Find the right bootloader solution or combination of firmware required to boot a platform considering its security, product features, and optimized boot solutions. This book covers system boot firmware, focusing on real-world firmware migration from closed source to open source adaptation. The book provides an architectural overview of popular boot firmware. This includes both closed sourced and/or open source in nature, such as Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI), coreboot, and Slim Bootloader and their applicable market segments based on product development and deployment requirements. Traditional system firmware is often complex and closed sourced whereas modern firmware is still a kind of hybrid between closed and open source. But what might a future firmware model look like? The most simplistic boot firmware solution uses open source firmware development. This book helps you decide how to choose the right boot firmware for your products and develop your own boot firmware using open source. Coverage includes: Why open source firmware is used over closed source The pros and cons of closed and open source firmware A hybrid work model: for faster bring-up activity using closed source, binary integrated with open source firmware What You Will Learn Understand the architecture of standard and popular boot firmware Pick the correct bootloader for your required target hardware Design a hybrid workflow model for the latest chipset platform Understand popular payload architectures and offerings for embedded systems Select the right payload for your bootloader solution to boot to the operating system Optimize the system firmware boot time based on your target hardware requirement Know the product development cycle using open source firmware development Who This Book Is For Embedded firmware and software engineers migrating the product development from closed source firmware to open source firmware for product adaptation needs as well as engineers working for open source firmware development. A secondary audience includes engineers working on various bootloaders such as open source firmware, UEFI, and Slim Bootloader development, as well as undergraduate and graduate students working on developing firmware skill sets.

Build your own system firmware. This book helps you understand system firmware architecture and minimalistic design, and provides a specialized knowledge of firmware development. The book includes guidance on understanding the system firmware build procedure, integrating pieces of firmware and allowing configuration, updating system firmware, creating a development infrastructure for allowing multi-party collaboration in firmware development, and gaining advanced system firmware debugging knowledge. After reading the book you will be able to assume better control while developing your own firmware and know how to interact with native hardware while debugging. You will understand key principles for future firmware development using newer technology, and be ready for the introduction of modern safe programming languages for firmware development. Detailed system firmware development case studies using a futuristic approach cover: Future scalable system firmware development models Types of firmware development (system firmware, device firmware, manageability firmware) Tools and their usage while creating system firmware How to build infrastructure for seamless firmware development using a multi-party development model Debugging methodologies used during various phases of firmware product development Setting up key expectations for future firmware, including thinner firmware footprints and faster execution time, easier configuration, and increased transparent security What You Will Learn Understand the system firmware working model of the future Gain knowledge to say goodbye to proprietary firmware for different types of firmware development Know the different types of tools required for creating firmware source code before flashing the final image into the boot device of the embedded system Develop skills to understand the failure in firmware or in the system and prepare the debugging environment to root cause the defects Discern the platform minimal security requirement Optimize the system firmware boot time based on the target hardware requirement Comprehend the product development cycle using open source firmware development Who This Book Is For Embedded firmware and software engineers migrating the product development from closed source firmware to open source firmware for product adaptation needs as well as engineers working for open source firmware development. A secondary audience includes engineers working on various bootloaders such as open source firmware, UEFI, and Slim Bootloader development, as well as undergraduate and graduate students working on developing firmware skill sets.