What Is Firmware? Discover all important about system firmware
Actually, we can start with the fact that the technical world rests on three pillars: Hardware, Firmware, Software. PNN Soft has experience in implementing solutions for each of the links. However, in order for developers to create a high-quality programming solution for firmware, and for clients to understand the peculiarities of implementing such tasks, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with the answer to the question: What is Firmware?
Firmware is a kind of software used for hardware or, to be more accurate, it is a system code embedded into the device that in future provide a reliable connection between software and hardware. The firmware is responsible for instructing the device how it should work and how to interact with other devices, from the Wi-Fi router at your house to complex laboratory equipment in the enterprises.
For a more vivid demonstration, let’s continue with an example. If the user has a device – modern smartphone, it has OS – Android, and application-software – any installed apps. The firmware in this case are bootloader, baseband, and drivers that ensure smooth operation between hardware and user-level software. Simply to say, firmware is a small but durable bridge that makes technologies to work and to exist.
However, as noted, firmware is a kind of software, but it’s not the same. So what is the difference?
| Main focus | |
|---|---|
| The firmware concentrates on device control and input/output tasks. | Software is actually code written in one of the programming languages, employing libraries and frameworks. It concentrates on performing various functional tasks. |
| Dev environment | |
|---|---|
| The firmware development environment is limited to specialized hardware tools and low-level languages. It depends on the devices for which the firmware was made. | The software development environment is diverse and flexible. The tools are continually updated and have a large community of users. |
| Testing stage | |
|---|---|
| The process of firmware testing involves the examination of hardware interaction and emulation. Testing can cover multiple scenarios and emulators to ensure proper operation of devices. | Testing programs can have many scenarios and approaches, often a large team of testers and QA specialists is involved in the process. |
| Workflow | |
|---|---|
| The process of interaction between the firmware and the operating system is concentrated in the CPU. Furthermore, the system firmware can be written to various types of memory: ROM, EPROM, RAM and BIOS. There are different types of firmware memory depending on the device. | As for the software, it can be divided into application software and OS itself. System software provides communication between applications and hardware. The user rarely interacts directly with the OS. However, application software is those programs that the user runs on the device to perform the necessary tasks. |
| Updating and deployment | |
|---|---|
| The firmware is implemented during device development. It rarely requires updates because there are risks of blocking devices. Firmware update may include updating or downloading new drivers when connecting devices. | The installation of application software is possible at any given time. It can be updated frequently, covering faults and bugs fixing that are only aimed at satisfying the user experience. |
There exist certain characteristics that can assist in typifying the firmware in various ways. We’ve already talked about them: BIOS, Baseball, Bootloader, ROMs, and others. Therefore, in order to build an understandable structure of firmware types, we will delve into the characteristics of the firmware.
The Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) and Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) are usually associated as firmware types. BIOS is one of the first firmware used in computers. It is located on the motherboard chip and provides a set of instructions for initializing hardware components. The firmware performs checks to ensure the proper functioning of the CPU and RAM, then evaluates the performance of the connected devices (mouse, keyboard, external memory disks, etc.). Thereafter, the BIOS completes the connection to the operating system and starts the latter, and already loads the RAM.
The UEFI and the EFI are new firmware computer generation. They provide additional advantages of cybersecurity and thoroughly check the software for security qualities. EFI is installed on Apple computers and supports an Intel processor. The UEFI firmware is used mainly by Windows and in addition supports AMD processor.
The BIOS system firmware has proven to be vulnerable to attacks, partly due to the shared code used by connected devices. Laptops have built-in firmware for components like battery, camera, and sound output devices, which are also at risk more often than PCs. Nevertheless, this poses additional security issues. A lack of proper firmware security can result in device malfunctions, data theft, and other vulnerabilities. Another risk factor is that the firmware of IoT devices has a low level of security. Although gradually this issue is solved and manufacturers prefer to update the firmware versions more regularly than before.
Computers, smartphones, network devices, smart devices (IoT), cars, wearable technology devises, and some laboratory and production equipment – all of them have system firmware. PNN Soft has a wide experience in creating software solutions for IoT. We have also developed an author’s application for OBD2 diagnostics of cars using ELM327 adapters.
PNN Soft has also created a software system for controlling, monitoring and testing the firmware of laboratory devices. We developed a desktop app, PWA and firmware management system for process management and testing the operation of the embedded devices. It shows visual elements representing the user equipment according to the device configuration. Each tool has a set of parameters, which the user can familiarize themselves with in detail.
Our software engineers developed an autonomous robotized vehicle navigation system capable of operating in complex environments. A computer connects to the robotized device and software help manage them and to compare images obtained from cameras with a pre-existing data set.
We talked a lot about the future of software and technology in general. And we know that each of the technologies has great potential for development. The reality of updating and creating firmware is basic and sounds next: The technological world as we know it would not exist without firmware. What are the potential changes in future firmware development?
More and more smart devices appear in our everyday, robotic systems solve production problems, and laboratory equipment automatically enters indicators into the program on the computer. Cars and watches are becoming smarter and more automated. All of this requires modern firmware and updates. This hints at the fact that the firmware will continue to modernize and play a significant role in the technological world. High-quality system firmware will reduce repair and maintenance expenses, establish smooth and reliable interaction with software and expand functionality.
If you are interested in developing custom software solutions for a special firmware, you can contact us for advice.
