So I installed Ubuntu on an external disk via my MacBook Pro 2016 with a USB flash. Now whenever I try installing another Linux distro such as Pop_OS I see the GRUB loader complaining about a bunch of stuff and I also had to change my booting disk to my macOS Catalina so I understand that GRUB is the main loader rather than the default macOS one. Is there a way for me to completely remove GRUB without having to reinstall macOS?
macOS Catalina – Remove GRUB from Dual-Boot Setup
bootdual-bootgrub
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Best Answer
With Ubuntu, GRUB files are stored in the
EFI/BOOT
andEFI/ubuntu
folders in the hiddenEFI
partition. Apply the following steps to remove the GRUB files.Enter the following command to determine the identifier for the hidden EFI partition on the external drive.
For this example, I will assume the identifier is
disk2s1
. In the following steps, make the appropriate substitutions.To mount the volume stored in the
EFI
partition, enter the following command.Note the volume name given in the output of this command. For this example, I will assume the volume name is
EFI
. In the following steps, make the appropriate substitutions.Use the Finder application to view the folders in the
EFI
folder of theEFI
volume (device). See image below.Move the folders
BOOT
andubuntu
to the trash.Empty the trash.
Enter the following command to unmount the
EFI
volume (device).