libreboot/README

GNU Libreboot

Libreboot documentation is under docs/
The website is https://libreboot.org/
License can be found in COPYING and through parts of the source tree.

Libreboot is a free BIOS or UEFI replacement (free as in freedom); libre boot 
firmware that initializes the hardware and starts a bootloader for your 
operating system. It's also an open source BIOS, but open source fails to 
promote freedom; please call libreboot free software. Since 14 May 2016, 
Libreboot is part of the GNU project. 

Why use libreboot?

Many people use non-free boot firmware, even if they use GNU/Linux. Non-free 
BIOS/UEFI firmware often contains backdoors, can be slow and have severe bugs, 
where you are left helpless at the mercy of the developers; you have no freedom 
over your computing. By contrast, libreboot joins GNU in building a world where 
everyone can use, study, adapt and share software, with true control and 
ownership over their technology. In other words, you should use Libreboot for 
your freedom's sake!

Libreboot is faster, more secure and more reliable than most non-free firmware, 
and can provide many advanced features (such as encrypted /boot/, GPG signature 
checking before booting your kernel, ability to load an OS from the flash chip, 
and more).

Libreboot's main upstream providers are coreboot (which we deblob, for hardware 
initialization), depthcharge (bootloader, and default libreboot payload on ARM), 
and GNU GRUB (bootloader, and default libreboot payload on x86). We also 
integrate flashrom (for installing libreboot), and several of our own utilities, 
scripts and configuration files. All of this is integrated into a single, 
coherent package that is easy to use. We add our own patches to the various 
upstreams used, and where feasible try to merge upstream as much as possible.

Libreboot provides a fully automated build system and installation process, with 
documentation written for non-technical users, in an attempt to make the 
software as easy to use as possible. ROM images are provided, along with 
utilities, all built from the publicly distributed source code. 

This README is licensed under Creative Commons Zero 1.0:
https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/