SeaBios

SeaBios

SeaBIOS is an open source implementation of a 16-bit x86 BIOS. It provides low-level firmware needed to boot operating systems like Linux, Windows, BSD and others on x86 systems. SeaBIOS is lightweight, compatible and easy to configure.
System & Hardware Firmware
SeaBios image
bios x86 open-source
SeaBios alternatives ➤

SeaBios: Open Source 16-bit x86 BIOS

SeaBios provides low-level firmware needed to boot operating systems like Linux, Windows, BSD and others on x86 systems, offering a lightweight, compatible, and easy-to-configure solution.

What is SeaBios?

SeaBIOS is an open source implementation of a 16-bit x86 BIOS (Basic Input/Output System). It provides the core firmware code required to initialize the hardware and boot an operating system when a computer is powered on.

Unlike proprietary commercial BIOS solutions, SeaBIOS is designed to be small, lightweight, portable and compatible across various hardware. It is written in the C programming language and released under the GNU General Public License.

SeaBIOS essentially replaces the traditional BIOS found on x86-based PCs and provides the low-level firmware functions needed to initialize hardware like the CPU, memory, graphics card, storage devices and more during the booting process. It also allows booting from various devices like optical drives, USB drives and provides legacy BIOS compatibility.

A key capability SeaBIOS provides is booting various operating systems like Linux, Windows, BSD, etc on standard x86 PC hardware. It initializes the hardware to a state where it can then load bootloaders like GRUB, which can then boot various OSes. This makes it popular in virtualization platforms like QEMU and VirtualBox.

Compared to classic proprietary BIOS, SeaBIOS focuses on hardware compatibility and minimalism over flashy graphical interfaces. It's modular design makes it easy to configure for different needs. Overall, SeaBIOS fills a small but important firmware layer in the software stack and enables booting on commodity x86 hardware.

SeaBios Features

Features

  1. Provides a 16-bit x86 BIOS firmware implementation
  2. Supports booting operating systems like Linux, Windows, BSD and others on x86 systems
  3. Lightweight and small memory footprint
  4. Highly configurable and customizable BIOS options
  5. Supports standard BIOS interfaces like int10 for video and int13 for disks
  6. Written in C language for portability and ease of maintenance
  7. Actively developed and maintained open source project

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Open source and free to use

Lightweight and fast boot times

High compatibility with operating systems and hardware

Very customizable firmware options

Active development community

Supports latest standards and hardware

Cons

Limited to 16-bit x86 BIOS only

Requires OS and hardware support for legacy BIOS

Lacks support for advanced features like UEFI

Limited hardware support compared to proprietary BIOS

Complex low-level code base

Official Links

Official Website
https://www.seabios.org

The Best SeaBios Alternatives

Top System & Hardware and Firmware and other similar apps like SeaBios

Here are some alternatives to SeaBios:

Coreboot icon
coreboot
XTIDE Universal BIOS icon
XTIDE Universal BIOS
Das U-Boot icon
Das U-Boot
Libreboot icon
Libreboot
Petitboot icon
petitboot
Suggest an alternative ❐

Coreboot icon

Coreboot

coreboot is an open source project that develops Linux-based firmware to replace proprietary BIOS/UEFI firmware on various computer hardware. The goal of coreboot is to initialize and test hardware components of a device and then pass control over to a bootloader that will load an operating system.Some key points about...
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XTIDE Universal BIOS icon

XTIDE Universal BIOS

XTIDE Universal BIOS is an open-source BIOS extension designed to add native Integrated Drive Electronics/Advanced Technology Attachment (IDE/ATA) hard disk drive (HDD) support to personal computers that lack built-in IDE support. It works by providing low-level access to ATA/IDE commands through the computer's BIOS interface.The software was created to allow...
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Das U-Boot icon

Das U-Boot

Das U-Boot, also known as the Universal Boot Loader, is an open source boot loader used primarily in embedded systems and devices. It is designed to initialize and test hardware components at system start up, as well as load and pass control over to the operating system.Some key features and...
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Libreboot icon

Libreboot

Libreboot is an open source boot firmware (a distribution of coreboot) that replaces proprietary BIOS/UEFI firmware found in most computers. It focuses on providing security, privacy, software freedom and fast boot times.Some key features and goals of Libreboot include:Using fully free and open source software for all firmware code, with...
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Petitboot icon

Petitboot

Petitboot is an open-source network bootloader and discovery tool designed for PowerPC systems. It enables netbooting over common network protocols like HTTP, FTP and TFTP to load operating systems or other payloads.Some key features of petitboot include:Netbooting support for PowerPC - petitboot handles retrieving kernels, initrds and device trees over...
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