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nixCraft 🐧

Red Hat is working on a new scheme to replace the GRUB bootloader with a fast, secure, Linux-based, user-space solution: nmbl (for no more boot loader). You can just use kernel to boot pretalx.com/devconf-cz-2024/ta

pretalx.comNo more boot loader: Please use the kernel instead DevConf.CZWe are working on a new scheme to replace the GRUB bootloader with a fast, secure, Linux-based, user-space solution: nmbl (for no more boot loader). Most people are familiar with GRUB, a powerful, flexible, fully-featured bootloader that is used on multiple architectures (x86_64, aarch64, ppc64le OpenFirmware). Although GRUB is quite versatile and capable, its features create complexity that is difficult to maintain, and that both duplicate and lag behind the Linux kernel while also creating numerous security holes. On the other hand, the Linux kernel, which has a large developer base, benefits from fast feature development, quick responses to vulnerabilities and greater overall scrutiny. We (Red Hat boot loader engineering) will present our solution to this problem, which is to use the Linux kernel as its own bootloader. Loaded by the EFI stub on UEFI, and packed into a unified kernel image (UKI), the kernel, initramfs, and kernel command line, contain everything they need to reach the final boot target. All necessary drivers, filesystem support, and networking are already built in and code duplication is avoided. We will showcase the work done so far, and ask you for your feedback and use cases.
Artur

@nixCraft efistub to boot the kernel "works" today but you need to pass kernel parameters as UEFI options which is not supported by all UEFI BIOS. I briefly used EFIStub to boot the kernel but my dell laptop reminded me why Im still on grub hahaha.

Hope that this project can address, also curious how boot parameters will be handled

Jul 09, 2024, 12:50 PM·Public·Mastodon for Android
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shironeko
@h0m3 @nixCraft it can be rolled into the initramfs, just might not be able to "edit" the parameters while booting
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ragingrobot :fedora: :freebsd:

@shironeko @h0m3 @nixCraft

TFA implies the command line will be built into the UKI.

How many times have we solved a problem by adding a kernel parameter?

Does this mean to edit the command line, we'll have to resort to Windows-esque "Hit this key at just the right nanosecond during boot to get a safe mode menu"? I hope not.

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shironeko
@ragingrobot @h0m3 @nixCraft personally I've been running with UKI for it feels like forever now. the way I deal with it is 1. if the system is not completely unbootable, reroll the uki with the parameters I need, 2. if it is then I go into a livecd environment to figure out what's going on and reroll the uki.
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ragingrobot :fedora: :freebsd:

@shironeko @h0m3 @nixCraft

So, instead of adding say, "nomodeset" to get into a bootable system, one would have to boot a liveusb and reroll an UKI?

Hope a better way comes about. A live system may work for you or I, but will drive away others who aren't interested in investing that much work into getting a system back into working order.

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shironeko
@ragingrobot @h0m3 @nixCraft I would argue that if regenerating UKI is too much (usually it's just one command) then probably they won't want to mess with kernel parameters either.

The only way to get "just works" boot experience is with hw qualification. boot process is just too cursed for any other approach imo, so it really doesn't matter what technical solution is used as long as someone have tested that it works.
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