Microsoft tries to block Linux off Windows 8 PCs

[Colin McGregor]

The central point in all of this is that ANY OS that is not properly
signed in Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) will not be
allowed to boot. In other words, NO Linux will run (unless the
hardware vendor has included a signature for YOUR Linux distro.),
ditto old versions of Microsoft Windows, ditto other free OSs such as
FreeBSD. The reason the hardware vendors would add UEFI is because
they will not be able to use the Windows 8 logo without UEFI. Bottom
line, this is Microsoft under the cover of "security" attacking Linux,
other free OSs and old versions of Windows.

Colin

On Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 5:37 PM, Ted <ted.leslie-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> Not sure i understand it.
> I can see a company not wanting a rootkit and essentially allowing for a
> insecure boot and  other issues,
> I mean  a linux distro could demand this (for valid security reasons) and
> lock out dual boot to windows?
> But, is it not the case that this signing issue would not have any effect on
> dual boot from separate drives?
> I know at times i have had dual boot be drive based and flipped in bios.
> I guess however this would be deemed a hassle to some? Given boot priority
> however, if you
> had drive drawers or power switch on drives, you could just dual boot by
> powering off the windows drive (or pop it, or bios change priority),
> and then it goes into linux?
> So seems to me its hardly a "block", if that was even attempt by MS, but
> rather maybe a slight annoyance at best?
>
> -tl
>
> On 09/21/2011 05:28 PM, Lennart Sorensen wrote:
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 05:18:46PM -0400, Thomas Milne wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/microsoft-tries-to-block-linux-off-windows-8-pcs/9572?tag=mantle_skin%3Bcontent
>>
>> Of course we don't know that yet.  So far it is just speculation.
>>
>> I do imagine some companies would love a method to prevent their machines
>> from having rootkits installed (at least by currently known methods).
>>
>> Of course given existing windows versions aren't signed, any machine
>> that requires this to work, won't work with existing windows versions,
>> so the changes of that happening seems pretty slim.
>>
>
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