systemd boot into console

cd /lib/systemd/system
ln -sf multi-user-target default.target

or alternatively:

systemctl set-default multi-user.target

you might need to pass “text” rather than “quiet boot” to your kernel through grub (in ubuntu, edit /etc/default/grub then run update-grub)

find the original command to see how terminals are started:

grep ExecStart /lib/systemd/system/getty@.service

the output is something like

ExecStart=-/sbin/agetty -o '-p -- \\u' --noclear %I $TERM

edit getty@1.service for the first tty:

systemctl edit getty@tty1

now write the following lines:

[Service]
ExecStart=
ExecStart=-/sbin/agetty --autologin myuser --noclear %I $TERM

where myuser should be replaced with the username of the user that should be logged in. removing the -o '-p – \\u' removes the password prompt. if you leave this in the user will be automatically selected but you still need to enter the password to continue.

edit ~/.bash_profile