Intel reveals EFI specification

Chip manufacturer Intel has handed over its Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) specification – a new model for the interface between platform firmware and operating systems – to a not-for-profit industry body.

Technology companies including Dell, HP, Intel and Microsoft have collaborated to form the new Unified EFI Forum, a non-profit organisation. This will take on responsibility for developing, standardising and promoting the EFI specification.

Advocates argue that EFI will improve interoperability between platforms and add-in cards and pave the way to for PCs to boot-up more quickly as it replaces the current basic input/output system (BIOS).

EFI is already supported by a number of 64-bit operating systems and platforms and is an emerging interface for 32-bit operating systems.

The Forum announced it would review the EFI 1.10 specification and plans to publish the first Unified EFI specification by the end of the year.