don’t grasp that asking a lot of questions unlocks learning and improves interpersonal bonding. In Alison’s studies, for example, though people could accurately recall how many questions had been asked in their conversations, they didn’t intuit the link between questions and liking. Across four studies, in which participants were engaged in conversations themselves or read transcripts of others’ conversations, people tended not to realize that question asking would influence—or had influenced—the level of amity between the conversationalists.