When you buy through affiliate links in our content, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Learn What Does Microsoft Secure Boot Mean?
Microsoft Secure Boot is a Windows 8 feature that uses secure boot functionality to prevent the loading of malicious software (malware) and unauthorized operating systems (OS) during system startup. Microsoft Secure Boot is set up with encryption keys that are used to secure communication between the Windows 8 OS and computer firmware, which is embedded software that correlates with the hardware.
Microsoft Secure Boot relies on a unified extensible firmware interface (UEFI).
Techopedia Explains Microsoft Secure Boot
Linux users have expressed concern regarding Microsoft Secure Boot’s effect on their ability to load Linux on Windows 8-certified computers. However, Linux founder Linus Torvalds believes these complaints are overblown. In a 2008 Wired Magazine interview, Torvalds commented that a bigger issue is whether or not Secure Boot will be hacked. OS makers and distributers, like Red Hat, have found a way to work around the issue by distributing their keys – for a fee – to firmware makers to accomodate operating systems. like Linux, replacing Microsoft’s cryptographic keys with their own, so that software can be signed through Linux.
