[LinuxBIOS] Booting windows from LinuxBIOS

[Myles Watson]

The Register is reporting that OLPC is going to produce a version that boots
windows.  Does anyone know how they are planning to do it?  Are they still
going to use LinuxBIOS? Will it affect the Google Summer of Code project?

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/30/windows_on_olpc/

Thanks,
Myles

[Quux]

from what I understand they try to get MS into the boat. For cost 
reasons LinuxBIOS will still be choice #1. --Q

Myles Watson schrieb:
> The Register is reporting that OLPC is going to produce a version that boots
> windows.  Does anyone know how they are planning to do it?  Are they still
> going to use LinuxBIOS? Will it affect the Google Summer of Code project?
>
> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/30/windows_on_olpc/
>
> Thanks,
> Myles

[Stefan Reinauer]

* Quux  [070502 16:03]:
> from what I understand they try to get MS into the boat. For cost 
> reasons LinuxBIOS will still be choice #1. --Q

B3 and newer XOs will not come with LinuxBIOS anymore.

Instead of implementing a VSA-free version of LinuxBIOS, all machine
setup is done in Open Firmware now, in a forth based assembler dialect.

No doubt a viable solution for a machine as simple as the OLPC.

Stefan

[Augusto Pedroza]

Even if the use LinuxBIOS I don't think they will produce anything ready to
be shipped with linuxBIOS and ported for different architectures. So I guess
I still have a lot of work for GSoC :).

On 5/2/07, Quux  wrote:
> from what I understand they try to get MS into the boat. For cost
> reasons LinuxBIOS will still be choice #1. --Q
>
> Myles Watson schrieb:
> > The Register is reporting that OLPC is going to produce a version that
>
> boots
> > windows.  Does anyone know how they are planning to do it?  Are they
>
> still
> > going to use LinuxBIOS? Will it affect the Google Summer of Code
>
> project?
> > http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/30/windows_on_olpc/
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Myles

[Peter Stuge]

On Wed, May 02, 2007 at 11:14:07AM -0300, Augusto Pedroza wrote:
> So I guess I still have a lot of work for GSoC :).

Did you have a chance to look at the OSXP pages?

//Peter

[Augusto Pedroza]

Yes, Peter

I found that to be very interesting, I am taking a look at what  I could
use in my GSoC project.
Do you know that code in details?

Thanks a lot,

On 5/2/07, Peter Stuge  wrote:
> On Wed, May 02, 2007 at 11:14:07AM -0300, Augusto Pedroza wrote:
> > So I guess I still have a lot of work for GSoC :).
>
> Did you have a chance to look at the OSXP pages?
>
> //Peter

[Stefan Reinauer]

* Augusto Pedroza  [070502 19:33]:
> I found that to be very interesting, I am taking a look at what  I
> could use in my GSoC project.
> Do you know that code in details?

The code architecture looks like a mixture of our vm86 code and ADLO.

And it is a pluggable module.

[Peter Stuge]

Hi,

[..OSXP..]

On Wed, May 02, 2007 at 02:33:59PM -0300, Augusto Pedroza wrote:
> I found that to be very interesting, I am taking a look at what
> I could use in my GSoC project.
> Do you know that code in details?

Sorry, no, I haven't had a chance to look at it. It seems to be
complete with all that would be needed, just that it currently runs
on top of EFI instead of LinuxBIOS.

//Peter

PS. Please don't top-post. :) Thanks!

[Al Boldi]

Stefan Reinauer wrote:
> Quux  [070502 16:03]:
> > from what I understand they try to get MS into the boat. For cost
> > reasons LinuxBIOS will still be choice #1. --Q
>
> B3 and newer XOs will not come with LinuxBIOS anymore.
>
> Instead of implementing a VSA-free version of LinuxBIOS, all machine
> setup is done in Open Firmware now, in a forth based assembler dialect.

I'm a bit confused.  Can you elaborate how OFW can replace/differs from a 
normal/Linux-BIOS?

Thanks!

[Stefan Reinauer]

* Al Boldi  [070503 05:51]:
> > Instead of implementing a VSA-free version of LinuxBIOS, all machine
> > setup is done in Open Firmware now, in a forth based assembler dialect.
>
> I'm a bit confused.  Can you elaborate how OFW can replace/differs from a 
> normal/Linux-BIOS?

It is an implementation of IEEE 1275-1994 and it's extensions, written
in the programming language Forth. It's the firmware you might know from
the PPC Apples or SUN Sparc machines.

See more information on www.openbios.org

[Al Boldi]

Stefan Reinauer wrote:
> Al Boldi  [070503 05:51]:
> > > Instead of implementing a VSA-free version of LinuxBIOS, all machine
> > > setup is done in Open Firmware now, in a forth based assembler
> > > dialect.
> >
> > I'm a bit confused.  Can you elaborate how OFW can replace/differs from
> > a normal/Linux-BIOS?
>
> It is an implementation of IEEE 1275-1994 and it's extensions, written
> in the programming language Forth. It's the firmware you might know from
> the PPC Apples or SUN Sparc machines.
>
> See more information on www.openbios.org

Last I tried this, it felt just like another bootloader depending on a BIOS 
to bootstrap the machine.

Are you saying it's more than that?

Can it replace the BIOS?

Is it Vendor supplied with the specific hw?

Thanks!

[Stefan Reinauer]

* Al Boldi  [070503 10:41]:
> Last I tried this, it felt just like another bootloader depending on a BIOS 
> to bootstrap the machine.
>
> Are you saying it's more than that?

This depends on the specific implementation and a good hunk on
philosophy ;-)

There's a web server and graphical boot menu and lots other stuff in
OFW.
> Can it replace the BIOS?

Depends on what you expect from a BIOS. It can boot your OS, and on some
systems it knows how to initialize the hardware. On others it needs so
called low level firmware, ie. LinuxBIOS or U-Boot.
> Is it Vendor supplied with the specific hw?

What?

[Richard Smith]

Quux wrote:
> Myles Watson schrieb:
> > The Register is reporting that OLPC is going to produce a version that boots
> > windows.  Does anyone know how they are planning to do it?  Are they still
> > going to use LinuxBIOS? Will it affect the Google Summer of Code project?
> >
> > http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/30/windows_on_olpc/

The media is all jacked up.  This is the result of the country meetings 
we had last week.  "OLPC switches to windows" makes a wonderfull 
headline.  They have a bunch of crazy facts in those articles.  We are 
doing damage control with the media almost daily.  Take what you read in 
the media with several grams of salt.

MS on OLPC uses a different legacy bios not OFW or LinuxBIOS.
> from what I understand they try to get MS into the boat. For cost
> reasons LinuxBIOS will still be choice #1. --Q

You understand incorrectly.  We did not "try" to get MS into the boat. 
They came by themselves.  OLPC is as open of a platform as we can make 
it and still get the job done.  This means that if some one like MS 
wants to boot their OS on it then they are free to do so.

MS can read the datasheets and they did just that.  But just because 
OLPC _can_ run windows does not mean it _will_.  The official OS of OLPC 
is Linux.

[Al Boldi]

Richard Smith wrote:
> MS on OLPC uses a different legacy bios not OFW or LinuxBIOS.

Thanks for the clarification.

So, what made OLPC switch from LinuxBIOS to OFW, and why can't the two 
projects be merged?

Thanks!