BIOS, which serves as the interface between software and hardware, has already accompanied computers on a long road of 20 years. Although engineers have been continually improving its functions, its core nature has never changed. Recently, Intel's EFI technology has burst onto the scene. It changes the old blue BIOS screen, adopts a graphical interface, is simple to operate, and can even be used to go online, replace drivers, troubleshoot faults, and so on. ?
BIOS: nearly 20 years of history
In using computers, we often come across the term BIOS—basically everyone has heard of it. BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is responsible for initialization work before the operating system runs, including checking system hardware and connecting the various hardware inside the computer with the operating system. It is software written in low-level assembly language and stored in ROM (Read Only Memory) on the motherboard, which ensures that the basic information in it cannot be read or written by programs.
By updating the BIOS, many motherboard bugs can be fixed, and system performance, compatibility, and stability can be improved. But flashing the BIOS is often a very painful affair, making many users hesitate to try it.
Today, when everything stresses user-friendliness, the drawbacks of BIOS are becoming more and more apparent. First, the method of flashing the BIOS is too cumbersome. Although many motherboard makers have introduced tools for flashing the BIOS under Windows, they merely complete a simple flash. Compared with the rapid development of other devices, BIOS has stood still and is gradually unable to meet the needs of modern technology. Second, BIOS uses low-level machine language, and programming it is quite complex and difficult, so BIOS updates often take a very long time. Now that the future PC architecture is gradually taking shape, the old BIOS also needs some reform. Intel is brewing just such an innovation plan.
EFI bursts onto the scene
EFI stands for Extensible Firmware Interface, a technology Intel uses to replace the current BIOS. In fact, development began as early as 2000, with companies such as Adaptec, AMI, ATI, HP, LSI, Microsoft, and PowerQuest also joining in. The first version was 0.92, and now it has developed to version 1.10. EFI was originally designed only for IA-64 processors, and it was not until IDF 2003 that it was brought onto the stage, officially opening the curtain on BIOS reform.
At IDF 2003, Intel EFI chief engineer Mark Doran pointed out many shortcomings of BIOS. For example, BIOS designers could not predict how long BIOS would be used, and so hidden problems were left in the design. BIOS connects hardware and the operating system, but there is no standard for this connection. BIOS implementations also differ among different manufacturers. Manufacturers can modify and configure them as they wish. When users configure the system and diagnose problems through BIOS, it often does not help much. Even experienced veterans can sometimes feel confused by BIOS-related issues.
EFI boot manager
EFI can solve the above problems. From the core point of view, EFI may be more like a simplified operating system. It sits between hardware devices and high-level operating systems (such as Windows or Linux). It provides a graphical interface with mouse support, clearly different from the plain-text, monotonous interface of ordinary BIOS. Traditional BIOS is limited by capacity and requires very compact, low-level machine language. In fact, machine language has always been in the hands of a small number of engineers, while EFI is written in the world's most widely used high-level language, C. This means more engineers can take part in EFI development and add many more valuable functions. To ensure sufficient capacity, EFI completely abandons ROM, and its file system is stored in a separately designated area on the hard disk.
EFI's basic functions are:
disk management and boot management tools that do not require an operating system;
remote configuration and booting;
platform management tools independent of the operating system.
EFI's working mode can be summarized simply as follows: start the system, initialize the standard firmware platform, then load the EFI driver library and execute the related programs, select the system to enter from the EFI system boot menu and submit the boot code to EFI; if all goes normally, the system is entered, otherwise boot services are terminated and it returns to the EFI system boot menu. EFI can replace the functions of BIOS, and its special functions have been strengthened. For example, after the system crashes, the user can enter EFI and solve problems in the operating system by changing configuration, loading different drivers, and other means. EFI conforms to the TCP/IP networking protocol, so users can use network resources and perform remote diagnosis in the EFI interface, but this does not apply to DOS, Linux, and other systems. Engineers can also add new functions to EFI according to different needs, such as more detailed and practical diagnostic functions, self-configuration programs, listing possible system faults, and so on.
What does EFI bring users?
What EFI will bring to users is what users most want to know. In summary, EFI can bring users the following changes:
A more intuitive interface and simpler operation. Many entry-level users generally do not dare to change BIOS settings lightly, because to them BIOS is quite profound, and once a problem appears they are caught off guard. The appearance of EFI solves this problem. Its user-friendly graphical interface is much easier than traditional BIOS setup, and it can also let users with weak English understand what each setting is aimed at.
Richer functions. Because it uses the advanced and widespread C language, developers can create many practical functions, and these functions may be quite beneficial to users. It can make debugging the computer and troubleshooting simpler. Among the current functions, its integrated disk management and boot management are quite practical, making disk partitioning simple.
Making performance enhancements easier. As everyone knows, we often rely on BIOS upgrades to improve system performance and strengthen compatibility and stability between devices. Now, after switching to C programming, the old machine language will be completely abandoned. According to materials released by Mark Doran, in EFI programming, developers only need to understand the previous BIOS knowledge to take part, and because they use the much simpler C language, the speed of writing programs can be three times that of the past. Function enhancements and shorter development time benefit us greatly in use. And in the future, flashing EFI will not be as troublesome as it is today, and the virtually useless floppy drive can retire completely as well.
EFI's hidden dangers that must be mentioned
Everything has two sides, and while EFI is innovating across the board, it also exposes some rather obvious defects.
First, EFI isolates a small partition on the hard disk as storage space. As everyone knows, the hard disk is one of the rather fragile components, and it is hard to guarantee that no problems will occur during use. If physical damage occurs, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Second, for EFI, which is based on a software system, its resistance to viruses and hackers is certainly greatly weakened compared with BIOS. And because it is written in C and many people understand it, it is no longer mysterious. I believe many people will be able to crack it quite easily. This places higher demands on EFI's security.
Third, TCP/IP support makes it completely useless on Linux; it can be said that EFI is designed for Windows. This may greatly reduce its range of application. However, since Windows currently controls almost all PC users, whether it supports Linux is, in my personal opinion, not very meaningful.
Even so, since EFI is still a brand-new thing that has only just been introduced, there is still plenty of time to improve it. Relying on Wintel's influence in the industry, making EFI a widely used standard is no difficult matter. And given the strength of these two companies, if these defects can be solved, then they certainly will be solved.
The end of BIOS, an outlook for the future PC
With its own technical characteristics, EFI can be widely used in embedded applications, network computers, network client computers, and other products. At present, EFI is used on Intel's 64-bit Itanium processors; if it is to be used on 32-bit platforms, it may still take some time. Microsoft is currently developing operating systems that support EFI, and has stated that the next-generation Windows, code-named Longhorn, will support EFI. Perhaps EFI really is not far away from us.
At present, many old architectural standards are facing challenges, including interface standards and bus standards. From the i875P, Intel is vigorously promoting USB interfaces, integrating as many as six USB ports on the rear panel. Interfaces such as the parallel port and serial port, which usually just gather dust on PCs, will disappear, and the PCI bus that has existed for more than ten years will also soon be replaced by PCI Express and HyperTransport. It can be said that everything left over from the IBM PC AT system 20 years ago will be completely abolished and replaced by an entirely new hardware architecture. In this way, future PC systems will rapidly advance toward higher goals, and we look forward to it.
BIOS: nearly 20 years of history
In using computers, we often come across the term BIOS—basically everyone has heard of it. BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is responsible for initialization work before the operating system runs, including checking system hardware and connecting the various hardware inside the computer with the operating system. It is software written in low-level assembly language and stored in ROM (Read Only Memory) on the motherboard, which ensures that the basic information in it cannot be read or written by programs.
By updating the BIOS, many motherboard bugs can be fixed, and system performance, compatibility, and stability can be improved. But flashing the BIOS is often a very painful affair, making many users hesitate to try it.
Today, when everything stresses user-friendliness, the drawbacks of BIOS are becoming more and more apparent. First, the method of flashing the BIOS is too cumbersome. Although many motherboard makers have introduced tools for flashing the BIOS under Windows, they merely complete a simple flash. Compared with the rapid development of other devices, BIOS has stood still and is gradually unable to meet the needs of modern technology. Second, BIOS uses low-level machine language, and programming it is quite complex and difficult, so BIOS updates often take a very long time. Now that the future PC architecture is gradually taking shape, the old BIOS also needs some reform. Intel is brewing just such an innovation plan.
EFI bursts onto the scene
EFI stands for Extensible Firmware Interface, a technology Intel uses to replace the current BIOS. In fact, development began as early as 2000, with companies such as Adaptec, AMI, ATI, HP, LSI, Microsoft, and PowerQuest also joining in. The first version was 0.92, and now it has developed to version 1.10. EFI was originally designed only for IA-64 processors, and it was not until IDF 2003 that it was brought onto the stage, officially opening the curtain on BIOS reform.
At IDF 2003, Intel EFI chief engineer Mark Doran pointed out many shortcomings of BIOS. For example, BIOS designers could not predict how long BIOS would be used, and so hidden problems were left in the design. BIOS connects hardware and the operating system, but there is no standard for this connection. BIOS implementations also differ among different manufacturers. Manufacturers can modify and configure them as they wish. When users configure the system and diagnose problems through BIOS, it often does not help much. Even experienced veterans can sometimes feel confused by BIOS-related issues.
EFI boot manager
EFI can solve the above problems. From the core point of view, EFI may be more like a simplified operating system. It sits between hardware devices and high-level operating systems (such as Windows or Linux). It provides a graphical interface with mouse support, clearly different from the plain-text, monotonous interface of ordinary BIOS. Traditional BIOS is limited by capacity and requires very compact, low-level machine language. In fact, machine language has always been in the hands of a small number of engineers, while EFI is written in the world's most widely used high-level language, C. This means more engineers can take part in EFI development and add many more valuable functions. To ensure sufficient capacity, EFI completely abandons ROM, and its file system is stored in a separately designated area on the hard disk.
EFI's basic functions are:
disk management and boot management tools that do not require an operating system;
remote configuration and booting;
platform management tools independent of the operating system.
EFI's working mode can be summarized simply as follows: start the system, initialize the standard firmware platform, then load the EFI driver library and execute the related programs, select the system to enter from the EFI system boot menu and submit the boot code to EFI; if all goes normally, the system is entered, otherwise boot services are terminated and it returns to the EFI system boot menu. EFI can replace the functions of BIOS, and its special functions have been strengthened. For example, after the system crashes, the user can enter EFI and solve problems in the operating system by changing configuration, loading different drivers, and other means. EFI conforms to the TCP/IP networking protocol, so users can use network resources and perform remote diagnosis in the EFI interface, but this does not apply to DOS, Linux, and other systems. Engineers can also add new functions to EFI according to different needs, such as more detailed and practical diagnostic functions, self-configuration programs, listing possible system faults, and so on.
What does EFI bring users?
What EFI will bring to users is what users most want to know. In summary, EFI can bring users the following changes:
A more intuitive interface and simpler operation. Many entry-level users generally do not dare to change BIOS settings lightly, because to them BIOS is quite profound, and once a problem appears they are caught off guard. The appearance of EFI solves this problem. Its user-friendly graphical interface is much easier than traditional BIOS setup, and it can also let users with weak English understand what each setting is aimed at.
Richer functions. Because it uses the advanced and widespread C language, developers can create many practical functions, and these functions may be quite beneficial to users. It can make debugging the computer and troubleshooting simpler. Among the current functions, its integrated disk management and boot management are quite practical, making disk partitioning simple.
Making performance enhancements easier. As everyone knows, we often rely on BIOS upgrades to improve system performance and strengthen compatibility and stability between devices. Now, after switching to C programming, the old machine language will be completely abandoned. According to materials released by Mark Doran, in EFI programming, developers only need to understand the previous BIOS knowledge to take part, and because they use the much simpler C language, the speed of writing programs can be three times that of the past. Function enhancements and shorter development time benefit us greatly in use. And in the future, flashing EFI will not be as troublesome as it is today, and the virtually useless floppy drive can retire completely as well.
EFI's hidden dangers that must be mentioned
Everything has two sides, and while EFI is innovating across the board, it also exposes some rather obvious defects.
First, EFI isolates a small partition on the hard disk as storage space. As everyone knows, the hard disk is one of the rather fragile components, and it is hard to guarantee that no problems will occur during use. If physical damage occurs, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Second, for EFI, which is based on a software system, its resistance to viruses and hackers is certainly greatly weakened compared with BIOS. And because it is written in C and many people understand it, it is no longer mysterious. I believe many people will be able to crack it quite easily. This places higher demands on EFI's security.
Third, TCP/IP support makes it completely useless on Linux; it can be said that EFI is designed for Windows. This may greatly reduce its range of application. However, since Windows currently controls almost all PC users, whether it supports Linux is, in my personal opinion, not very meaningful.
Even so, since EFI is still a brand-new thing that has only just been introduced, there is still plenty of time to improve it. Relying on Wintel's influence in the industry, making EFI a widely used standard is no difficult matter. And given the strength of these two companies, if these defects can be solved, then they certainly will be solved.
The end of BIOS, an outlook for the future PC
With its own technical characteristics, EFI can be widely used in embedded applications, network computers, network client computers, and other products. At present, EFI is used on Intel's 64-bit Itanium processors; if it is to be used on 32-bit platforms, it may still take some time. Microsoft is currently developing operating systems that support EFI, and has stated that the next-generation Windows, code-named Longhorn, will support EFI. Perhaps EFI really is not far away from us.
At present, many old architectural standards are facing challenges, including interface standards and bus standards. From the i875P, Intel is vigorously promoting USB interfaces, integrating as many as six USB ports on the rear panel. Interfaces such as the parallel port and serial port, which usually just gather dust on PCs, will disappear, and the PCI bus that has existed for more than ten years will also soon be replaced by PCI Express and HyperTransport. It can be said that everything left over from the IBM PC AT system 20 years ago will be completely abolished and replaced by an entirely new hardware architecture. In this way, future PC systems will rapidly advance toward higher goals, and we look forward to it.
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uploadImages/200311161145850422.swf
uploadImages/200311161145850422.swf
