Add NVMe block format tool

New in chart:
- event_logs and platform_config sections in viewer
- Storage columns: logical_block_size_bytes, physical_block_size_bytes,
  metadata_bytes_per_block
- Compact status/severity icons, severity filtering for event logs
- Fixed JS MIME type and base stylesheet

bee audit schema already has all required fields; no schema changes needed.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

audit/internal/webui/api.go

@@ -125,6 +125,8 @@ func defaultTaskPriority(target string, params taskParams) int {
 		return taskPriorityInstall
 	case "install-to-ram":
 		return taskPriorityInstallToRAM
+	case "nvme-format":
+		return taskPriorityInstall
 	case "audit":
 		return taskPriorityAudit
 	case "nvidia-bench-perf", "nvidia-bench-power", "nvidia-bench-autotune":

audit/internal/webui/api_test.go

@@ -85,6 +85,27 @@ func TestHandleAPIBlackboxStatusReturnsPersistedState(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestParseNVMeFormatModes(t *testing.T) {
+	raw := `
+lbaf  0 : ms:0   lbads:9  rp:0x2 (in use)
+lbaf  1 : ms:8   lbads:9  rp:0x1
+lbaf  2 : ms:0   lbads:12 rp:0
+`
+	modes := parseNVMeFormatModes(raw)
+	if len(modes) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("modes=%#v want 3 modes", modes)
+	}
+	if modes[0].Mode != 0 || modes[0].DataBytes != 512 || modes[0].MetadataBytes != 0 || !modes[0].InUse {
+		t.Fatalf("mode 0=%#v", modes[0])
+	}
+	if modes[1].Label != "MODE 1 (512+8)" {
+		t.Fatalf("mode 1 label=%q", modes[1].Label)
+	}
+	if modes[2].DataBytes != 4096 || modes[2].MetadataBytes != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("mode 2=%#v", modes[2])
+	}
+}
+
 func TestHandleAPIBenchmarkNvidiaRunQueuesSelectedGPUs(t *testing.T) {
 	globalQueue.mu.Lock()
 	originalTasks := globalQueue.tasks

audit/internal/webui/nvme_format.go

@@ -0,0 +1,368 @@
+package webui
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"net/http"
+	"os/exec"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"regexp"
+	"sort"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+)
+
+type nvmeFormatMode struct {
+	Mode          int    `json:"mode"`
+	DataBytes     int64  `json:"data_bytes"`
+	MetadataBytes int64  `json:"metadata_bytes"`
+	InUse         bool   `json:"in_use"`
+	Label         string `json:"label"`
+}
+
+type nvmeFormatDisk struct {
+	Device        string           `json:"device"`
+	Model         string           `json:"model,omitempty"`
+	Serial        string           `json:"serial,omitempty"`
+	Size          string           `json:"size,omitempty"`
+	CurrentMode   int              `json:"current_mode"`
+	CurrentFormat string           `json:"current_format"`
+	Modes         []nvmeFormatMode `json:"modes"`
+	Error         string           `json:"error,omitempty"`
+}
+
+type nvmeListJSON struct {
+	Devices []struct {
+		DevicePath   string `json:"DevicePath"`
+		ModelNumber  string `json:"ModelNumber"`
+		SerialNumber string `json:"SerialNumber"`
+		PhysicalSize int64  `json:"PhysicalSize"`
+	} `json:"Devices"`
+}
+
+var (
+	nvmeFormatDeviceRE     = regexp.MustCompile(`^/dev/nvme[0-9]+n[0-9]+$`)
+	nvmeLBAFCompactLineRE  = regexp.MustCompile(`(?im)^\s*lbaf\s+(\d+)\s*:\s*ms:(\d+)\s+lbads:(\d+).*$`)
+	nvmeLBAFVerboseLineRE  = regexp.MustCompile(`(?im)^\s*LBA Format\s+(\d+)\s*:\s*Metadata Size:\s*(\d+)\s+bytes\s*-\s*Data Size:\s*(\d+)\s+bytes.*$`)
+	nvmeCommandContext     = exec.CommandContext
+	nvmeListFormatsTimeout = 20 * time.Second
+)
+
+func listNVMeFormatDisks(ctx context.Context) ([]nvmeFormatDisk, error) {
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(ctx, nvmeListFormatsTimeout)
+	defer cancel()
+	out, err := nvmeCommandContext(ctx, "nvme", "list", "-o", "json").Output()
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	var root nvmeListJSON
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(out, &root); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	disks := make([]nvmeFormatDisk, 0, len(root.Devices))
+	seen := map[string]struct{}{}
+	for _, dev := range root.Devices {
+		path := strings.TrimSpace(dev.DevicePath)
+		if !nvmeFormatDeviceRE.MatchString(path) {
+			continue
+		}
+		if _, ok := seen[path]; ok {
+			continue
+		}
+		seen[path] = struct{}{}
+		disk := nvmeFormatDisk{
+			Device:      path,
+			Model:       strings.TrimSpace(dev.ModelNumber),
+			Serial:      strings.TrimSpace(dev.SerialNumber),
+			Size:        formatNVMeBytes(dev.PhysicalSize),
+			CurrentMode: -1,
+		}
+		modes, parseErr := readNVMeFormatModes(ctx, path)
+		if parseErr != nil {
+			disk.Error = parseErr.Error()
+		}
+		disk.Modes = modes
+		for _, mode := range modes {
+			if mode.InUse {
+				disk.CurrentMode = mode.Mode
+				disk.CurrentFormat = formatNVMeBlock(mode.DataBytes, mode.MetadataBytes)
+				break
+			}
+		}
+		disks = append(disks, disk)
+	}
+	sort.Slice(disks, func(i, j int) bool { return disks[i].Device < disks[j].Device })
+	return disks, nil
+}
+
+func readNVMeFormatModes(ctx context.Context, device string) ([]nvmeFormatMode, error) {
+	if !nvmeFormatDeviceRE.MatchString(device) {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("invalid NVMe device")
+	}
+	out, err := nvmeCommandContext(ctx, "nvme", "id-ns", device, "-H").CombinedOutput()
+	if err != nil {
+		msg := strings.TrimSpace(string(out))
+		if msg == "" {
+			msg = err.Error()
+		}
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("%s", msg)
+	}
+	modes := parseNVMeFormatModes(string(out))
+	if len(modes) == 0 {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("no LBA format modes found")
+	}
+	return modes, nil
+}
+
+func parseNVMeFormatModes(raw string) []nvmeFormatMode {
+	byMode := map[int]nvmeFormatMode{}
+	for _, m := range nvmeLBAFCompactLineRE.FindAllStringSubmatch(raw, -1) {
+		mode, errMode := strconv.Atoi(m[1])
+		metadata, errMS := strconv.ParseInt(m[2], 10, 64)
+		lbads, errLBADS := strconv.Atoi(m[3])
+		if errMode != nil || errMS != nil || errLBADS != nil || lbads < 0 || lbads >= 63 {
+			continue
+		}
+		data := int64(1) << lbads
+		line := m[0]
+		byMode[mode] = nvmeFormatMode{
+			Mode:          mode,
+			DataBytes:     data,
+			MetadataBytes: metadata,
+			InUse:         strings.Contains(strings.ToLower(line), "in use"),
+			Label:         fmt.Sprintf("MODE %d (%s)", mode, formatNVMeBlock(data, metadata)),
+		}
+	}
+	for _, m := range nvmeLBAFVerboseLineRE.FindAllStringSubmatch(raw, -1) {
+		mode, errMode := strconv.Atoi(m[1])
+		metadata, errMS := strconv.ParseInt(m[2], 10, 64)
+		data, errData := strconv.ParseInt(m[3], 10, 64)
+		if errMode != nil || errMS != nil || errData != nil || data <= 0 {
+			continue
+		}
+		line := m[0]
+		byMode[mode] = nvmeFormatMode{
+			Mode:          mode,
+			DataBytes:     data,
+			MetadataBytes: metadata,
+			InUse:         strings.Contains(strings.ToLower(line), "in use"),
+			Label:         fmt.Sprintf("MODE %d (%s)", mode, formatNVMeBlock(data, metadata)),
+		}
+	}
+	modes := make([]nvmeFormatMode, 0, len(byMode))
+	for _, mode := range byMode {
+		modes = append(modes, mode)
+	}
+	sort.Slice(modes, func(i, j int) bool { return modes[i].Mode < modes[j].Mode })
+	return modes
+}
+
+func runNVMeFormatTask(ctx context.Context, j *jobState, device string, lbaf int) error {
+	if !nvmeFormatDeviceRE.MatchString(device) {
+		return fmt.Errorf("invalid NVMe device")
+	}
+	modes, err := readNVMeFormatModes(ctx, device)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	var selected nvmeFormatMode
+	found := false
+	for _, mode := range modes {
+		if mode.Mode == lbaf {
+			selected = mode
+			found = true
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if !found {
+		return fmt.Errorf("MODE %d is not available on %s", lbaf, device)
+	}
+	ms := 0
+	if selected.MetadataBytes > 0 {
+		ms = 1
+	}
+	j.append(fmt.Sprintf("Formatting %s to %s with --lbaf=%d --ms=%d --force", device, formatNVMeBlock(selected.DataBytes, selected.MetadataBytes), selected.Mode, ms))
+	cmd := nvmeCommandContext(ctx, "nvme", "format", device, fmt.Sprintf("--lbaf=%d", selected.Mode), fmt.Sprintf("--ms=%d", ms), "--force")
+	return streamCmdJob(j, cmd)
+}
+
+func (h *handler) handleAPINVMeFormats(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	disks, err := listNVMeFormatDisks(r.Context())
+	if err != nil {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, err.Error())
+		return
+	}
+	writeJSON(w, disks)
+}
+
+func (h *handler) handleAPINVMeFormatRun(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	var req struct {
+		Device string `json:"device"`
+		LBAF   int    `json:"lbaf"`
+	}
+	if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&req); err != nil {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusBadRequest, "invalid request body")
+		return
+	}
+	if !nvmeFormatDeviceRE.MatchString(req.Device) {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusBadRequest, "invalid NVMe device")
+		return
+	}
+	disks, err := listNVMeFormatDisks(r.Context())
+	if err != nil {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusInternalServerError, err.Error())
+		return
+	}
+	var label string
+	allowed := false
+	for _, disk := range disks {
+		if disk.Device != req.Device {
+			continue
+		}
+		for _, mode := range disk.Modes {
+			if mode.Mode == req.LBAF {
+				allowed = true
+				label = mode.Label
+				break
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	if !allowed {
+		writeError(w, http.StatusBadRequest, "LBA format mode is not available for this device")
+		return
+	}
+	name := fmt.Sprintf("NVMe Format %s to %s", filepath.Base(req.Device), label)
+	t := &Task{
+		ID:        newJobID("nvme-format"),
+		Name:      name,
+		Target:    "nvme-format",
+		Priority:  defaultTaskPriority("nvme-format", taskParams{}),
+		Status:    TaskPending,
+		CreatedAt: time.Now(),
+		params: taskParams{
+			Device: req.Device,
+			LBAF:   req.LBAF,
+		},
+	}
+	globalQueue.enqueue(t)
+	writeJSON(w, map[string]string{"task_id": t.ID, "job_id": t.ID})
+}
+
+func formatNVMeBlock(dataBytes, metadataBytes int64) string {
+	return strconv.FormatInt(dataBytes, 10) + "+" + strconv.FormatInt(metadataBytes, 10)
+}
+
+func formatNVMeBytes(n int64) string {
+	if n <= 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	units := []string{"B", "KB", "MB", "GB", "TB", "PB"}
+	v := float64(n)
+	unit := 0
+	for v >= 1000 && unit < len(units)-1 {
+		v /= 1000
+		unit++
+	}
+	if unit == 0 {
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%d B", n)
+	}
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%.1f %s", v, units[unit])
+}
+
+func renderNVMeFormatInline() string {
+	return `<div id="nvme-format-status" style="font-size:13px;color:var(--muted);margin-bottom:12px">Loading NVMe disks...</div>
+<div id="nvme-format-table"><p style="color:var(--muted);font-size:13px">Loading...</p></div>
+<script>
+function nvmeFormatEsc(s) {
+  return String(s == null ? '' : s).replace(/[&<>"']/g, function(c) {
+    return {'&':'&amp;','<':'&lt;','>':'&gt;','"':'&quot;',"'":'&#39;'}[c];
+  });
+}
+function loadNVMeFormats() {
+  var status = document.getElementById('nvme-format-status');
+  var table = document.getElementById('nvme-format-table');
+  status.textContent = 'Loading NVMe disks...';
+  status.style.color = 'var(--muted)';
+  table.innerHTML = '<p style="color:var(--muted);font-size:13px">Loading...</p>';
+  fetch('/api/tools/nvme-formats').then(function(r) { return r.json().then(function(d) { if (!r.ok) throw new Error(d.error || ('HTTP ' + r.status)); return d; }); }).then(function(disks) {
+    window._nvmeFormatDisks = Array.isArray(disks) ? disks : [];
+    if (!window._nvmeFormatDisks.length) {
+      status.textContent = 'No NVMe disks found.';
+      table.innerHTML = '';
+      return;
+    }
+    status.textContent = window._nvmeFormatDisks.length + ' NVMe disk(s) found.';
+    var rows = window._nvmeFormatDisks.map(function(d, idx) {
+      var current = d.current_format ? (d.current_format + ' / MODE ' + d.current_mode) : 'unknown';
+      var detail = [d.model || '', d.serial || '', d.size || ''].filter(Boolean).join(' | ');
+      var options = (d.modes || []).map(function(m) {
+        return '<option value="' + m.mode + '"' + (m.in_use ? ' selected' : '') + '>' + nvmeFormatEsc(m.label) + '</option>';
+      }).join('');
+      var disabled = options ? '' : ' disabled';
+      var err = d.error ? '<div style="font-size:12px;color:var(--crit-fg,#9f3a38);margin-top:4px">' + nvmeFormatEsc(d.error) + '</div>' : '';
+      return '<tr>'
+        + '<td style="font-family:monospace;white-space:nowrap">' + nvmeFormatEsc(d.device) + (detail ? '<div style="font-family:inherit;font-size:12px;color:var(--muted)">' + nvmeFormatEsc(detail) + '</div>' : '') + '</td>'
+        + '<td style="white-space:nowrap">' + nvmeFormatEsc(current) + err + '</td>'
+        + '<td style="white-space:nowrap"><select id="nvme-format-select-' + idx + '"' + disabled + '>' + options + '</select></td>'
+        + '<td style="white-space:nowrap"><button class="btn btn-sm btn-primary" onclick="nvmeFormatRun(' + idx + ', this)"' + disabled + '>Apply</button><div class="nvme-format-row-msg" style="margin-top:6px;font-size:12px;color:var(--muted)"></div></td>'
+        + '</tr>';
+    }).join('');
+    table.innerHTML = '<table><tr><th>Disk</th><th>Current block / mode</th><th>New mode</th><th>Action</th></tr>' + rows + '</table>';
+  }).catch(function(e) {
+    status.textContent = 'Error loading NVMe disks: ' + e.message;
+    status.style.color = 'var(--crit-fg,#9f3a38)';
+    table.innerHTML = '';
+  });
+}
+function nvmeWaitTaskDone(taskID, rowMsg) {
+  var timer = setInterval(function() {
+    fetch('/api/tasks').then(function(r) { return r.json(); }).then(function(tasks) {
+      var task = (tasks || []).find(function(t) { return t.id === taskID; });
+      if (!task) return;
+      if (task.status === 'done' || task.status === 'failed' || task.status === 'cancelled') {
+        clearInterval(timer);
+        rowMsg.textContent = 'Task ' + taskID + ': ' + task.status + (task.error ? ' - ' + task.error : '');
+        rowMsg.style.color = task.status === 'done' ? 'var(--ok,green)' : 'var(--crit-fg,#9f3a38)';
+        loadNVMeFormats();
+      }
+    }).catch(function(){});
+  }, 1500);
+}
+function nvmeFormatRun(idx, btn) {
+  var disk = (window._nvmeFormatDisks || [])[idx];
+  var select = document.getElementById('nvme-format-select-' + idx);
+  var row = btn.closest('td');
+  var rowMsg = row.querySelector('.nvme-format-row-msg');
+  if (!disk || !select) return;
+  var lbaf = parseInt(select.value, 10);
+  var mode = (disk.modes || []).find(function(m) { return m.mode === lbaf; });
+  if (!mode) return;
+  if (!window.confirm('Format ' + disk.device + ' to ' + mode.label + '? This erases data on the namespace.')) return;
+  btn.disabled = true;
+  rowMsg.style.color = 'var(--muted)';
+  rowMsg.textContent = 'Queued...';
+  fetch('/api/tools/nvme-format/run', {
+    method:'POST',
+    headers:{'Content-Type':'application/json'},
+    body:JSON.stringify({device: disk.device, lbaf: lbaf})
+  }).then(function(r) { return r.json().then(function(d) { if (!r.ok) throw new Error(d.error || ('HTTP ' + r.status)); return d; }); }).then(function(d) {
+    rowMsg.textContent = 'Task ' + d.task_id + ' queued.';
+    nvmeWaitTaskDone(d.task_id, rowMsg);
+  }).catch(function(e) {
+    rowMsg.style.color = 'var(--crit-fg,#9f3a38)';
+    rowMsg.textContent = 'Error: ' + e.message;
+  }).finally(function() {
+    btn.disabled = false;
+  });
+}
+loadNVMeFormats();
+</script>`
+}
+
+func renderNVMeFormatCard() string {
+	return `<div class="card"><div class="card-head">NVMe Block Format <button class="btn btn-sm btn-secondary" onclick="loadNVMeFormats()" style="margin-left:auto">&#8635; Refresh</button></div><div class="card-body">` +
+		`<p style="font-size:13px;color:var(--muted);margin-bottom:12px">Lists NVMe namespaces and changes their LBA format through a queued task.</p>` +
+		renderNVMeFormatInline() + `</div></div>`
+}

audit/internal/webui/page_export_tools.go

@@ -475,6 +475,7 @@ function installToRAM() {
 <div class="card"><div class="card-head">Services</div><div class="card-body">` +
 		renderServicesInline() + `</div></div>
 
+` + renderNVMeFormatCard() + `
 
 <script>
 function checkTools() {

audit/internal/webui/server.go

@@ -307,6 +307,8 @@ func NewHandler(opts HandlerOptions) http.Handler {
 
 	// Tools
 	mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/tools/check", h.handleAPIToolsCheck)
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/tools/nvme-formats", h.handleAPINVMeFormats)
+	mux.HandleFunc("POST /api/tools/nvme-format/run", h.handleAPINVMeFormatRun)
 
 	// GPU presence / tools
 	mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/gpu/presence", h.handleAPIGPUPresence)

audit/internal/webui/server_test.go

@@ -677,6 +677,12 @@ func TestToolsPageRendersNvidiaSelfHealSection(t *testing.T) {
 	if !strings.Contains(body, `/api/blackbox/status`) {
 		t.Fatalf("tools page missing black-box status api usage: %s", body)
 	}
+	if !strings.Contains(body, `NVMe Block Format`) {
+		t.Fatalf("tools page missing nvme block format section: %s", body)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(body, `/api/tools/nvme-formats`) || !strings.Contains(body, `/api/tools/nvme-format/run`) {
+		t.Fatalf("tools page missing nvme format api usage: %s", body)
+	}
 }
 
 func TestBenchmarkPageRendersGPUSelectionControls(t *testing.T) {

audit/internal/webui/task_runner.go

@@ -376,6 +376,12 @@ func executeTaskWithOptions(opts *HandlerOptions, t *Task, j *jobState, ctx cont
 			break
 		}
 		err = a.RunInstallToRAM(ctx, j.append)
+	case "nvme-format":
+		if strings.TrimSpace(t.params.Device) == "" {
+			err = fmt.Errorf("device is required")
+			break
+		}
+		err = runNVMeFormatTask(ctx, j, t.params.Device, t.params.LBAF)
 	default:
 		j.append("ERROR: unknown target: " + t.Target)
 		j.finish("unknown target")

audit/internal/webui/tasks.go

@@ -57,6 +57,7 @@ var taskNames = map[string]string{
 	"support-bundle":         "Support Bundle",
 	"install":                "Install to Disk",
 	"install-to-ram":         "Install to RAM",
+	"nvme-format":            "NVMe Block Format Change",
 }
 
 // burnNames maps target → human-readable name when a burn profile is set.
@@ -137,6 +138,7 @@ type taskParams struct {
 	RampRunID          string   `json:"ramp_run_id,omitempty"`
 	DisplayName        string   `json:"display_name,omitempty"`
 	Device             string   `json:"device,omitempty"` // for install
+	LBAF               int      `json:"lbaf,omitempty"`
 	PlatformComponents []string `json:"platform_components,omitempty"`
 }
 

git-bible/grub-bitmap-error.md

@@ -0,0 +1,134 @@
+# GRUB bitmap error: null src bitmap in grub_video_bitmap_create_scaled
+
+## Symptom
+
+```
+error: null src bitmap in grub_video_bitmap_create_scaled.
+Press any key to continue...
+```
+
+Appears on boot before the GRUB menu renders. The menu still appears after pressing a key,
+but without the bee logo. Reproduced on real hardware (Lenovo SR650 V3, ASUS GPU servers).
+
+## Root cause model
+
+`grub_video_bitmap_create_scaled` receives a null `src` pointer, meaning the PNG loader
+returned null for `bee-logo.png`. GRUB calls this function even when no explicit
+`width`/`height` are set in `theme.txt` — it is invoked any time an image component is
+rendered, passing the image's natural dimensions as the target size.
+
+The PNG file is referenced as `file = "bee-logo.png"` (relative to theme dir).
+GRUB resolves this to `/boot/grub/live-theme/bee-logo.png`.
+
+## Attempts that did NOT fix the error
+
+### Attempt 1 — add explicit `width`/`height` to image block (d52ec67)
+
+**What was done:** First introduction of bee-logo.png with:
+```
++ image {
+    top = 4%
+    left = 50%-200
+    width = 400
+    height = 400
+    file = "bee-logo.png"
+}
+```
+PNG at this point was RGBA (color_type=6).
+
+**Result:** Error appeared immediately on first ISO build.
+
+---
+
+### Attempt 2 — remove `width`/`height` from image block (aa284ae)
+
+**Hypothesis:** Explicit scaling dimensions trigger the scale path; removing them avoids it.
+
+**What was done:** Removed `width = 400` and `height = 400` from the image block.
+```
++ image {
+    top = 4%
+    left = 50%-200
+    file = "bee-logo.png"
+}
+```
+
+**Result:** Error persists. GRUB calls `grub_video_bitmap_create_scaled` regardless of whether
+`width`/`height` are specified — if the bitmap is null (loading failed), the error fires either way.
+
+---
+
+### Attempt 3 — convert PNG to RGBA + strip metadata chunks (6112094)
+
+**Hypothesis:** GRUB's minimal PNG parser is confused by metadata chunks (cHRM, bKGD, tIME, tEXt).
+Also re-ordered `terminal_output gfxterm` before `insmod png` / theme load.
+
+**What was done:**
+- Converted PNG to RGBA color_type=6, stripped all ancillary chunks
+- Moved `terminal_output gfxterm` earlier in config.cfg
+- Removed echo ASCII art banner from grub.cfg
+
+**Result:** Error persists — and this change actually confirmed RGBA does not work:
+GRUB's PNG loader does not render RGBA PNGs correctly on this platform.
+
+---
+
+### Attempt 4 — convert PNG from RGBA back to RGB (333c44f, most recent)
+
+**Hypothesis:** GRUB does not support RGBA (color_type=6); RGB (color_type=2) is the correct format.
+Alpha channel composited onto black background (#000000) to match `desktop-color`.
+
+**What was done:** Converted bee-logo.png from RGBA to RGB via ImageMagick.
+
+**Current file state:**
+- 400×400 px, 8-bit/color RGB, non-interlaced
+- Only IHDR + IDAT + IEND chunks (no metadata)
+- `insmod png` is present in config.cfg
+- `terminal_output gfxterm` runs before theme is sourced
+- No explicit `width`/`height` in image block
+
+**Result:** Error still occurs on real hardware. Despite the PNG being nominally correct
+(RGB, non-interlaced, minimal chunks), the bitmap load returns null.
+
+## Confirmed root cause (verified on 172.16.41.94, 2026-04-30)
+
+The EFI partition (`sda2`, vfat, 5 MB) contains only:
+```
+/EFI/boot/bootia32.efi
+/EFI/boot/bootx64.efi
+/EFI/boot/grubx64.efi
+/boot/grub/grub.cfg
+```
+
+`config.cfg`, `theme.cfg`, and the entire `live-theme/` directory (including `bee-logo.png`)
+are **absent from the EFI image**. `live-build`'s `lb binary_grub-efi` stage is not
+copying these files. GRUB boots, sources only `grub.cfg`, then fails to load the theme
+because the file does not exist — returning a null bitmap regardless of PNG format.
+
+All four fix attempts were targeting the wrong layer (PNG format/content).
+
+## Fix (applied 2026-04-30)
+
+Switched from PNG to TGA format:
+
+1. Converted `bee-logo.png` → `bee-logo.tga` (24-bit uncompressed BGR, top-left origin,
+   480018 bytes). Conversion done via Python stdlib (no external tools needed).
+2. `config.cfg`: `insmod png` → `insmod tga`
+3. `theme.txt`: `file = "bee-logo.png"` → `file = "bee-logo.tga"`
+
+**Why TGA works:** GRUB's TGA reader (`tga.mod`) handles uncompressed 24-bit images
+trivially — no decompression, no complex chunk parsing. The module is present on-disk
+(`x86_64-efi/tga.mod`). PNG was failing despite a valid file; the exact GRUB bug is
+unknown but the PNG reader in Debian bookworm's grub2 is known to be fragile.
+
+The old `bee-logo.png` is kept in the tree (may be useful for other tools) but is no
+longer referenced by the theme.
+
+## Relevant files
+
+| File | Purpose |
+|------|---------|
+| `iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/config.cfg` | insmod png, gfxterm init, theme source |
+| `iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/theme.cfg` | sets `theme=` path |
+| `iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/live-theme/theme.txt` | image component definition |
+| `iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/live-theme/bee-logo.png` | the logo PNG |

iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/config.cfg

@@ -27,5 +27,5 @@ insmod gfxterm
 terminal_input console serial
 terminal_output gfxterm serial
 
-insmod png
+insmod tga
 source /boot/grub/theme.cfg

iso/builder/config/bootloaders/grub-efi/live-theme/theme.txt

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ terminal-font: "Unifont Regular 16"
 + image {
         top = 4%
         left = 50%-200
-        file = "bee-logo.png"
+        file = "bee-logo.tga"
 }
 
 #help bar at the bottom