# Backing up an unbootable elementaryOS



## Detailer (May 24, 2014)

So last week i faced a problem with elementary os i can not boot in to the system it goes black after the grub boot screen i am fine with a reinstall but is there a way to backup my programs? Or any way to fix the black screen after grub?


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## youmetube27 (May 26, 2014)

boot from a live cd
chroot to the / on disk
you can now mount an external usb drive and copy files

You can also fix grub this way and try booting again

Cheers!


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## ankush28 (May 26, 2014)

First try this-
When booting press and hold SHIFT or ESC. Keep your ears alerted for any beeps from mobo. Select Elementry OS.
If this doesn't work boot from live CD and...
In terminal

```
sudo update grub
```

You can also backup files when you are using live cd.


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