EFI tech helps PCs boot up in 10 seconds

New technology has surfaced this week that enables an operating system to boot up in just 10 seconds.

Phoenix Technologies has launched its own take on Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) which replaces an older BIOS firmware interface with a new software interface which can speed up boot times.

A machine can normally take up to 10 seconds to even start loading an OS such as Windows, but here that initial process takes just one second, followed by another nine where the computer then becomes fully operational.

EFI was originally pioneered by Intel but since then a non-profit organisation called the Unified EFI (UEFI), whose members include companies such as AMD, Dell and Microsoft, has taken over management of the specification.

Phoenix's technology was demoed at the recent IDF conference in San Francisco attended by IT PRO using Windows 7 as an example. Now, rumours are now rife that it will soon be included in high-spec laptops.

Jennifer Scott is a former freelance journalist and currently political reporter for Sky News. She has a varied writing history, having started her career at Dennis Publishing, working in various roles across its business technology titles, including ITPro. Jennifer has specialised in a number of areas over the years and has produced a wealth of content for ITPro, focusing largely on data storage, networking, cloud computing, and telecommunications.

Most recently Jennifer has turned her skills to the political sphere and broadcast journalism, where she has worked for the BBC as a political reporter, before moving to Sky News.