Fresh installation boot into emergency mode

[MisterM23]

Describe the bug

A fresh installation finish without errors. After reboot the deck go to emergency mode with the following error:

You are in emergency mode. After logging in, type "journalctl -xb" to view system logs, "systemctl reboot" to reboot, "systemctl default" or “exit” to boot into default mode.

Cannot open access to console, the root account is locked

Hardware

Steam Deck LCD, 1 TB SSD

Tried many times: with standard user, with own user, different file systems,...

[atimeofday]

Hi, do you still have this issue? I have heard from maintainers that the locked root account in emergency mode was fixed at least a couple months ago, but haven't personally verified it.

For the symptom-level of the issue, I was able to find this documentation: https://docs.bazzite.gg/Advanced/rescue-and-emergency-mode/. Does that page look complete / useful?

As for root cause analysis... on a hunch, what do you mean by "different file systems"?

[stephan-steinmiller]

I am encountering the same issue right now. I tried reinstalling so many times with different install options selected. When I press enter in emergency mode, it tells me

Reloading system manager configuration.
Starting default.target

Yet even after waiting for a very long time, nothing happens, and I still can't access the console.
For me, it worked when I wiped my whole disk drive to install bazzite on it. I couldn't keep my SteamOS home drive with all the games on it. I thought it would work nonetheless, because I had a separate home partition labeled and assigned to bazzite, but apparently not.

[Mupli]

Same issue . Fresh image downloaded today.

checksum : be3f238ae252b5b5d5d75207e81943c46bc5e83cc4cd76a3d8bdb28b0d7bda3b
bazzite-deck-stable.iso

The installation is just broken on steam deck.

Ps. Tried many things. normal partitition, btree partitions, default users, own users, own home partition, automatic installation. (in bios i had XHCI )

[SaphiraKai]

i just ran into this trying to install bazzite on my steam deck, are there any known workarounds?

[SaphiraKai]

Update: I tried wiping the entire disk instead of preserving my old home partition, now it works. The installation seems to fail unless you wipe the entire disk.

[atimeofday]

Update: I tried wiping the entire disk instead of preserving my old home partition, now it works. The installation seems to fail unless you wipe the entire disk.

It doesn't, but that is indeed a good way to make sure it works. The partitioning step is finicky since Fedora Atomic uses partitions/volumes for things other distros don't.

[dosubot]

Hi, @MisterM23. I'm Dosu, and I'm helping the bazzite team manage their backlog and am marking this issue as stale.

Issue Summary:

• You reported that after installing Bazzite on a Steam Deck with a 1 TB SSD, the system boots into emergency mode with a locked root account and no console access.
• Other users confirmed the same problem, noting that wiping the entire disk (not preserving partitions) allows successful installation.
• It was noted that the root account lock issue was fixed months ago, and rescue mode documentation is available.
• The partitioning step is tricky due to Fedora Atomic's partition/volume scheme.
• The consensus is that a full disk wipe is the reliable workaround.

Next Steps:

• Please confirm if this issue is still relevant with the latest Bazzite version by commenting here.
• If I do not receive a response, I will automatically close this issue in 14 days.

Thanks for your understanding and contribution!

For more details, see the official documentation at https://docs.bazzite.gg