fwupd: Simple, Open-Source Device Firmware Updating

As part of the work towards allowing easy UEFI/BIOS updates from the Linux desktop in a standardized manner, Richard Hughes has been developing the new fwupd component.

Fwupd is a daemon to allow session software to update device firmware on a local machine. Fwupd can be accessed from GNOME Software, via the command-line tool, or by interfacing via D-Bus.

The fwupd code is designed to work with UEFI hardware that allows for capsule firmware updates. However, as not too many motherboards/systems support that functionalit yet, Hughes added support to fwupd for also being able to update his ColorHug open-source color calibration device. Being able to update the firmware of the ColorHug also makes for an easier test environment for fwupd development given the device is relatively cheap in case anything were to be bricked in the process.

Those wanting to learn more about the new fwupd work can visit the GitHub repository page.