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BIOS
The low-level firmware that starts a machine and hands control to the operating system.
The BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is the first code that runs when a computer powers on; it initializes hardware and then boots the OS. It operates on bare metal, before any operating system exists. A custom BIOS (such as one providing firmware for ARM boards) fills that role on hardware that needs it.
See also
- bare metalSoftware running directly on the hardware with no operating system underneath.
- big-endianA byte ordering that stores a number's most significant byte first.
- .ko moduleA driver file the Linux kernel can load and unload while running, without rebooting.