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From my understanding the *project* was never known under these names, but only used by products that included Libreboot
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Restored revision 1159082613 by Rosguill (talk): (1) I also questioned or saw questioned ItsFoss or FossForce, years ago, but I find zero discussion at WP:RSN and both are widely used at Wikipedia. Point to good consensus discussion anywhere? The two cites seem OK for the basic statement. (2) We go by what sources say, not our understanding or opinion. See Hoffman PCWorld cite and summary.
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'''Libreboot''' (briefly known as '''GNU Libreboot''') is a [[free software]] project based on [[coreboot]], aimed at replacing the proprietary [[BIOS]] [[firmware]] used by most computers. Libreboot is a lightweight system designed to perform only the minimum number of tasks necessary to load and run a modern [[32-bit]] or [[64-bit]] [[operating system]].
'''Libreboot''' (previously marketed as '''Gluglug''', '''GNU Libreboot''', and '''Libiquity Taurinus''') is a [[free software]] project based on [[coreboot]], aimed at replacing the proprietary [[BIOS]] [[firmware]] used by most computers. Libreboot is a lightweight system designed to perform only the minimum number of tasks necessary to load and run a modern [[32-bit]] or [[64-bit]] [[operating system]].


== Characteristics ==
== Characteristics ==
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In September 2016, The Libiquity Taurinus X200 with Free Software Foundation approval was one of 10 laptops recommended for "Linux lovers" by Nick Heath of TechRepublic.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Heath |first=Nick |date=2016-09-23 |title=Fed up with Windows 10? Check out these 10 laptops for Linux lovers |url=https://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/fed-up-with-windows-10-10-laptops-for-linux-lovers/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=TechRepublic |language=en-US}}</ref>
In September 2016, The Libiquity Taurinus X200 with Free Software Foundation approval was one of 10 laptops recommended for "Linux lovers" by Nick Heath of TechRepublic.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Heath |first=Nick |date=2016-09-23 |title=Fed up with Windows 10? Check out these 10 laptops for Linux lovers |url=https://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/fed-up-with-windows-10-10-laptops-for-linux-lovers/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=TechRepublic |language=en-US}}</ref>

According to Christine Hall of FossForce, Libreboot project work by Leah Rowe had been endorsed by the Free Software Foundation, and been an official part of the GNU Project since May 2016. In January 2017, Libreboot work by Rowe officially separated from the GNU Project, after about 4 months of controversy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Christine |date=2017-01-06 |title=GNU Officially Boots Libreboot |url=https://fossforce.com/2017/01/gnu-officially-boots-libreboot/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=FOSS Force |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Christine |date=2016-09-16 |title=Libreboot Leaves GNU Claiming Gender Identity Discrimination by FSF |url=https://fossforce.com/2016/09/libreboot-leaves-gnu-claiming-gender-identity-discrimination-fsf/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=FOSS Force |language=en-US}}</ref>

In November 2021 ItsFoss said the GNU Project released the third release of Libreboot as a test release requiring "additional stabilization and testing". Libreboot was called "a completely free project fork" of CoreBoot, which also includes tools that users without special skills can use.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-27 |title=Libreboot 20211122 Released, a completely free Coreboot distribution - itsfoss.net |url=https://www.itsfoss.net/libreboot-20211122-released/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |language=en-US}}</ref> According to TUX MACHINES, releases of Libreboot in 2021 were the first in nearly 5 years.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Libreboot 20210522 released! {{!}} Tux Machines |url=http://www.tuxmachines.org/node/151505?quicktabs_bottomtabs=0 |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=www.tuxmachines.org}}</ref>


In March 2023, a new website, libreboot.at, and a [[GNU]]/[[Free Software Foundation|FSF]]-sponsored project again using the Libreboot name was announced at [[LibrePlanet]] 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Libreboot - Free Software Directory |url=https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Libreboot |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=directory.fsf.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Taking control over the means of production: Free software boot — GNU MediaGoblin |url=https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/taking-control-over-the-means-of-production-free-software-boot/ |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=media.libreplanet.org}}</ref>
In March 2023, a new website, libreboot.at, and a [[GNU]]/[[Free Software Foundation|FSF]]-sponsored project again using the Libreboot name was announced at [[LibrePlanet]] 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Libreboot - Free Software Directory |url=https://directory.fsf.org/wiki/Libreboot |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=directory.fsf.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Taking control over the means of production: Free software boot — GNU MediaGoblin |url=https://media.libreplanet.org/u/libreplanet/m/taking-control-over-the-means-of-production-free-software-boot/ |access-date=2023-05-27 |website=media.libreplanet.org}}</ref>

Revision as of 08:51, 8 June 2023

Libreboot
Original author(s)Leah Rowe and hundreds of other contributors
Developer(s)Hundreds of contributors
Initial release12 December 2013; 10 years ago (2013-12-12)
Stable release20230625 (June 25, 2023; 10 months ago (2023-06-25)) [±][1]
Preview release20240225 (February 25, 2024; 2 months ago (2024-02-25)) [±][2]
Repository
TypeOpen-source firmware
License
Websitelibreboot.org Edit this on Wikidata

Libreboot (previously marketed as Gluglug, GNU Libreboot, and Libiquity Taurinus) is a free software project based on coreboot, aimed at replacing the proprietary BIOS firmware used by most computers. Libreboot is a lightweight system designed to perform only the minimum number of tasks necessary to load and run a modern 32-bit or 64-bit operating system.

Characteristics

As of 2017, supported hardware being sold with Libreboot by some vendors included the ThinkPad T400,[3] X60[4][5] and X200.[6]

History

Predecessors

In 2010, the Free Software Foundation began work on a "Respects Your Freedom" computer hardware product certification that "encourages the creation and sale of hardware that will do as much as possible to respect your freedom and your privacy".[7]

Libreboot, which began around 2013, according to "Embedded Firmware Solutions", is based on 13-years older coreboot and predecessors. Coreboot began as LinuxBIOS in 1999 at Los Alamos National Labs (LANL), and was renamed “coreboot” in 2008. By May 2014, coreboot had 10,207 commits made by 285 contributors. When Libreboot was established as a distribution of coreboot in 2013 it was said to be "nonproprietary software distribution".[8]

In 2018 Libreboot was described as having some proprietary binary blobs removed from coreboot.[9]

Reception

In April 2014, Dmitri Popov of Linux Magazine reviewed a refurbished IBM Lenovo ThinkPad X60 laptop purchased from Gluglug (GNU/Linux Libre User Group), which had received Respects Your Freedom hardware certification from the Free Software Foundation. Popov said the included operating system was Trisquel, describing it as "a perfect match for ThinkPad X60." Popov said gNewSense or Parabola were also options. Popov said the received hardware was in "decent cosmetic condition, but the screen lid had several deep scratches and the bottom side had some sticky stuff that took some time to remove". Also, "Cleaning the fan vent with a blower released a tiny cloud of dust," requiring a "wipe with a wet cloth". Popov said the worst was "the laptop reeked of cigarette smoke" initially and a slight cigarette smell remained after a couple weeks of intense use. Popov described the boot sequence as "quick", but said removal of proprietary firmware caused hardware keys (volume, playback, and keys used with the Fn key) to not work, and the screen brightness could not be changed from 100 percent, calling it "quite a nuisance". Popov concluded, "Short battery life and the inability to adjust screen brightness make the laptop less appealing as a travel companion", old hardware means it is not good as a "primary machine", and it would be better as "a secondary machine for hacking, coding, and writing" if you remain near a power outlet.[10]

In January 2015, the Free Software Foundation announced a second Libreboot laptop from Gluglug (a project of Minifree, Ltd) had received Respects Your Freedom certification.[11] In February 2015, Chris Hoffman of PC World wrote,

The Gluglug X60 was a refurbished ThinkPad X60, just as the LibreBoot X200 is a refurbished ThinkPad X200. The ThinkPad X60 is a laptop from 2006, even two years older than the 2008-vintage ThinkPad X200. There’s no way around it: This hardware is just plain dated.

Hoffman also said Gluglug’s developers reverse-engineered the laptop’s low-level firmware, created free software firmware to replace it, and installed that onto the laptop, but concluded "Sadly, it’ll take more than a refurbished laptop from seven years ago with reverse-engineered firmware to change the industry."[12]

In August 2015, Chris Hoffman of PC World said Gluglug laptops, the LibreBoot X200, unlike Purism’s laptops, "is actually endorsed by the Free Software Foundation." Hoffman concluded, "If you really do want a completely free software experience, avoid Purism for the foreseeable future and stick with Gluglug’s laptops."[13]

According to Kyle Rankin writing for Linux Journal in 2015, Libreboot "greatly simplified and automated" the flashing process, "with a few caveats".[4][5]

In September 2015, the Free Software Foundation announced a US company called Libiquity was the first US company to receive Respects Your Freedom certification. Libiquity also contributed to Libreboot, and led development of FSF-endorsed ProteanOS.[14] In September 2015, Steven Vaughan-Nichols, writing for ZDNET, said Libiquity's Taurinus X200 laptop with Libreboot was "only the second laptop to be given the RYF, and it's the first to be ME (Intel Management Engine) free". Vaughan-Nichols said it had all its original low-level firmware and operating system software replaced with the free-software boot system, Libreboot, so "No trace of ME has been left", and the Trisquel operating system.

To do this, Libreboot developers reverse engineered Intel's firmware. They then created a small software utility to produce a free firmware image that conforms to Intel's specifications. Finally, to install their firmware on the device, they used a serial peripheral interface (SPI) flasher. This is then used to completely overwrite the proprietary firmware with Libreboot and GNU GRUB 2.

Vaughan-Nichols quoted FSF's licensing and compliance manager, Joshua Gay, who said, "With a rise in manufacturing of treacherous computing chips and each successive version of Intel's Management Engine becoming more treacherous than the last... it is refreshing to have companies like Libiquity making strong commitments to computer user freedom." Libiquity founder Patrick McDermott said they were "honored to be the first US company" to receive RYF certification".[15]

In September 2016, The Libiquity Taurinus X200 with Free Software Foundation approval was one of 10 laptops recommended for "Linux lovers" by Nick Heath of TechRepublic.[16]

According to Christine Hall of FossForce, Libreboot project work by Leah Rowe had been endorsed by the Free Software Foundation, and been an official part of the GNU Project since May 2016. In January 2017, Libreboot work by Rowe officially separated from the GNU Project, after about 4 months of controversy.[17][18]

In November 2021 ItsFoss said the GNU Project released the third release of Libreboot as a test release requiring "additional stabilization and testing". Libreboot was called "a completely free project fork" of CoreBoot, which also includes tools that users without special skills can use.[19] According to TUX MACHINES, releases of Libreboot in 2021 were the first in nearly 5 years.[20]

In March 2023, a new website, libreboot.at, and a GNU/FSF-sponsored project again using the Libreboot name was announced at LibrePlanet 2023.[21][22]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Libreboot - Libreboot news". Libreboot. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  2. ^ "Libreboot - Libreboot news". Libreboot. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  3. ^ Biggs, John (11 August 2017). "The Minifree Libreboot T400 is free as in freedom". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  4. ^ a b Rankin, Kyle (28 September 2015). "Libreboot on an X60, Part I: the Setup". Linux Journal. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b Rankin, Kyle (28 October 2015). "Libreboot on an x60, Part II: the Installation". Linux Journal. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  6. ^ Rankin, Kyle (6 March 2017). "Flash ROMs with a Raspberry Pi". Linux Journal. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  7. ^ Noyes, Katherine (11 October 2012). "New FSF logo highlights hardware that 'Respects Your Freedom'". PCWorld. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  8. ^ Sun, Jiming; Jones, Marc; Reinauer, Stefan; Zimmer, Vincent (2015), Sun, Jiming; Jones, Marc; Reinauer, Stefan; Zimmer, Vincent (eds.), "Building coreboot with Intel FSP", Embedded Firmware Solutions: Development Best Practices for the Internet of Things, Berkeley, CA: Apress, pp. 55–95, doi:10.1007/978-1-4842-0070-4_4, ISBN 978-1-4842-0070-4, retrieved 27 May 2023
  9. ^ Bärwaldt, Erik (May 2018). "Liberated » Linux Magazine". Linux Magazine. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  10. ^ Popov, Dmitri (April 2014). ""An open source laptop from Gluglug, Purely Open Source"". Linux Magazine. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  11. ^ "Libreboot X200 laptop now FSF-certified to respect your freedom [LWN.net]". lwn.net. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  12. ^ Hoffman, Chris (5 February 2015). "The Free Software Foundation loves this laptop, but you won't". PCWorld. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  13. ^ Hoffman, Chris (7 August 2015). "Why Linux enthusiasts are arguing over Purism's sleek, idealistic Librem laptops". PCWorld. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  14. ^ "Taurinus X200 laptop now FSF-certified to respect your freedom [LWN.net]". lwn.net. 30 September 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  15. ^ Vaughan-Nichols, Steven J. (30 September 2015). "Taurinus X200: Now the most 'Free Software' laptop on the planet". ZDNet. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  16. ^ Heath, Nick (23 September 2016). "Fed up with Windows 10? Check out these 10 laptops for Linux lovers". TechRepublic. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  17. ^ Hall, Christine (6 January 2017). "GNU Officially Boots Libreboot". FOSS Force. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  18. ^ Hall, Christine (16 September 2016). "Libreboot Leaves GNU Claiming Gender Identity Discrimination by FSF". FOSS Force. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  19. ^ "Libreboot 20211122 Released, a completely free Coreboot distribution - itsfoss.net". 27 November 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  20. ^ "Libreboot 20210522 released! | Tux Machines". www.tuxmachines.org. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  21. ^ "Libreboot - Free Software Directory". directory.fsf.org. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  22. ^ "Taking control over the means of production: Free software boot — GNU MediaGoblin". media.libreplanet.org. Retrieved 27 May 2023.

External links

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