diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 02d4d7e..39680ac 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.28) 
 
+# grab commands
+include(ExternalProject)
+
 # dear god
 project(lindows)
 
@@ -8,19 +11,47 @@ set(CMAKE_MODULE_PATH "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}/cmake.d/")
 find_package(NTFS3g REQUIRED)
 find_package(CoreUtils REQUIRED)
 find_package(MTools REQUIRED)
+# TODO: find_package for python (for GRUB)
+# TODO: find_package for bison (for GRUB)
+# TODO: find_package for flex (for GRUB)
+# TODO: find_package for sfdisk (for disk image generation)
+# TODO: find_package for mkfs.vfat (for GRUB)
+# TODO: add mmd to mtools
+# TODO: add mkdir to coreutils
 
 # make c drive mount point
 file(MAKE_DIRECTORY "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/lindows_c")
 file(MAKE_DIRECTORY "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/lindows_efi")
 
+# build grub
+file(MAKE_DIRECTORY "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/grub")
+ExternalProject_Add(GRUB
+	GIT_REPOSITORY    "https://git.savannah.gnu.org/git/grub.git"
+	GIT_TAG           "grub-2.12"
+	GIT_SHALLOW       TRUE
+	GIT_PROGRESS      TRUE
+	UPDATE_COMMAND    "" # the commit is fixed, we will never need to update
+	                     # this should make it stop rebuilding every `make`
+	CONFIGURE_COMMAND ./bootstrap
+	COMMAND           ./configure
+		--host=x86_64-pc-linux-gnu
+		--target=x86_64
+		--with-platform=efi
+		--disable-efiemu
+		--prefix=${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/grub
+	BUILD_COMMAND     make
+	BUILD_IN_SOURCE   TRUE
+	INSTALL_COMMAND   make install
+)
+
 # this should probably be a shell script, i unfortunately do not care
 add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows_c.img
-	# create empty 16MiB disk image
+	# create empty 128MiB disk image
 	COMMAND "${CoreUtils_dd_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS
 		if=/dev/zero
 		of=lindows_c.img
 		bs=1M
-		count=16
+		count=128
 	# format disk with new NTFS filesystem
 	COMMAND "${NTFS3g_Mkfs_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS -F # scary!
 		-L Windows
@@ -31,8 +62,18 @@ add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows_c.img
 		lindows_c.img
 		lindows_c
 	
-	# create dirs
+	# create system folders
 	COMMAND mkdir ARGS lindows_c/Windows
+	COMMAND mkdir ARGS lindows_c/Windows/GRUB
+	COMMAND mkdir ARGS lindows_c/Windows/GRUB/x86_64-efi
+
+	# grub stuff
+	COMMAND cp ${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/grub/lib/grub/x86_64-efi/* lindows_c/Windows/GRUB/x86_64-efi
+
+	# copy linux kernel from host please replace with custom kernel
+	COMMAND cp ARGS /boot/vmlinuz-linux lindows_c/Windows/vmlinuz-linux
+
+	# create users folder
 	COMMAND mkdir ARGS lindows_c/Users
 
 	# unmount filesystem
@@ -41,25 +82,36 @@ add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows_c.img
 
 # this makes the efi system partition
 add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows_efi.img
+	COMMAND mkdir ARGS -p lindows_efi/
+	COMMAND "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/grub/bin/grub-mkimage" ARGS
+		-p /Windows/GRUB
+		-O x86_64-efi
+		-o lindows_efi/grubx64.efi 
+		-c ${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}/src/grub/grub-early.cfg
+		part_gpt ntfs
 	COMMAND "${CoreUtils_dd_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS
 		if=/dev/zero
 		of=lindows_efi.img
 		bs=1M
-		count=16
-	COMMAND "${MTools_Format_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS -F -i lindows_efi.img
+		count=33
+	COMMAND mkfs.vfat lindows_efi.img -F 32
+	COMMAND mmd -i lindows_efi.img ::/EFI
+	COMMAND mmd -i lindows_efi.img ::/EFI/BOOT
+	COMMAND ${MTools_Copy_EXECUTABLE} -i lindows_efi.img lindows_efi/grubx64.efi ::/EFI/BOOT/BOOTX64.EFI
+	DEPENDS src/grub/grub-early.cfg
 )
 
 # make the full disk image
 add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows.img
 	COMMAND echo ARGS label: gpt > disk.sfdisk
 	COMMAND echo ARGS unit: sectors >> disk.sfdisk
-	COMMAND echo ARGS 1M  16M C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B - >> disk.sfdisk
-	COMMAND echo ARGS 17M 16M EBD0A0A2-B9E5-4433-87C0-68B6B72699C7 - >> disk.sfdisk
+	COMMAND echo ARGS 1MiB  33MiB  C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B - >> disk.sfdisk
+	COMMAND echo ARGS 34MiB 128MiB EBD0A0A2-B9E5-4433-87C0-68B6B72699C7 - >> disk.sfdisk
 	COMMAND "${CoreUtils_dd_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS
 		if=/dev/zero
 		of=lindows.img
 		bs=1M
-		count=64
+		count=256
 	# partition disk
 	COMMAND sfdisk ARGS lindows.img < disk.sfdisk
 	# write partitions
@@ -67,14 +119,16 @@ add_custom_command(OUTPUT lindows.img
 		if=lindows_efi.img
 		of=lindows.img
 		bs=1M
-		count=16
+		count=33
 		seek=1
+		conv=notrunc
 	COMMAND "${CoreUtils_dd_EXECUTABLE}" ARGS
 		if=lindows_c.img
 		of=lindows.img
 		bs=1M
-		count=16
-		seek=17
+		count=128
+		seek=34
+		conv=notrunc
 	DEPENDS lindows_c.img lindows_efi.img
 	BYPRODUCTS disk.sfdisk
 )
diff --git a/cmake.d/FindMTools.cmake b/cmake.d/FindMTools.cmake
index 41f29c3..b546e90 100644
--- a/cmake.d/FindMTools.cmake
+++ b/cmake.d/FindMTools.cmake
@@ -13,6 +13,8 @@ Defines the following variables:
   True if the system has mtools
 ``MTools_Format_EXECUTABLE``
   Path to mformat
+``MTools_Copy_EXECUTABLE``
+  Path to mcopy
 
 #]=============================]
 
@@ -21,8 +23,12 @@ include(FindPackageHandleStandardArgs)
 # mformat
 find_program(MTools_Format_EXECUTABLE NAMES mformat)
 
+# mcopy
+find_program(MTools_Copy_EXECUTABLE NAMES mcopy)
+
 find_package_handle_standard_args(MTools
 	FOUND_VAR MTools_FOUND
 	REQUIRED_VARS
 		MTools_Format_EXECUTABLE
+		MTools_Copy_EXECUTABLE
 )
diff --git a/src/grub/grub-early.cfg b/src/grub/grub-early.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..da3d611
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/grub/grub-early.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+set root=(hd0,gpt2)
+set prefix=($root)/Windows/GRUB