etcmkinitcpioconf

etcmkinitcpioconf commonly refers to /etc/mkinitcpio.conf, the configuration file used by the mkinitcpio utility to build the initial ramdisk on Arch Linux and related distributions. The file determines what is included in the initramfs and how it is assembled during boot.

Key directives in /etc/mkinitcpio.conf

- HOOKS: a comma-separated list that defines the boot initialization pipeline. The order matters and typical defaults include base, udev, autodetect, modconf, block, filesystems, keyboard, and fsck. Additional hooks such as crypt or resume can enable encrypted disks or swap resume functionality.

- MODULES: an explicit list of kernel modules to load early. This is used when autodetection does not cover a needed module or when special hardware requires a module to be loaded before the root filesystem is reached.

- BINARIES: specific user-space binaries to add to the initramfs.

- FILES: extra files to include in the initramfs, such as configuration files or scripts.

- BLOCKS: optional, to source block devices present at initramfs time.

Usage and maintenance

Editing mkinitcpio.conf usually happens when adjusting boot requirements or adding support for new hardware or encryption. After changes, the initramfs must be regenerated, typically with a command like mkinitcpio -P to rebuild all installed kernels or mkinitcpio -p linux for a specific kernel variant. Incorrect HOOKS or missing modules can prevent boot, so changes are often tested incrementally.

Example

HOOKS="base udev autodetect modconf block filesystems keyboard fsck"

MODULES=()

BINARIES=()

FILES=()

BLOCKS=()

See also

mkinitcpio, Arch Linux boot process, initramfs, early userspace.