diff --git a/debian/changelog b/debian/changelog
index 6cff81ff..444bcf00 100644
--- a/debian/changelog
+++ b/debian/changelog
@@ -1,3 +1,14 @@
+livecd-rootfs (2.479) bionic; urgency=medium
+
+  * Purge initramfs-tools from minimized images.
+  * Make sure to remove any initramfs that was generated in a minimized
+    image.
+  * divert /usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt as part of the grub diversions, so
+    that the grub kernel postinst hook is operational when we're building
+    in a container.  LP: #1729034.
+
+ -- Steve Langasek <steve.langasek@ubuntu.com>  Tue, 31 Oct 2017 09:58:35 -0700
+
 livecd-rootfs (2.478) artful; urgency=medium
 
   [ Michael Hudson-Doyle ]
diff --git a/live-build/auto/build b/live-build/auto/build
index 41c21337..e2d9359e 100755
--- a/live-build/auto/build
+++ b/live-build/auto/build
@@ -210,6 +210,27 @@ EOF
 
 	lb chroot "$@"
 
+	if [ "${SUBPROJECT:-}" = minimized ]; then
+		# force removal of initramfs-tools, which we assert is not
+		# required for any minimized images but is still pulled in by
+		# default
+		Chroot chroot "env DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive \
+			apt-get -y purge initramfs-tools busybox-initramfs \
+				busybox-static"
+		# and if initramfs-tools was configured before our kernel,
+		# /etc/kernel/postinst.d/initramfs-tools will have created
+		# an initramfs despite the generic dpkg-divert; so remove it
+		# here.
+		rm -f chroot/boot/initrd.img-*
+
+		# temporary workaround: don't remove linux-base which
+		# may have no other reverse-depends currently
+		Chroot chroot "env DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive \
+			apt-mark manual linux-base"
+		Chroot chroot "env DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive \
+			apt-get -y --purge autoremove"
+	fi
+
 	if [ -f config/oem-config-preinstalled ]; then
 
 # This is cargo-culted almost verbatim (with some syntax changes for
diff --git a/live-build/functions b/live-build/functions
index f05aaf8e..549f3be3 100644
--- a/live-build/functions
+++ b/live-build/functions
@@ -300,6 +300,15 @@ divert_grub() {
 	chroot "$CHROOT_ROOT" dpkg-divert --local \
 		--divert /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober.dpkg-divert \
 		--rename /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober
+
+	# Divert systemd-detect-virt; /etc/kernel/postinst.d/zz-update-grub
+	# no-ops if we are in a container, and the launchpad farm runs builds
+	# in lxd.  We therefore pretend that we're never in a container (by
+	# exiting 1).
+	chroot "$CHROOT_ROOT" dpkg-divert --local \
+		--rename /usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt
+	echo "exit 1" > "$CHROOT_ROOT"/usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt
+	chmod +x "$CHROOT_ROOT"/usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt
 }
 
 undivert_grub() {
@@ -312,4 +321,8 @@ undivert_grub() {
 	chroot "$CHROOT_ROOT" dpkg-divert --remove --local \
 		--divert /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober.dpkg-divert \
 		--rename /etc/grub.d/30_os-prober
+
+	rm "$CHROOT_ROOT"/usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt
+	chroot "$CHROOT_ROOT" dpkg-divert --remove --local \
+		--rename /usr/bin/systemd-detect-virt
 }