It's worth noting that Chrome OS also uses UEFI to provide its secure boot experience - so this isn't an example of Microsoft being more draconian than usual - and in the case of the Cr-48 Chromebook, there is a hardware switch that lets you disable secure boot. Microsoft has already said (at the Build Windows conference (Opens in a new window)) that it is investigating dual boot, so there's probably no need to panic just yet - but if you're a power user, then you should at least be worried. In the first case, installing Linux will be possible in the second, it won't be. Now, there are two scenarios: the secure key can be made available to the machine's owner (via a sticker on the case, or something), or the key will be kept private to Microsoft and its vendors (OEMs). If the OS knows this key, it can add and remove drivers and executables from a whitelist (or blacklist, in the case of known-bad drivers or malware) obviously this is good (or at least interesting) from a security standpoint. The way this works is that every UEFI firmware chip is pre-loaded with a secure key. In other words, a Windows 8 PC could be set up so that it only boot from files that have been signed by Microsoft or an OEM vendor and obviously, an open-source, build-it-yourself Linux boot loader isn't going to be signed by Microsoft.
On the outset, this is certainly a good thing - UEFI (Opens in a new window) is the reason that Windows 8 can detect rootkits and malware at boot time (Opens in a new window), and it's part of the reason that Windows 8 can start so quickly - but UEFI could also be used to block other operating systems, such as Linux (Opens in a new window), from being installed.ĭubbed "secure boot," UEFI has the capability to prevent any unsigned executables or drivers from being loaded. To be certified as a fully-compliant, bona fide Windows 8 logo device, a prospective PC must replace its aging BIOS with the new-fangled Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI).
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