Foreword from the First Edition
How do you explain what BIOS is? I generally explain it as the code that runs when you first turn on the computer. It creates a level playing field so that the operating system has a known state to start from. If the other person has some programming knowledge, he or she generally says something like, “Oh. You’re one of those guys!” Let’s face it. BIOS isn’t sexy. The hardware engineers will always blame the BIOS engineers if the system fails to POST. It’s generally up to BIOS engineers to prove it isn’t their code that is the problem.
When I first started as a lowly BIOS Engineer II, the BIOS codebase was pure x86 assembly code—thousands of files across almost as many directories with lots of cryptic comments like, “I don’t know why this is here, but it breaks if I remove or modify it! Beware!” It took 45 minutes to do a clean compile. Comments would commonly refer to specifications that no longer existed. To say a BIOS is filled with some secret, arcane algorithms is like saying driving a Formula 1 car is just like driving on the freeway, only faster! There are no college courses that teach BIOS programming. There are no trade schools to go to. A few software and electronic engineers will be able to make it as BIOS engineers because it takes a bit of both to be successful.
This book is the first one I’m aware of that attempts to shine light onto the esoteric field of BIOS engineering. A field that makes everything from the big-iron servers to the lowly smartphone turn on. This book has combined two fundamental concepts. What you need to know to make a BIOS that works and what you need to know to make a BIOS that works fast! It wasn’t that long ago that a POST in under ten seconds was considered pretty fast. Today’s standard is now under two seconds. There are topics outlined in this book that will help get you to that sub-2-second goal. I am currently working on a quasi-embedded system that is in the sub-1-second range with full measured boot using these concepts!
This book has something for the recent college graduate as well as the seasoned BIOS engineer. There are nuggets of tribal knowledge scattered throughout. Help yourself become better acquainted with the BIOS industry and read it.
–Kelly Steele,
Former BIOS Architect, Insyde Software, Inc.,
Now at Intel Corporation
This book has something for the recent college graduate as well as the seasoned BIOS engineer. There are nuggets of tribal knowledge scattered throughout. Help yourself become better acquainted with the BIOS industry and read it.