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What’s the Difference Between BIOS and UEFI

You’ve probably come across the terms BIOS and UEFI while tinkering with your computer—whether you’re switching operating systems or overclocking your hardware. But do you understand what they do? Let’s break it down and simplify things.

The Boot Process: A Quick Overview- Before diving into BIOS and UEFI, let’s quickly go over how a computer starts up. It all begins the moment you press the power button:

  1. Power Up: The CPU kicks in but needs instructions to get started. Since the main memory is empty, it turns to the firmware (a special program stored on the motherboard).
  2. Self-Test: The firmware runs a Power On Self Test (POST), checks the hardware, and ensures everything is working. You might hear a “beep” if everything’s good.
  3. Looking for a Bootloader: The firmware scans your storage devices (hard drive, SSD, etc.) to find the bootloader, a small program that starts the operating system.
  4. Control Shift: If the bootloader is found, the firmware hands over control to it. The bootloader then loads the rest of the operating system.

This is a basic overview of the boot process. For more details on operating systems, you can explore resources like osdev.net.

Back to BIOS and UEFI

Now that we have a basic understanding of how booting works, let’s focus on the difference between BIOS and UEFI.

  • BIOS (Basic Input/Output System): The older of the two, BIOS has been around since the 1980s. It operates in 16-bit mode, with limitations like slower boot speeds and limited storage device support.
  • UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface): The modern replacement for BIOS, UEFI offers faster boot times, better support for large storage devices, and more features like secure boot and graphical interfaces.
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In short, UEFI is the more advanced and versatile option, while BIOS is slowly being phased out in favour of its successor.

BIOS vs. UEFI: What’s the Difference?

BIOS: The Old Guard

BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output System. It’s the firmware that helps your computer start up and communicate with the hardware. It’s stored in an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), so it can be updated by the manufacturer.

During boot-up, you can access BIOS settings by pressing keys like Del, F2, or F10. It does the job of reading boot sectors, printing startup info on screen, and helping the system get going.

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UEFI: The Modern Upgrade

UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is essentially the modern version of BIOS, with a big improvement: instead of using firmware to store startup data, UEFI stores it in a .efi file located on a special EFI System Partition (ESP) on your storage drive. This makes UEFI more flexible and powerful than BIOS.

UEFI addresses many of the limitations of BIOS, offering these key advantages:

  • Larger Drives: UEFI can handle drives up to 9 zettabytes, while BIOS maxes out at 2.2 terabytes.
  • Faster Boot Times: UEFI speeds up your startup process.
  • Better Driver Support: UEFI can load drivers from storage, unlike BIOS, which is limited by the drivers stored in ROM.
  • Security: UEFI offers Secure Boot, which helps protect against unauthorized software and rootkits, but can also interfere with dual-boot setups.
  • More User-Friendly: UEFI runs in 32-bit or 64-bit mode and supports a graphical interface, meaning you can navigate using a mouse, while BIOS is limited to a 16-bit mode and requires keyboard-only navigation.
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When You Might Still Want BIOS

Even though most modern computers come with UEFI, there are situations where you might prefer BIOS:

  • You’re a Beginner: If you don’t want to fiddle with firmware settings, BIOS is simpler to use.
  • Small Drives: If your drive is less than 2TB, BIOS may still be fine for your needs.
  • Multiple OS Setups: BIOS makes it easy to run multiple operating systems without additional configuration, though it’s less secure than UEFI.
  • Text-Based Interface: If you like the old-school, keyboard-only, text-based interface of BIOS, it might suit your style better.

UEFI does offer a Legacy Mode to mimic BIOS but note that Intel has announced they’ll no longer support traditional BIOS after 2020.

Conclusion

BIOS and UEFI serve the same fundamental purpose of helping your computer start-up, but UEFI is the more modern and efficient option, offering faster boot times, better security features, and support for larger drives. While UEFI is quickly becoming the standard in modern computing, BIOS is still in use due to its simplicity and compatibility with older systems. Depending on your needs—whether it’s ease of use, legacy support, or cutting-edge performance—each has its advantages, but UEFI is the future of system firmware.

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