Libreboot now boots via UEFI, too

The new Libreboot 26.10 “Ominous Olive” uses EDK2 as the default payload on most supported computers. It also adds configurations for 233 devices from the MrChromebox project.

On compatible hardware, Libreboot replaces the manufacturer’s firmware with an open-source alternative. It initializes the computer and then starts the operating system. The project is aimed at users who want to control or customize their boot firmware themselves.

EDK2 replaces the previous x86 payloads

According to the Libreboot 26.10 release notes, the new version uses EDK2 on nearly all supported 64-bit systems. The UEFI implementation comes from the MrChromebox project and runs as a coreboot payload. Libreboot computers can now also boot UEFI installations of Windows 10 and 11. The project has also tested Linux with Unified Kernel Images (UKI), as well as OpenBSD and FreeBSD, in UEFI mode.

For existing installations, the firmware image includes GRUB as an EFI version and SeaBIOS as a compatibility module. They are accessible through the EDK2 boot menu. The standalone coreboot payloads GRUB and SeaBIOS are being dropped on most boards; older 32-bit computers and some special cases retain them. EDK2 replaces U-Boot on x86, but U-Boot remains on ARM64.

Chromebook configurations

Libreboot is adding 233 configurations for Intel and AMD devices from the MrChromebox project. According to the release notes, they can all be built. So far, however, only the Bay Trail device “Kip” has been tested. The project does not provide ready-made firmware images for the newly added devices in this version, so anyone interested will have to build them from source.

The version also adds support for the ThinkPad X270 and X280, the Dell OptiPlex 5050 SFF, and the Supermicro X11SSH-F motherboard, among others. For AMD Fam15h boards such as the Asus KGPE-D16, Libreboot is switching to a coreboot fork from 15h.org. It is supposed to initialize processors and memory more reliably and support more RAM.

Anyone upgrading an existing system should check the limitations listed in the release notes. The EDK2 menu in Libreboot 26.10 defaults to a British keyboard layout; firmware images with selectable keyboard layouts are no longer available. When booting through CSMWrap, the Linux system that starts afterward has one fewer CPU core available, according to the release notes. The project therefore recommends using the EFI version of GRUB for older installations whenever possible.

Smaller changes include an EDK2 setup that can save settings such as the boot order, iPXE as a boot option on compatible boards, and updated components, including GRUB 2.16. Libreboot has also revamped its build system, adding support for multiple upstream source trees per project, among other changes. The project has also introduced a policy against using AI in its work and documented it in the build system.

(fo)