HowTo: Change your boot splash screens

SuSE Linux Version: SuSE-9.x and SuSE-10.0

This How-to passes on my notes for putting your own custom splash screens on:

1. KDE boot
2. SuSE boot
3. KDM login theme
4. Grub boot

To change the KDE boot splash screen, one goes to KMenu > Control-Center > Appearance and Themes > Splash screen. Select your new splash screen here.

However, the number of boot splash screens provided with SuSE KDE is limited. One can get extra splash screens from http://www.kde-look.org/∞. Look at the left side of the page, where it says "splash screens". Click on that. Look at the various splash screens and download to a directory e.g.:
Don't decompress the files, but rather keep the files as number-name.tar.bz.

Then go back to Control-Center > Appearance and Themes > Splash screen, select Add and navigate to your directory where you downloaded the splash screens (for example /home/yourname/splashscreens) and select the KDE splash screens you want to add to your list. ...

• For system-wide installation you can extract the theme to:

  /opt/kde3/share/apps/ksplash/Themes/

The SuSE-9.x series, and SuSE-10.0 kernels are built with "bootsplash" application support built in. SuSE also comes with a number of different SuSE bootsplash themes. The new themes are to be installed in various directories under /etc/bootsplash/themes. Each directory represents a different boot splash theme.

The SuSE-10.0 default is "SuSE" (and there is a directory under /etc/bootsplash/themes called that).
The SuSE-9.3 theme is also there, in a directory called "SuSE-Home".

(Small note: Display needs to be in 16bpp mode for the bootsplash to work, make sure grub options are set correctly. aka vga=794 for for 1280x1024)

To install extra themes do the following:

• extract theme to /etc/bootsplash/themes/

example:

• use Yast: Yast>system>/etc/sysconfig Editor>system>boot>theme>type name of theme ->Finish

• optional step

edit /etc/sysconfig/themes and check the line:

• as superuser (root) type in terminal:

mkinitrd -s (size)x(size)
eg

If you use lilo as your boot manager then run as root:

• extract theme to:

• use Yast:

Yast -> System -> /etc/sysconfig Editor ->
expand: Desktop -> Display Manager ->:
click on DISPLAYMANAGER_KDM_THEME
in the right panel enter new theme name in the line :
Setting of: DISPLAYMANAGER_KDM_THEME

• A last check to see if the changes are written correctly:

open the file

and look for the line:

That file requires root priviledges to open.
If for some reason your theme was not written, then simply replace old theme with the new one.

• Important note about adding bootsplash and KDM new theme using Yast
• The new theme name has to be entered manually, it is not visible at first in drop down menu. After you enter the name and confirm changes (by pressing Finish ); next time you will see a choice and you will be able to select any theme (installed) you wish.

One can find custom SuSE splash screens on http://www.kde-look.org/∞ under "bootsplash screens".





Instructions for changing the GRUB boot manager back ground on SuSE-10.0. I also successfully applied this technique to SuSE-9.3:
http://susewiki.org/index.php?title=Changing_the_GRUB_background∞

• Remember that there is maximum size limit for message file: It can't exceed 150-200KB (not sure which one). If you will exceed the size, instead of seeing nice graphical GUI, you will see text (ncurses) based kernel selection.

Check out HowToCreateSuSEBootSplashPics if you are having picture problems.

Credits:
oldcpu, broch

Comments & Suggestions:
http://forums.suselinuxsupport.de/index.php?showtopic=24928∞